Bengal College of Engineering and Technology

Dr. A.C. Ganguli is the Director at Bengal College of Engineering and Technology. Having spent his entire career teaching students, he shares his views about the changing scenario of global education. He puts emphasis on practical learning and advises students to explore all possibilities. Read here what he has to say in his interview.

What are the key factors that keep you connected with the education sector?

“I am a believer in holistic development”

My motivation has always been to produce quality engineering students. Even at 75, I am working with the same motivation to produce students who can serve the country well. I have always believed in the importance of students being well-rounded individuals. Hence wherever I go, I have given importance to extracurricular activities.

What is your philosophy of leadership? How would you describe your leadership style?

“We should take everybody together, discuss with each other”

Leadership always has to be about taking everybody together to serve a purpose. I run this institution not by domination, but by participation and cooperation. I believe this method of leadership helps extract the best out of people. It helps them understand the importance of responsibility. It is the way the best quality can be achieved in all areas.

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How do you strategize about the key programs and plans for the marketing and administration of your institute?

“Having excellent faculty to provide relevant learning exposure to students is necessary”

If you want good students to take admission, then you need to have good faculty in each and every department. I do not define having a doctorate as a factor to be classified as a good teacher; it's people who love teaching. That is the type of people we need to recruit. The infrastructure has to be top-notch, especially at an engineering institute. There is no need to spend heavily on advertisements. I feel students and guardians are attracted to a particular college when they see that they have good faculty. Good faculty and infrastructure also help drive in companies for placement. They automatically turn up to recruit the students.

“Academic, faculty, infrastructure, and projects help us motivate our students to work together and settle irrespective of their economic or racial background.”

What has your institute done to adapt to this pandemic and ensure continuity?

“Pandemic gave us an opportunity to move towards digitization”

It is indeed a challenge to cope-up amid the pandemic. Online classes were held, virtual laboratories were organized, projects were conducted virtually, the University helped a lot by offering online examination options. All our students were able to clear the year without coming to college physically. Most of the students have already gotten jobs and have started working from home as well. Despite this pandemic, we are thrilled to say that students have cooperated, and teachers have done exceptionally well, adapting to the new online method. We have seen that not a single day of a student's career shall be affected as they are our priority.

What are some of the biggest challenges in the education sector?

“Training student to align their mentality for the industry is a challenging task”

I feel training students prepare them for the industry is by far the most difficult challenge. We have to continuously adapt to the current industry trends and align our syllabus accordingly. The change is syllabus doesn't happen often; thus, we try to bring in multiple approaches to help students build a prosperous career. Additionally, I feel every college should target to open a fixed number of startups every year. It will help increase the possibility of students getting placed.

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