Prof.(Dr.) Dhrubajyoti Chattopadhyay is currently the Vice Chancellor of Amity University, Kolkata.

He has headed the Calcutta University as a Pro Vice Chancellor for more than seven years. He has also served as a Professor in the Department of Biochemistry for a long period of time.

Dr. Dhrubajyoti Chattopadhyay

The Interview

Ques 1: Can you tell us about your experience in the education industry and what makes it the best industry to work in?

Ans. It has been over 35 years that I have been associated with education. And I never want to call it an Industry. I feel that the best part of a profession is the constant growth of your knowledge curve through extensive research work and experience and the satisfaction you get when you create a knowledge pool who are going to shape tomorrow’s world. The main outcome of our work is how many good human beings I can produce.

Ques 2: What is your philosophy of leadership? How would you describe your leadership style?

Ans. My philosophy of leadership is to become a learner as well as be a mentor.  Mentors give their subordinates the opportunity to learn and to grow. They do not penalize their subordinates for taking wrong decisions but rather make them understand where did they go wrong and ensures that they learn from their mistakes. Always try to convey that we should always try to find the positive side of all the happenings.

Ques 3: How do you look at the growth of students through placement opportunities available at Amity University? How do you wish to push the envelope further?

Ans. We undertake an integrated approach to the development of a candidate through workshop, grooming, and seminars. A candidate gets the feel of the course through these seminars and workshops and also learns the practical application of the theories. There are trainers who groom our students for interviews and aptitude tests so that when they face interviews they are well equipped theoretical concepts as well as practical application of those concepts. Our main aim is to make our students employable.

Ques 4: VC’s position requires intense time management. How do you manage your time?

Ans. During the course of my tenure as Pro-Vice Chancellor- Academics, in CU, I have learned to arrange for the priorities. Every job has a priority and one has to assign the right priority for the jobs in order to get it done on time. Since resources are limited we need to carry some tasks on a parallel basis so that we can achieve the overall completion target. I believe in the 3D’s of Management for my daily tasks. DO, DELEGATE and DISPOSE. If you see your daily routine you will see that some jobs you need to do yourself, some jobs got to delegate and some jobs are redundant so you need to dispose them or defer them to a later date. This principle is very helpful for time constrained activities.

Ques 5: How do you tend to establish a relationship with the students being the VC of the University? How do you make yourselves available to them?

Ans. Students are a core part of any institution and I feel as a head of the Amity University, I need to find time even in my busy schedule to interact with them. We have a lot of events going on the campus and we have around 21 clubs in which students actively participate. I make it a point that whenever any event takes place, I can be present in those events and by doing so I can interact with almost all students face to face. It’s essential to know your students as this gives you an idea of your future plans and decisions you got to take.

Ques 6: Your university has students coming from almost all states and backgrounds. How do you establish a healthy culture and climate among this diverse family of Amity University?

Ans. We live in India where we have so many cultures and traditions. We try to have the same culture and traditions on our campus so that students get a feel of our country and the cultural heritage. We try to organize the regional festivals regularly.

Ques 7: How does your curriculum ensure best practices of the industry?

Ans. We update our curriculum constantly and we have eminent personalities from industry in the Board of Studies who guides on the subjects which are more demanding in the market and we tailor our course accordingly. This helps our students to be always updated and make sure that they have the best of the knowledge available in any domain.

Ques 8: What are the qualities which over the year have helped you create a brand name for Amity University?

Ans. We emphasize on quality education and we try to provide that quality education through an optimum blend of our Indian culture and value system. Apart from that, we value human resource and have the right mix of talent including Faculty members and Administrative staffs.

Ques 9: What goals do you have in your mind for your University for the next two years?

Ans. We are trying to become numero uno in West Bengal and we plan to have some unique courses students which are not available at present. We are aiming to establish a research driven university.

Ques 10: Any suggestions you would like to give to the current youth and the aspiring students.

Ans. Today the world is changing at a fast pace. We haven’t changed in the last 10 years in the pace we have changed in the last 5 years.  It is the era of digital convergence and the change would be even at a higher pace in the years to come. So, in this fast-changing economy, I would suggest keeping a balanced attitude towards study and recreation. If you want to take up any course, do take it up for your passion for the course and not for money. If you go for money, a time would come when you would become exhausted even if you have earned a lot of money but if you have the passion for the subject your knowledge curve will constantly grow which will ensure your unending success. Always we have to believe in ourselves and try to do the best for the people surrounding us who are deprived of what we have.