For Jesty Bastin, Saturdays begin earlier than a normal workday and it?s not for work. 5.30 am: Wake up. 6.30 am: Review study material and prepare for test paper. 8.30 am to 5.30 pm: Back-to-back lectures and test papers towards Masters in Science degree from Mysore University. 5.30 pm: Home with weekly assignments and test papers plus a full workweek starting Monday.
In 2006, after graduating in BSc Electronics, Jesty joined IBM India. To everyone?s surprise, a university rank holder, instead of going for higher studies opted to work, but accompanying the IBM offer was ?a degree thrown in?, that of an MS at the end of four years whilst being a ?full-time permanent employee?. The grind though has been similar week after week for the past three years with one more to go, but the sleepless nights and long days will bear fruit in 2010 when Jesty will have a MS degree and fours years professional experience at IBM thus being two years ahead of her peers with a similar degree.
Why work-study programmes?
Studying while working is not a new concept. Many organisations have been facilitating such arrangements but IT companies have taken it to the next level. IT majors TCS, Wipro, Infosys, IBM have all ventured in to this arena which also serve their purpose, being highly dynamic they require a continuous learning and skill development mindset from their employees. Additionally, during the days of a hot job market, when there was a crunch for talent, companies preferred to hire fresh graduates and train them on the job.
Many IT firms have forged alliances with various institutes. IBM for instance has tied up with Mysore University to provide employees with the ?study? (or MS in this case) component of the deal. IT majors hire graduates who meet the requirements of the organisation and can handle work and academics together. These companies have simultaneously tied up with institutes such as BITS Pilani, IIT-M, IIM-B to provide young employees a Master degree programmes or certified diploma courses.
Some trendsetters
TCS for one has alliances with institutions such as IIT Chennai, Jadavpur University, West Bengal and Sastra University. Under these tie-ups, TCS offers courses such as ME, MTech and MCA. Ajoy Mukherjee, VP & head, Global HR, TCS, said, ?Our employees can pursue higher education with institutes like Jadavpur University, West Bengal for ME (software engineering) and MTech with IIT Madras. MCA programme is also offered by Sastra University, which is especially for science graduates who join the firm under the TCS Ignite programme.? Mukherjee added, ?TCS pays the entire course fee that the employees take up. In addition they are entitled to full salary and all emoluments.?
Infosys has partnered with IIM-B since 2005 for post-graduate programme in software enterprise management (PGSEM) which is equivalent to MBA and is the most coveted of all its programmes. Infosys can sponsor a certain number of its employees, who are selected by IIM-B through their rigorous selection process. The duration of the programme is 2.5 years and classes are conducted in IIM-B campus. The purpose of this higher education scheme is to enable talented individuals to acquire skills required for future roles, the company stated. Infosys also has tie ups with BITS Pilani and other IIMs and in addition organises comprehensive 6-month training programme at its Global Education Centre in Mysore for trainee new joiners. This residential programme enables their transition to the corporate world and prepares them with the required behavioural attributes.
Meanwhile, Accenture has a tie-up with XLRI for an HR training academy focusing on the HR needs of the IT and BPO industries. It provides graduates seeking careers in HR with skills geared to these industries. Apart from this, the firm has tied up with Indira Gandhi National Open University (Ignou) for BPO diploma programme. Recently, IBM has also signed an MoU with Ignou wherein Ignou and IBM India would partner to impart teachings on IT standards in emerging verticals like healthcare, financial services and retail that have a significant growth potential, and also technical training in open source software skills and open standards, with live projects.
While the benefits of a work-study programme are many, a huge effort is needed on behalf of both the sponsoring organisation and the partner institute to not dilute the quality or integrity of the programme being imparted to employees. This could happen for several reasons; the first priority of faculty at premier academic institutes is naturally their mainstay programmes on campus and due to paucity of resources and time these additional alliances may get ignored in the bargain. Additionally, IT organisations that are chasing double-digit growth targets may put these initiatives on the back burner during a crunch time.