VTU students can now pursue minor degree programmes alongside BE  

Bengaluru: In a bid to help students burnish their resumes with an added course, Visvesvaraya Technological University (VTU) has decided to frame regulations so that the varsity’s students can pursue minor degree programmes in addition to the four-year Bachelor of Engineering (BE) degree.A decision to this effect was taken at the recent meeting of the VTU Executive Council, and a circular has been issued to all affiliate and autonomous colleges intimating them about the new set of regulations.VTU’s decision to allow students to pursue a minor degree is part of its sustained efforts to help diversify students’ skillset so as to improve their chances of getting employment.Students registering for the minor degree will have to earn 18 credits or more beyond those that one will secure in the course of the BE degree. Students can choose the minor degree programme from a list of available courses that will be uploaded online.VTU signs MoU with Google to boost AI, cloud skillsStudents will be awarded the online National Programme on Technology Enhanced Learning (NPTEL) course only as long as they meet the attendance requirement, and secure 40 marks out of 100 on aggregate.“In the case of courses offered on the All-India NPTEL portal, a student must secure not less than 10 marks out of 25 in the assignment component, and not less than 30 out of 75 in the final proctored exam,” the regulations read.But students enrolling in the NPTEL course offered through VTU COE, Mysuru, must, in addition to satisfying the attendance requirement, score not less than 20 out of 50 in the CIE component, and secure at least 35 out of 100 in the semester examination.Underscoring the value of a minor degree, the circular points to trends such as technological convergence, interdisciplinary engineering practices, coupled with changing industry expectations.

Source: Deccan Herald