The Hindu Business Line : Universitas eyeing corporate tie-ups

UNIVERSITAS 21 Global, which launched an online MBA programme for students across the globe in July 2003, is now looking at corporate tie-ups in India.

Dr Michael Goldberg, Chief Academic Officer, Universitas 21 Global, told Business Line that "they were trying to talk to talent management people in Indian companies and convincing them about the value" that U21G could bring to the organisation.

Currently, U21G is running its programme in three companies in the country: 48 employees from the Aditya Birla Group have enrolled for the MBA programme.

Nearly 100 employees of Satyam Computer Services have taken up individual modules or certificate courses of the programme and 15 of them have opted for the full-time MBA programme, according to Mr Vijay Srinivasan, Vice-President, Universitas 21 Global.

The graduate school recently tied up with Intel to offer similar programmes for its employees in India.

Apart from a management programme, U21G also offers a master's degree in information management and a master's degree in tourism.

Universitas 21 Global, based in Singapore, has 16 partner members, including universities such as McGill University (US), University of Birmingham (UK), University of Edinburgh (UK), University of Singapore, University of Melbourne (Australia) and University of Queensland (Australia). Professors from all 16 universities set the course content.

The programme currently has 730 students from 40 countries, including India, Singapore, the UAE, the UK, the US, Australia, Russia, Tanzania, Canada and Malaysia.

"And about 120 of these are Indian students based in India, with most of them being working professionals in their mid-30s," said Dr Jeremy Williams, Director, Pedagogy and Assessment, Associate Professor, e-Learning.

The students have to cover 18 subjects, with each taking about 12 weeks to complete. They can complete the programme in 18 months to five years.

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