Renowned education administrator Prof VS Rao of BITS Pilani to join NIIT University as its next President

Renowned education administrator Prof VS Rao of BITS Pilani to join NIIT University as its next President

Prof Rao to bring forth rich expertise of over three decades of institution building and experience of developing work-integrated programs, to promote strong industry linkages at NU

Chennai, May 24, 2016: Established with a vision to bring about innovation in higher education and learning in emerging areas of the knowledge society, the not-for-profit NIIT University (NU) today announced the appointment of renowned education administrator Prof VS Rao as the next President for NU. Currently the acting Vice Chancellor of BITS Pilani (overseeing the campuses in Pilani, Hyderabad, Goa and Dubai), Prof VS Rao will join NU in July this year.

Prof Rao comes with an in-depth experience of institution building. With a distinguished career spanning over three decades, he has been the Founding Director for BITS Pilani (Hyderabad campus) since 2006. Prof Raohas demonstrated strong industrylinkages by virtue of developing extensive work- integrated programs for the University. A PhD in Chemistry, with a specialization in the field of Green Chemistry, he is deeply involved in promoting innovation in higher education.

Speaking on the occasion, Mr Rajendra S Pawar, Chairman NIIT and Founder NIIT Universitysaid, “We are delighted to welcome Prof VS Rao as the next President of NU. He has demonstrated great leadership in institution building over the last three decades.”

“Dr Rao’s rich experience in implementing innovative ideas in industry-linkage programs is strongly aligned to NU’s uniqueness in partnering with industry leaders in the sunrise sectors of the knowledge economy”, added Mr Pawar.

Widely known for offering exclusive Industry-Linked programmes, NU hasentered into strategic alliances with leading organisations like ICICI, ESRI,IBM, WNS, PwC and Federal Bank,for offering pioneering Masters level programs. 

Expressing his excitement about his forthcoming role at NU, Prof VS Rao said,“NIIT University’s four core principles that make learning Industry-Linked, Technology-Based, Research-Driven and Seamless, provide a solid foundation for building the University of the Future.”

Actively involved with industry associations for promoting innovations in learning, Prof Rao has been a member of the CII State Council since 2012; a member of FICCI Higher Education Committee since 2016; member, AP Society for Knowledge Network (2013-14) and a member of Telangana Academy of Skills & Knowledge (TASK) since 2014.

About NU

Set up with the vision of being the leading center of innovation and learning in emerging areas of the Knowledge Society, the not-for-profit NU is dedicated to building great careers and ensuring excellent job opportunities to all its students. It has been developed as an institution of excellence to provide exceptional education based on the four core principles that make learning Industry-linked, Technology-based, Research-driven and Seamless.

NU offers BTech Programs in Computer Science &Engineering, Biotechnology and Electronics& Communication Engineering, MTech Programs in Educational Technology, as well as Geographic Information Systems and PhD Programs in Humanities & Social Sciences and Management in addition to all the above disciplines.NU offers exclusive Industry-linked programmes at the Masters level. Recently, NU announced the launch of MBA (Business Analytics) with Industry leader WNS and MTech (Cyber Security) in collaboration with PwC.

With a focus on innovation and a research-driven approach to education, NU is beginning to emerge as the hot-bed of entrepreneurship. The university provides an enabling platform for students to innovate ideas for their own startups, under the guidance of expert faculty.These startups are based on innovative ideas like – a smart network health monitoring tool; a dedicated one-stop solution for pet care services; NU-Window; First Move Technologies; AT-Lead; Food tech; My Geo Info, Astra and a peer learning site, to name a few.

Students from the University engage in internships at prestigious organizations. BTech students get the opportunity of 6-month immersive work experience before they graduate. NU also offers a 2-year full-time MBA programme with options to specialize in areas like Marketing, Finance, HR, Digital Marketing, Business Analytics, Banking and Banking Technology. The University has conducted an industry-linked MBA (Banking & Finance) programs in collaboration with ICICI Bank.

NU has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the University of Missouri - Kansas City’s (UMKC) School of Computing and Engineering, to offer a 5-year program that will allow students to secure a BTech degree from NU & and an MS in Computer Science &Engineering from UMKC. This is a first-of-its-kind landmark agreement between two educational institutions to collaborate in BTech and MS degree programs and research activities through the exchange of degree-seeking students and faculty members in the area of Computer Science and Computer Engineering.

The University has entered into a partnership with Autodesk to promote ‘Design Thinking’ as a course across all disciplines of BTech Programs. NU has a ‘Microsoft Innovation Centre’ on campus that features the best of equipment, the latest technology & expert guidance that fosters an environment of learning & entrepreneurship on campus.The Asian Lenses Forumhas been setup at NU to sensitize the younger generation and to create a sense of pride in Asian/Indian heritage, culture, history and values amongst youth. The forum acts as a launching pad for the faculty and student bodies of NU to undertake research and disseminate knowledge about role, achievements and centrality of Asia in the rapidly changing world.

Vibrant social and recreational activities form the heart of Campus Life at NU, with a host of student activities interspersed along the central walking spine. The Campus provides students a wide array of sports activities like tennis, badminton, football, basketball, volleyball, gymnastic and golf-putting. Furnished student hostels make life comfortable for students. Temperatures are maintained at the Campus all year around using an energy-efficient, geothermal cooling system, with minimal carbon footprint. For further information please visit www.niituniversity.in.

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