Since the economy is under lockdown, it is losing on a mammoth of spots, this pandemic has assuredly taken a toll on the businesses and services. There may be a crisis of jobs for the new pass-outs, there will be many who will lose their jobs or businesses and this may lead to the brain-drain kind of situation. However, this area is very grey as of now as people will fear to settle and work abroad due to the global disturbance, this will highly be based on how soon our economy will be able to revive. The overall crunch of finances may hamper the research going on in the sectors other than healthcare. Healthcare is the prime concern for any nation at this point and India is no different. A major chunk of the government-treasury has been targeted towards the maintenance, advancement, and innovations of the medical and healthcare domain, and this is not appearing to be over soon. The government so far has not taken any decision on tax-relief either, they have come up with any other initiative to boost and incentivize education technology or skill-technology as such. Also, this pandemic has changed the face of the education system, it has shifted the system which majorly relies on physical classroom setup to an online one and the current GST rate of the online courses is 18%, this will impact the entire system to a great extent. Lack of scholarship funding schemes, no tax-credit for the corporates towards the expenses they incur to train the employees will make the area even more exposed. There is a lot to do and the government and private institutions both have to come up with some major plan of actions to minimize the impact this pandemic has tossed on the sector.

There is no denying that even after introducing several programs/schemes/policies to uplift the standard of the Indian Education system there still exists the scope to do much more. Indian Higher Education has been suffering already for years, and the outbreak of pandemic has even made the area critical and sensitive. India is already in the 3rd phase of the lockdown, although the regular classes have been substituted with the online classes still there is a lot which is at a miss. There are several inter-dependent areas to this sector which will bore the after-effect of this lockdown. Stock market losses could significantly affect philanthropy and other finances impending towards the institutions. The outlined risks are impacting nearly all colleges and universities, although the magnitude of risk will depend largely on factors such as geography, number of out-of-state and international students, and mix of programs and funding sources. Potential Job losses and income reductions may make the financial aids and grants insufficient for the upcoming year and this may create additional financial pressure on the institutions to make up for the shortfall. Funding online education and programs may get a lot of attention, as this may be the next big shift in the education sector. Institutions that can further rationalize the funds into online investments  and it will likely be better positioned to survive and generate revenue, and needless to say to reduce expenses in the years to come.

2) Technological Impact on Higher Education

The availability of resources/technology and the accessibility of the same are two different aspects. The literacy rate here, plays a great role as the usage of these tools and techniques need a certain level of articulacy. As the internet is relatively new in India, there still exists a gap that is difficult to bridge. Smartphones, laptops, and the internet are not new for today’s India but still, there is a very small portion of the population who is aware, skilled, and competent to use these available resources for academic purposes. The same goes with the institutes as well, there are very few institutions and academic centers in India who are equipped enough to function its curriculum on, online mode.

Tools & Techniques like audio-books, presentations, e-learning along with the platforms like ZOOM, Google Classroom, Hangout meets, WhatsApp/phone learning has definitely helped the sector to keep going. Apart from this Artificial Intelligence, Big Data, Machine Learning has the power to change the scene. Platforms like Skill-share are coming with advancement and with a motive of skill development and personality enhancement which should not be compromised by staying behind the 4-walls. Digital devices have made the penetration easy but the expenses attached to it, is still a challenge to meet in India. Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality for learning are already gibberish, these advancements have given the power to function even after being in an emergency for this long. We need to learn and practice the optimum implications of these technological advancements to cope up with the situation and to deal with future threats. India is the 2nd largest market for smartphones, immediately next to China with over 220 million active users, so the internet and data usage will not remain a massive challenge in the future. Learning is no more confined to a particular source or channel, now we do have multiple mediums to explore and exploit, the learning management system (LMS) can be considered a good example of this, it helps students to log in and access the course material. Similar to this the Synchronous Learning method allows real-time engagement while Asynchronous learning offers more flexibility. Various websites and platforms have enabled the learners to delve into the medium of their choice and have given them the edge to choose, verify, and grasp. This learning is not only confined to the curriculum rather it opens the horizon of gaining knowledge and has given a sky big aspect to the learning process as a whole. One can easily learn and look into other facets of education after all, in the modern world it’s not only the bookish knowledge that keeps you apart. Grooming oneself with the vocational courses and other interests is the demand of the time, as students are taking interest in learning different languages.    

3) Impact of Internationalization

COVID-19 has proven to be an unprecedented challenge to the education industry and is certainly going to affect internationalization at various levels. India is the 2nd largest source country for international students globally, just after China. Intensity to what extent it may affect the education sector can only be identified once the situation will be settled into a definite state. Lockdown and Pandemic may make it a reality that- rather than going to places to study and avail the exposure, the campus (virtual campuses) may approach the learners. There may be a humongous rise in online and virtual classes, study-abroad plans of the students may be kept on hold or they may be compelled to reconsider the prospect altogether. As the situation may remain like this for a few upcoming years, students may opt to study closer to their home or staying domestic may be the new trend. Institutions may have a cat-race to come out with low-cost quality education and the universities may come-up with additional specifically designed courses to attract students at a global platform. Studying abroad may not be considered as fancy as it is today. Post-lockdown there may arise a need to encourage the Indian institutions to have their establishments in foreign land and attract more world-class education institutions to have their centres in our homeland. Also, partnering with institutions abroad may become the pressing priority, at the same time a platter full of faculties from different diaspora could be a new thing. The navigation and interconnectedness of global education could be seminal to keep the education system going, the role of educators and those who impart education may get re-defined. As per a study by the Internationalization of higher education research (IHE) team at Manipal, 7 out of 10 students have already dropped the idea of studying abroad. Institutions may come up with an increased number of seats to meet the newfound increase in the number of applicants. The institutions may need to place and position themselves differently, attaining global ranking may not be the target for many institutions as the parameters to judge may shift to a great extent. The physical classroom may also encounter the conversion and may turn into a fully/ partially or hybrid online classroom to maximize its reach. Faith and confidence can only be gained at an international platform by expanding national education capacity, enhancing public services, developing a globalized workforce, and building mutual trust between nations. However, the low living expenses, unique indigenous cultural, traditional offering, cultural and religious diversity can act as a catalyst and may perform as a “pull factor” for the internationalization of Indian higher education.

4) Impact on Employability

The world was expecting a recession for the current financial cycle and the COVID pandemic has stamped it even deeper on the financial aspects of the economies across the globe. No country has been spared from this novel virus, nations as capable and flourished as The United Nations, UK, Italy, Spain have been facing the burns. India being a developing nation has emerged as an ardent, as far as the fight against the virus is concerned. In Fact we are efficiently serving as a pharmacy to several economies, India is running in the 3rd phase of the lockdown and it has steadily affected many sectors. There are several small/young entrepreneurs, manufacturing units of small and medium scale, vendors, labors, domestic help who has been majorly hit by the lockdown. Every organization/institution has different suffering and thus have different ways to deal with the prevailing issues, many have been terminated from the job, facing the salary slash and many have to sacrifice their salaries for a couple of months or so. The young learners who have completed their degrees in the recent past session must be facing challenges at various levels, the lockdown has already eaten up the existing jobs and services, and organizations are already struggling to manage their existing manpower. Employment at the time, where both products-based and service-based sectors are scuffling for their mere survival, employability could be the hindmost aspect to think for many. The volume of average annual packages, volume of overall hiring, skilled workers, the entire recruitment process, mode of work, technology usage, everything is possibly going to witness a shift in the general working sphere. The industry may face a stagnant phase as an after-effect of the lockdown, sectors will take their own time to revive their function and reassure their revenue generation. The delay and suspension of regular jobs and employment may push and compel the prospect earners to seek other ways of earning and this may lead to the evolution of various new job capacities. For example, nowadays an engineer or one who is gadgets and technology savvy can earn by putting the information and product reviews over various media and social channels. So, this crisis may give birth to a new era of employability, after all, it’s an old saying that “necessity is the mother of invention”. Also, job seekers can utilize this lockdown phase to brush-up their skills and brainstorm their core strengths. Job seekers may formulate a planner for themselves to channelize the leeway time productively, it will also help them prepare for the post-lockdown phase. The future employees can make a list of their interests and then shortlist the prospect professions on that basis, later they can choose for the courses available over various sources to sharpen the skills and it will ultimately give them an edge.  

5) Impact on Enrollment

There is already a delay in the session and as of now, the new sessions have been declared to commence from the 1st August 2020, the mid-term exams have been kept on hold and in many institutions the authority is yet to take the decision on this. The inability to make up the financial aids parallel to the set targets to the sector may result in enrollment shortfalls, governments may encounter challenging decisions as they try to mitigate or suppress COVID-19 outbreaks. These may have a direct impact on enrolment, we are already navigating in the unprecedented crisis, when and where to enroll can be the next big question. A boom in educational counsellors and enrollment specialists/agents/centres could be a new prospect business. There may be fewer visits to the campuses and people will look for more alternatives, faculty and non-teaching workforce may experience a surge in the workload. Students planning to take the admissions for higher studies may consider the option of dropping the year and diverting their time and resources to enhance their other employability skills with various online courses and consultations. The families, students, and faculty can unite and implement a plan-of-action to minimize the impact of coronavirus on enrollment. 

Institutions along with its workforce should come at the forefront and take the charge by preparing itself with various measures to establish an environment of acceptance, assuredness, and conclusiveness. The program can be introduced by initiating protocols for screening and sanitizing the premises, launching hygiene practice campaigns, up-grading and promoting e-learning/ online learning practices, and up-scaling distance learning programs. Later, recovery can be managed by putting the adjustment with the academic calendar (which certainly needs more clarity from the government and other decision-making bodies in due course of time). Collective effort and redundancy measures can help in the disposition of effective policies to the domain 

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1.)   Impact on Education Funding 

The Indian government has allocated 99,300 crores to the Education sector, which includes 3,000 crores for Skill Development under the Union Budget,2020. Infrastructure, funds-deficit, scarcity of efficient workforce, limited resources, and low penetration of technology have always been a tight-spot for India.

Funding can be attained in 4 different ways: –

a.) Government Funding

b.) Private Funding

c.) Funding through different foundations

d.) Funding through Professional Organizations

By 2030 India claims to have the largest population of working-age, which is quite staggering, India as a nation should boost its formulated strategies targeting this sector, or else, we will be left far behind. Here, funds crunch can be considered as the most prodigious ailment- the sector is lacking grants and aids from the government leaving the sector highly unstructured when it comes to the money deposition. The private sector is struggling due to the cut-throat competition, limited sponsors, and aids whereas the government institution has its circumspection. This pandemic has delayed the money generation and flow already, and India can expect a testing time ahead. Apart from being conventional, our education system can be considered as expensive as well, for example- institute like IIM Ahmedabad charges 23 lacs for a 2 year MBA program, which anyways is quite heavy on the pocket for an average Indian, and the current situation has already restricted the incomes of the parents, and has derailed the up-coming placements as well. The infrastructure of the education sector has improved a lot in the past decade but still, there is a lot to improvise- as infrastructure is crucial to attracting the students from across the countries, to have the best of faculties, and to stand parallel to the world-class education. As the scenario is changing institutions have started focusing a lot more on the commissioning and maintenance of their base and premises. Institutions which are having plans to invest, improve, or establish the infrastructure may be compelled to reconsider their plans and decisions. Foreign/ domestic investments, grants, aids, scholarships everything will be under the radar and only calculative scrutiny can help the institutions to come up with the most favourable outcomes. 

Few Recommendations to overcome the immediate funding related issues

 a.) More agencies/proposals should be introduced to back-up and support the educational institutions, in their capital expenditure and infrastructure development,

b.) More support should be extended to increase the investment in the Education sector, and thus improvising the global rankings.

c.) Research and R&D programs should be encouraged and promoted to convoke with global standards.

d.) Due to the COVID pandemic, there will be a shift in the contribution of the companies to the CSR activities. The education sector should come up with new ideas and theories as a whole and work towards channelizing the contribution tactfully   

e.) Scholarships and relaxation on taxes needs to be re-considered

2.)     Technological Impact on Higher Education 

We can have at least the basics of human survival going because of the technology and access to the knowledge/information we are having in today’s time. No information and technique are distant in this era of internationalization, the pandemic is certainly going to affect the entire education system in the long run and who knows if the new techniques of learning will become the soul of the education system in the future. Technology is the sole resource that has made the virtual mode of education possible in this pandemic. Online education is not new in India but certainly is less penetrated due to the lack of access to technology by the major portion of the population. The pandemic has compelled the world to reinvent the years’ old education system. Technology plays a vital role in the modern education system, India has always been conventional, rigidly structured, and process-driven with its education system, it also lacks practicality and exposure to what European and western education offers.

However, things are changing at a great pace. Technology in education has evolved to a great extent in the last 20 years thanks to globalization and privatization, it has turnaround more in these years than it has in the entire century. I-pad, tablets, smartphones, desktops, laptops, speakers, microphones, in-built cameras, etc. have made the entire process impactful and interactive. Audio-visual medium, power-point presentations, animation software has made the process seamless to a great extent. As per a report by KPMG- the Indian online education industry will register a 6X growth in 2021. From 1.6 million users in 2016, it will grow to 9.6 million users by 2021 with a worth of $1.96 billion. India has come a long way and the entire education system has seen a turnaround era of advancement and development. Be it Higher education, scientific researches, technological advancements, up-gradation in technology, advancement in space science, nuclear power, healthcare advancements India has consistently proven itself across the areas. Setting out from the micro level to the macro level, research, and development in the field of technology has created an ideal niche for the overall growth of the economic condition of the country.

Areas that need attention: –

a.) The wide gap in technology penetration

b.) Accessibility of technology is a challenge

c.) Lack of awareness and over-all literacy

d.) Education system’s rigid approach, makes innovations usage difficult

e.) Imparting practical knowledge and exposure should be encouraged

 3.) Impact of Internationalization 

 Globalization has bought a rapid rift in the Indian economy and it is growing like never before, this has proven India to be the most promising and emerging market in the entire world. India is the hub of a maximum number of intuitions across the globe, the number itself makes the entire sector huge and complex. COVID-19 has bought the entire world to a stand-still situation and has imposed a lockdown almost across the globe. In such a situation, technology has been proving to be a blessing for mankind. It’s only because we have various mediums to interact, we can see around, stay connected, and know, what is happening where? Since. So much is happening in the technology and education sector, there has arrived the need to re-evaluate and re-address the basics of the education sector. The process, the curriculum, and syllabus which was structured years ago can’t be considered enough for the current alpha generation. Change is the need of the hour, and there won’t be any surprise if this current situation will change things forever. The pandemic has forged a situation that has contrived us to realize that there still exists certain mien that humans can’t take a hold on. We need to revise and rethink the pattern used for imparting education. Apparently, the alpha generation has been abreast of the technology and is much more confident with the global changes. Interestingly as per a study done by Dell Technologies report, 85% of the jobs by 2030 that generation Alpha will enter into, have not been invented yet. And according to a World Economic Forum report, 65% of primary school children today will be working in job types that do not exist as yet. The impact of internationalization can be divided into four broad categories- academic, economic, political, and cultural. The majority of academic institutions in India are not equipped to host a significant number of foreign students, due to the outdated curriculum with little focus on global trends. The absence of adequate accommodation for international students and staff, infrastructure, and other imperious resources has made the area grey. 

 Findings & Struggles to the Education sector-

 Indian higher education system can be broadly categorized into the Government and Private sector and mostly both of them run on different tangents. The idea of globalization and internationalization is different for private and government institutions also, there exists a vast gap in the quality as well. Be it infrastructure, faculty, standard admission processes, campus life, or any other facet for that matter. Except for the IIMs, IITs, and the few other institutions that held the prime importance to the nation, most of the other institutions are neglected and are not facilitated with the best of the industry. While most of the government sector institutions fail to take major notice and are left ignored, the private sector has come-up with manicured infrastructure with all the possible commercial ways of growing its finances with no promised and assured quality. Since the sector is huge, complex and un-organized to a great extent, India needs to come up with a plan where both the private and government sector can work hand-in-hand and thus contrive the overall status of the Indian Education System, with an ultimate goal of bringing it at par with the global standards. Also, as there is expected to be a dip in the number of students going abroad, obviously the prospects will look around domestically for the courses of their interest. This may create a boom in the sector and there will be a rise in the demand, and thus new institutions will appear in the coming years. Those who are existing already may consider increasing their number of seats or come up with expansion in the potential-departments/courses/location or the research areas. This will raise the market share and will create a competitive environment that will lead to the need for marketing to position and stand out.

4.) Impact on Employability

The World Bank expressed in a report, on the impact of COVID-19 on migration and remittances-

“In India, remittances are projected to fall by about 23 percent in 2020, to USD 64 billion – a striking contrast with the growth of 5.5 percent and receipts of USD 83 billion seen in 2019.”

COVID-19 has led the world towards the global recession, almost all the countries in the world are suffering and contemplating the ways to cope up with the peril. Employment has always been a problem area for the Indian economy. We are the nation with the 2nd largest population and also, have the 2nd largest workable age population in the whole wide world. India has been struggling with its employment generation rates since forever, close to 90% of the working population in India is engaged in the informal sector. It’s an irony to the nation that a country that owns the burden of one of the highest numbers of child-labor scuffles to make the jobs available for the age-appropriate. COVID pandemic has made the situation even more shoddy. There is a large segment of the unorganized informal sector in India that includes laborers, construction workers, factories-mill workers, vendors, house-helpers which will suffer the most and are at greater risk.

Our economy is expected to lose over 32,000 crores every single day during the first phase of the lock-down and has affected almost 53% of overall businesses significantly. Derailed services of supply chain and logistics have greatly affected the farmers who majorly grow perishables. Hotels, tourism, aviation, young start-ups are the segments bearing the dip extensively and the situation doesn’t seem to revive for some time even after the lockdown is over. Fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) have been affected partially as they have shifted their operation majorly towards the essentials during the phase.

The lockdown is undoubtedly proven to be the need of the hour, but it’s consequences are going to be catastrophic and desolating. The economy will need quiet some months if not years, with a range of strategically designed plan-of-actions to subsist this whirl. Former RBI Chief Raghuram Rajan has said that the- “Coronavirus pandemic in India may appear to be the greatest emergency since the Independence”. The novel threat has slacked the chances of new jobs into the market, those who already have jobs in hand are facing the offer-revoke, the existing employees are witnessing salary slash or are fearing the layoffs/terminations and the freshers are in a plain dilemma of where to start. This pandemic has not affected one particular sector, industry, or area of the economy rather it has bought the nation-wide or better to say global turbulence. It has been said that the world is never going to be the same again. Whatever may be the situation, sooner or later things will be settled and the world will find the way out. Maybe the world may need to change its approach and its working mechanism forever. But certainly, this crisis will take the employability to a different dimension, what is existing may seem to be obsolete and non-existing could take the front seat. Research, pharma & healthcare, skilled-experts from the industries, R&D, Big data, machine learning, robotics, and AI-related jobs may see a boom in the future. There may come numerous areas of jobs which are unknown and unrevealed to mankind at present.

 5.) Impact on Enrollment

 India is conventional in its approach when it comes to education and since higher education nowadays is an expensive experience; it involves a lot of concerns and variables which a student and the family consider, before calling it a final decision. The process may seem to have a couple of areas that are already in practice during the enrolment processes. However, we can’t deny the fact that we are still skeptical in this era of digitalization, we still hesitate to rely completely on the virtual experiences and if the experience is costing us the money, time, and the way our career will take the shape, we become furthermore susceptible. Anticipating completely on anything which is intangible and not concrete is difficult for us.

But the time is changing, COVID-19 has paced the speed of this change. And we have to compete with this make-over to survive and to retain ourselves from becoming obsolete. Enrolment has changed to a great extent in the past couple of decades, thanks to technology. The current enrolment process in India is a blend of online and in-person collaboration however, we are in the time where we have to come out with these inhibitions and accept and implement the current trends. The rise of this need is not just to cope-up with the existing parallel world, rather it should be considered more as the need of the hour. We have compiled the few findings with the context of this COVID pandemic impact on enrollment across the nation.

Potential impacts that may be triggered due to the pandemic crisis: –

 a.) Cancellation of major competitive exams to study abroad like TOFEL, IELTS, SAT, ACT, GMAT may reduce the access to standardize tests/exams

b.) There may be further suspension and delay in various exams and admission processes

c.) Trans-national and Trans-continental enrolment may face a steep dip d. Study abroad programs and cultural-exchange programs may lose its charm

e.) Institutions may find it hard to pocket and manage their wealth

f.) The pandemic will have a demographic, geographic, cultural, political, and geopolitical impact on the overall enrolment process

g.) The proximity of the institutions/universities will be of prime concern to the students and families

h.) The way an institution will reposition itself with the fast-changing scenario due to the virus will play a decisive role

i.) Intuitions that broadly rely on foreign students, maybe shambled acutely

j.) Several students enrolling abroad will plunge and vice-versa. This will push the domestic institutes to increase their number of seats for the enrolment- and this will further increase the competition

k.) Campus visits and tours may seem a long-lost affair, virtual visits will be the encouraged trend

l.) Social media will become the stage to showcase and represent

1. The teaching workforce will also expand their reach and horizon

n.) Virtual classes with a blend of students from places (different countries) would be the future

o.) Funding and sponsorships for the institutions and students will change its dimension. 

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The Pandemic has been proven to be crucial and assertive to mankind and the economies worldwide at various levels, it has ordained a cincher on the GDP. This also has grossly grieved the key macro and micro-economic indicators like- M2(money supply), consumer price index, oil prices, inflation, employment, spending power, housing, etc. The United Nations, Europe, and China wrote about its worldwide spread and impact on developing economies. This explosion of the virus has left the world unprepared about several facets in general and has distressed the world globally, which has pushed mankind to be contained at home. Healthcare, infantry & security, medicine, education, agriculture, businesses of all scales, nothing is spared and thus it is termed as worse than the world war itself. As many as 4,196,784 cases have been identified as on 11th May 2020, the numbers are alarming and appalling.

Social-distancing, Social-isolation, and Lockdown are the only known ways of precaution of this pandemic, countries have dived into the research related to the procurement of this malignant virus. The education sector is one aspect which is considered to remain unaffected by the recession in general, simply because people don’t tend to barricade themselves from learning rather, they focus more on the education and grasping knowledge during these hard times. But this time, the unprecedented virus has brought the recession to the education sector as well leaving the campus premises vacant, blocking the students for & from abroad, scrunching the mode of imparting education, leaving the industry workforce and students bewildered. It is estimated that as many as1.725 billion learners have been affected due to school and institution closures. This had made this sector vulnerable and uptight.

Current Status and newfound challenges

The education sector was one of the very first sectors coming under the radar of Pandemic precaution and lockdown. Initially, the board exams were delayed and later the entire education system aligned with the government declaration and decided to keep its functioning, on hold for an unknown tenure. Ultimately, the entire exams, admissions, job-placements, work-force recruitment everything got delayed, the sudden lockdown took away any possibility of the leeway for the institutions to prepare themselves for the changing mode of the education. Pandemic like this was never estimated, India and several other nations will certainly have some major after-effects of this lockdown in the future. Herewith, below we have listed the issues India is facing or will encounter as an after-effect of the pandemic. We will look through the major challenges at both the macro and micro levels in detail.

The objective of the article

COVID-19 has perplexed the world and forced the nations to deal with a fathom of primary and secondary requisites, shifting the world’s functioning as a whole. This has created an environment of uncertainty and delay across the sector. So, to encounter such aspects we have taken the step and have tried to structure a series of articles to acknowledge and register the current status of Indian Higher Education and its comprehensive impact. This particular article will consist of three further compositions. The three up-coming segments will be published with-in the due course of time and the content will come under the subheadings of: –

1. Impact of COVID-19 on Higher Education at the Macro level,
2. Impact of COVID-19 on Higher Education at the Micro level,
3. Impact of COVID-19 on the industry workforce and major findings/conclusions.

Major challenges for Indian Education- 2020 (Due to COVID-19)

Indian education has always been considered conventional and traditional in its core approach, however lately, with the technological advancement our education system has managed to endure and become acquainted with modes like- online learning, LMS, asynchronous and synchronous methods of learning. Withal, the usage of these modes was very limited and the percussion was quite apprehending, also the lockdown has shifted the course of several processes, almost overnight. So, the very first facet that came into account of the sector was to put the regular on-campus classes on hold. This leads to begetting the E-learning classes to the mainstream and later the regular exams along with the competitive once got either delayed or suspended, similarly, annual convocations of various institutions, new admissions, their recruitments were kept on hold. International student exchange programs have already taken an all-time dip and placements may also face a major disruption, students hoisting education loans or under debt running are in a tight spot.  Challenges are not only prevalent for the learners rather, but it is also affecting the workforce, admin, and the entire management of the domain. The digital gap in India has made the online penetration test plus the deprivation of technology and resources has made the situation even more strenuous. Access to the laptop, desktop, internet, and other resources is not something that everyone is facilitated with and the workforce is in the ordeal to prepare with the study material, putting it across different channels and mediums, collecting assignments. The entire process has become lengthy and thus faculty is left with more work to do before-hand. There is also an expected dip in the number of Indian students applying to foreign universities and vice-versa.

 Findings and Recommendations

1. Online teaching has never been proven more important, as millions of students are relying on the e-learning platform during this pandemic-lockdown.
2. Those who work and research in the education sector are in the safest space, and that makes them confident concerning the future aspect.
3. There may exist different opinions for different sectors on how COVID-19 is going to affect them, but when it comes to the education sector- more or less the responses are similar. Coronavirus has affected the India Education System but the intensity can be rectified only once the intensity of the virus will fade down.
4. As per the reports, AICTE has cancelled the summer internships in the companies, which was earlier mandatory for most of the higher education professional courses.
5. Exchange programmes, which are designed for exposure and experiential learning have been kept on hold for un-definite time frame.
6. Campus recruitments and placements will take a huge dip this year
7. Campus proximity may stand over the overall offering of the institution/university
8. Online Education needs a lot of attention in India. We need to be more prepared in terms of technology and efficient utilization of resources, for any future threat

As in any other industry, the education industry also will face a concentration of power among the small number of brand names and the flight for the quality will prevail. Universities and corporates can collaborate more in the future to exceed the stakeholder value. How will the world look and function post-corona? Well, no matter how many times we would be questioned to understand this upcoming phase of the future, we are left with some vague and blur imaginations. It’s a crisis and must be having an end at some point or other but till then the world has to learn to make peace with it. We need to accept the fact that at the moment staying safe is the top-most priority and challenge for any society and nation. Whatever the future maybe, but the current slowdown will provoke to have a more accelerated future, for sure.

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India is one of the first few countries to take the step of implementing a nationwide lockdown. It is a courageous step for the economy and certainly the only effective way to protect the world’s 2nd largest population from this fatal disease. Life has to go on and education is one such aspect that cannot be kept on hold for long. The scenario has bought a lot of change and has shifted the regular physical classroom setup to a virtual one. For many it may be the first experience of their life. Online teaching is not a new practice but it is certainly new to become the only possible practice as for now. In most of the countries the regular in-person classes have been facing a halt and the virtual classes have taken the space. To make the lockdown a success, the government has taken several measures, schools and institutions/universities were the first one to receive the orders to put their functioning on hold. As the days have passed the institutions have come up with online classes to bridge the gap and facilitate the students with the study materials.

Online classes have become the sole mode of education these days, and is as new to the teachers as it is for the students. There is a crisis for expert services in the education industry and there are very few Academic Search Firms who are competent enough to up-hold with the complexity the education industry offers. We are one such expert, who has established itself as an undisputed leader in the said domain. EduShine Advisory is a Higher Education Recruitment strategy consulting firm with the prime focus on Higher education at the national and international level. It works with more than 60 academic institutions and corporate bodies with stakes in higher education. We at EduShine have always made sure to facilitate our clients with boutique services which are exclusive in nature. Being a maiden academic search in India we rejoice to extend our role in contributing some of the premium institutions and academic bodies. We help them have the brightest academic and administrative resources. EduShine does believe that every client has different requirements, challenges, concerns, objectives, and goals. Thus, we cater our services with a thorough study and back it with extensive research that makes our services distinctive and unparalleled. Since we consider our clients as partners, we do realize their twinge and concerns. And thus, to help our clients with this arduous situation, we have come up with 10 tips to maximize the efficiency of the virtual class.

Ten tips for first time online teaching professors

10) Prepare in advance

Well, preparing yourself in advance gives an edge to the entire delivery process. Being prepared in advance with the study material, audio clips, videos, presentations or anything for that matter can add up to the regular course and can really make the entire process more engaging. Virtual classes certainly take away the charm of a physical classroom set-up and makes the professor- student engagement is more promising. Also, sticking to a well-defined syllabus may prove to be  effective and will restrict the chances of losing out with the flow during the process. Staying prepared beforehand may rest you with the lew-way to encounter the student’s doubts and queries. Keep your content organized and crisp to the point.

9) Encourage 2-way communication

Keeping the students involved may appear to be the biggest challenge during the virtual class. Structure the entire process into a 2-way divulgence. Sticking to a structured course and material will only prove to be effective, if it is delivered in a two-way-communication process. Deliver your lecture in a manner that the students feel to have a scope to interchange their ideas. Allow them to have a dialogue and come up with the response so that students feel involved. Converting the lecture into an interactive session may prove to be a win-win for the delivering as well as the receiving end.

8) Prepare yourself with required equipment and technology

This one aspect has the charge and power to ruin or intensify the entire game. To make an online class a success, one has to have a proper working system which primarily includes a laptop/desktop, internet/broadband, a camera to see, may be a mic to deal with the clarity of voice, proper lighting, a comfortable sitting arrangement and a mute backdrop. Omit every possible distraction and keep the study material in place. Apart from the equipment which are tangible in nature, make sure to keep a pace with the required technology.

7) Announce the tools you plan to use in advance

It’s very important to keep yourself aligned with the tools or technology you are planning to use and it’s equally important to keep your students comfortable with the same. At the end, they are the one who are supposed to be benefited with the entire process. Today we have multiple tools, do your research and figure out which one suits best to your requirements. Learn the applications of the tool and update yourself with the technology. Make yourself comfortable with the selected tool and encourage the students to do the same. This way the virtual class will end up being more impactful and productive.

6) Invest some time in building the rapport with your class

A physical classroom and a virtual class are two different ball games. To ace the virtual one, one has to put some extra effort to bond with the students. Virtual class can be a difficult area to put a balance, it can be easily categorized as too authoritative and strict or easy and casual. The idea is to establish a balance and create an environment that is conducive, friendly and inviting and is specific enough to consummate it’s utmost intention. Usage of social media may give you an edge as it’s more of a new-age thing. The students will appreciate this effort and will find the class more interesting and engaging.

5) Create a forum or allocate time for student questions and concerns

Create a forum and make this forum visible to everyone so that the students can also take the charge and come up with their own solutions to the questions. This will create a competitive and open environment and will encourage the students to appear with the best possible answers. It may reinforce a brainstorming session and will stimulate the entire batch to participate. Don’t forget to intervene when and where required.

4) Put effort into adding some visual appeal to the content

Inculcate some time to make the presentation, pdf, word file, audio clip or may be a video clip once in a while to break the monotony and keep the entire study material appealing. Many a times, pictorial representation and illustrations can also bring some aesthetic value to the study material. One doesn’t have to be an expert with these and exhaust all the energy into this, but certainly keeping a few things here and there will make it more engaging and will add a personal touch at the same time. It will offer the warmth you may have during the physical  classroom set-up. This effort will bring a feeling of connectedness and will bound the class to a different level.

3) Use multiple communication channels

Using multiple channels may accelerate the success rate of the class. No matter how much we prepare, the fact cannot be ruled out that in online classes there are chances that the entire set-up may fall off or may not turn up in the way it has been planned. As it involves a certain number of people, there are chances that one or other may fail to come up to a decided time or may lack the data connectivity, may not be familiar with the tools or any other unforeseen situation for that matter. Make sure to have a plan B for such situations, so that everybody is facilitated in the process. Multiple channels will increase the chances of being covered by most of the students. Also, this way it will impose in their conscious the effort you are taking for their benefit and will further encourage them to come up with a similar response. This will imbibe the students with a sense of responsiveness and thus, will take the entire process closer to a favorable result.

2) Take student feedback and suggestions

Encourage the students to come up with the feedback and always welcome their suggestions. This can be practiced on a weekly or fortnightly basis depending upon the class strength and complexity of the subject/topic. Remember that the online class set-up may not last for always but the rapport you will establish during the process with the student may remain forever. So, don’t refrain yourself to act welcoming and having the best of the experiences. Allow them to share the feedback and don’t fail to inquire about the ways the class/subject/topic and interaction as a whole can be more engaging.

 1) Assign yourself a designated work space

It can’t be stretched enough; the importance of a separate workspace is pivotal. Online classes may make you feel like a host with a little audience and thus the need of being a good director raise. Put some effort to conceal or remove the stuff you would not like your students to see. A simple and decent physical background has the capacity to turn the atmosphere and bring the required gravity and zeal  to the virtual class. Before commencing your class, it’s suggested to put some effort in being presentable and vigilant. It will offer the required somberness to the class and will keep the voidable nuances at bay. 

Online teaching comes up with its own pros and cons. It restricts to establish an instant connection among the student and teacher and at the same time it gives the flexibility to prepare and deliver the lecture as per once convenience. It takes away the real time charm of  a physical classroom but offers a substitute interactive online platform at the same time. Further, online teaching doesn’t have scope for the movement a physical classroom offers but expands the reach and can connect a large number of expectants from places. This virtual class can be delivered through various channels and mediums and if designed systematically and methodically can have a great impact on the students. It bridges the time gap in such a crucial scenario and allows the universities/institutions to function with lesser obstructions. As they say “something is better than nothing” and here Virtual classes is the only medium that has proven to be this “something”. 

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