Discovery of the Week

Helping others heal

Shweta came close to realising mental health as a health concern when she was in the eighth grade as a close family member was dealing with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD). It was also then that she longed to understand it further and eventually set her on the path of becoming a therapist.

Shweta Srinivasan, Cofounder of Mindclan.

	A friend of Shweta Srinivasan, who identifies as queer, could not find a therapist they could talk openly to about their identity and how it may have impacted their mental well-being. Another woman had told her therapist about going through abortion only to get judged and never open up again. Shweta had come across one too many cases of mental health professionals coming with judgements that do more harm to people than offering collaborative solutions they come to seek. In her own experience, Shweta, who is also a professional therapist, was told that a toxic relationship in the past could be her own doing. In 2018, she decided to take matters into her own hands and teamed up with her partner Mani Kumar to found TheMindClan, a platform to access the right mental healthcare resources. The goal is to ensure the “questioning of choices, blaming, and passing moral judgement on people and their experiences do not enter the therapy room” so that those seeking help can be on the path to healing. Despite rising awareness of mental wellbeing, Shweta noted that the public discussion rarely moved beyond acknowledging the importance of mental health, fewer so around how to access mental health care and find the right therapist that works or other resources. “These were the unanswered questions in the mainstream and that is what really inspired us to create a reliable platform like TheMindClan.com to provide Indians the access to inclusive mental healthcare support,” she says. “We want people to be able to open to therapists because one cannot discuss mental health in isolation from factors like intersectional gender, sexual identity, caste, all of which make us vulnerable to discrimination and experience lack of acceptance that needs to be talked during therapy,” she explains, adding that a master’s degree does not guarantee any of those. At present, over 1,000 users have access to the resources available on the platform every month. It has been looking to list more resources to meet the rising needs amidst the pandemic for the past year.”

	Education News


	‘Zero Cost’ degree programme with Singapore’s Lithan Academy and HNB 23rd February, 2022 JISC Campus, the Authorised Training Partner for Lithan Academy Singapore and part of EduCLaaS (Competency Learning as a Service) Alliance formally launched the “Earn & Learn” degree programme in partnership with Hatton National Bank this week. Webinar held on study and work prospects of MBA in data science 26th January, 2022 An MBA in data science helps graduates or professionals to combine their analytical skills and business management knowledge. The course will enable them to convert data analytics into better business decisions. It is also a valuable addition for data scientists who are always eager to crunch numbers. Google's Sundar Pichai Just Announced a $100 Million Educational Fund. It Might Mean the Beginning of the End for College. 26th February, 2022 A few days ago, Sundar Pichai announced a $100 million Google Career Certificates fund. It's got nothing to do with college education, and instead, focuses on giving up-and-coming data analytics, IT, project management, and UX design students the tactical tools needed to start their careers with a bang.

Faculty Fundas

IS THE WHEEL BEING REINVENTED – THE PARADIGM SHIFT OF AI FROM BC (BEFORE CARONA) TO AC (AFTER CORONA) WORLD

On December 30, 2019 an AI-driven health monitoring platform called BlueDot spotted a cluster of unusual pneumonia cases occurring in Wuhan, China. The Canadian company sent out a warning to its customers the next day — December 31. They had identified what would come to be known as COVID-19 a week before the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in USA or 2 weeks before WHO were able to spot it. Artificial Intelligence, or AI, has played a key role in identifying and addressing the pandemic

Prof. Venkatesh Sunkad

Dean, Insofe School of Data

Vijaybhoomi University

Before the arrival of Covid-19, many technology executives were expressing uncertainty about their investments in machine learning (ML), and dissatisfaction with the ways their organizations were adopting it. Since the pandemic, according to World Economic Forum’s “The Future of Jobs Report,” 50 percent of businesses say COVID-19 has pushed them to accelerate automation in their organizations.

The recent hiring trend is a forward indicator of the future workforce. The latest survey by the leading professional and social connect company “LinkedIn” has determined the top two highest paid jobs are “AI Engineer” and “Data Engineer. A couple of years ago it was a “software programmer”. So the future workforce should be “Data Savvy” meaning that everybody should be comfortable with digital technology and should be able to translate whatever the results the AI models give out into real business tangible actions and to productionize AI solutions.

Not every job in the field of data science involves coding and engineering. There are a lot of jobs like “Media Curator” who needs to understand how data from media can be made useful to Data Science but does not involve coding. However, if you want to be in the technical field, the most important skill sets are coding, good foundation in mathematics and statistics, Machine Learning, AI fundamentals and cloud architecture. Another very important aspect to be good in AI is Critical thinking which is the bedrock of Data Science.

If you look at India particularly there may be a handful of institutions that can create the environment and teaching that would really cater to the needs of the industry. One such institution is Vijaybhoomi University where I am the Dean for “INSOFE School of Data Science” which is a centre of excellence in digital and disruptive technologies. We have dedicated degree programs both at Bachelor’s (BE in AI) and Master’s (MTech in AI) levels. These programs are in collaboration with the International School of Engineering (INSOFE) and Vijaybhoomi University. The most important aspect of all these programs is that nearly 50% of the time is spent on “hands-on training” with real world problems which according to me at an undergraduate level would be the first in India. This would make the students “industry ready” starting from how to analyse data, build models and finally productionize the solution.

In addition being trained in AI and ML the students are also intensively trained in other disruptive technologies like Block-Chain, IoT, Robotics, etc. Once the students are comfortable with fundamentals then they can adapt to the ever-changing world. Also Vijaybhoomi follows a liberal professional education which is very critical for a successful career in data science because problems are no more one-dimensional but multidimensional which needs 360-degree thinking. One of the examples I always give is the autonomous or self-driving cars. When a kid suddenly comes in front of the car, today if a human is driving they make a decision to avoid the kid which may result in the car hitting another vehicle or a structure. However, if it is a “self-driving car “should the car protect its passengers or the kid in front of it. These are called “moral algorithms” that an AI engineer should design, knowledge of humanities, law and other aspects play a very critical role here.

Overall, the post-pandemic world will look very different from the way we were used to. At the centre of this revolution will be AI/ML/Data Science. Truly this will be the “coming of AI Age” in the next decade.

Life@VU

Roll Camera Action!

We all might have watched content like web series and short films. The creativity that goes into the making and eye for details is wonderful. Students who have taken the ‘Real to Reel: Basics of Filmmaking’ course by Prof. Pravin Mishra, got a chance to showcase their creative skills, as part of an assignment. To prepare a storyline and shoot a short film on it. But, what’s the use of making films if there’s no twist in the plot. The student directors had to shoot a ‘silent’ short film. The excited group students started working from day 1 on their particular short films. Our student directors approached their friends who have ‘Acting ka keeda’ for taking up roles.

Student Directors making the plotline, actors improvising and suggesting better takes and angles; the synergy between everyone was incredible.

Student Quotes

“I am the Camerawoman and the Director of my short film ‘Possessed Book’. It was a beautiful experience shooting the film. Ideating, brainstorming, getting my creative horses running was a detour from the usual courses I had. Overall, it was fun to learn how to make a plotline and shoot it."

- Neha Nayak, 1st-yearB Des student, Vijaybhoomi University

“A silent short film felt challenging in the beginning. But the director Neeha made it easy for me to understand things like actions and expressions. Even if there are no words, our actions speak way more than our words, I’d say.”

- Abhay Santhani, 1st-year BE-AI student, Vijaybhoomi University

Readers Ask, Vijaybhoomi Answers

What are the admission requirements for enrolling in a course at Vijaybhoomi University?

Akshata Ingalahalli, 12^th Science, Rajhans Vidyalaya

The different programs and eligibility criteria for each are as follows:

B.Sc. Data Science: SAT/LSAT/PUEE/VUSAT
B.E. Artificial Intelligence: SAT/LSAT/PUEE/VUSAT
M.Sc. Data Science: GATE/GRE/Advanced VUSAT
M.Tech. Artificial Intelligence: GATE/GRE/Advanced VUSAT
BBA: SAT/LSAT/PUEE/VUSAT
MBA: CAT/XAT/GMAT/NMAT/M H CET/ATMA/CMAT
BBA LLB: SAT/LSAT/PUEE/VUSAT
LLM: LSAT/ Advanced VUSAT

BBA: SAT/LSAT/PUEE/VUSAT
MBA: CAT/XAT/GMAT/NMAT/M H CET/ATMA/CMAT
BBA LLB: SAT/LSAT/PUEE/VUSAT
LLM: LSAT/ Advanced VUSAT
B. Des. Communication Design: LSAT/ Advanced VUSAT
B.A. Liberal Arts: SAT/LSAT/PUEE/VUSAT
B. Mus. Music Production: SAT/LSAT/PUEE/VUSAT
B. Mus. Contemporary Performance: SAT/LSAT/PUEE/VUSAT
B. Mus. Hindustani Playback Vocals: SAT/LSAT/PUEE/VUSAT
B. Mus. Music Production & Performance (Dual Major): SAT/LSAT/PUEE/VUSAT
B.Sc. Sound Engineering & Production: SAT/LSAT/PUEE/VUSAT

For all programs the candidate should have secured at least 50% marks in previous level.

PUEE: Vijaybhoomi University is accepting Pearson Undergraduate Entrance Exam (www.undergraduateexam.in) score for admissions in undergraduate programs in the academic year 2021-22. If you have a Pearson UGEE score, mention the same in the application form.

VUSAT: Vijaybhoomi SAT

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About Vijaybhoomi

Vijaybhoomi University is India's first Liberal Professional University, which uses the liberal-professional framework of education to build a unique curriculum aligned to Industry 4.0. The curriculum facilitates the process of self-discovery in the initial year and thereafter choice of majors and minors to prepare oneself in high-demand careers in data science, artificial intelligence, business, law, music and design. The university is located in Karjat, Greater Mumbai, and nurtures holistic, socially responsible, and continuously employable professionals who can make a positive difference in the world.

Vision

To become an independent, multi-disciplinary, globally acclaimed university which facilitates learner-centricity, builds pathways to groom holistic individuals, and fosters innovation and scholarship to impact practice and communities

Mission

Nurture holistic, socially responsible, and continuously employable professionals.

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