A Holistic Approach to Education at Akal University Under the National Education Policy, 2020
1. Multidisciplinary and Holistic Education
Akal University is committed to fostering a Multidisciplinary and Holistic Education as envisioned in the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020. This approach is aimed at nurturing the overall development of our students. It prepares them for the skill-oriented job market. The University aims at producing individuals who are not only academically proficient but also possess strong social and emotional skills combined with physical strength and moral values. This comprehensive development prepares our students to be thoughtful leaders and responsible citizens. The introduction of Multidisciplinary Degree Programmes in the University Curriculum is a major step in this direction. The University offers the programmes such as Social Sciences, Medical and Non-Medical for providing such a platform to the students which can help in the learning various subjects under one course.
Total number of students registered for these programmes in different sessions are as following:
| Academic Year | Number of Multidisciplinary Programmes offered | UG | PG | Total Students Registered |
| 2021-22 | 1 (UG) | 11 | 0 | 11 |
| 2022-23 | 1(UG) | 20 | 0 | 20 |
| 2023-24 | 1(UG) | 123 | 0 | 123 |
The University has significantly motivated the students to register for Academic Bank of Credits and as a result all the students have active ABC id’s. It is another initiative towards the Digitalisation of Educational Credentials.
Total Number of students enrolled for ABC:
| Academic Year | UG | PG | Ph.D | Total Students Registered |
| 2021-22 | 201 | 69 | 0 | 270 |
| 2022-23 | 204 | 55 | 0 | 259 |
| 2023-24 | 538 | 71 | 0 | 609 |
Multiple Entry and Exit in Academic Programmes will be implemented in the University degree programmes from the academic year 2024-25 onwards. National Higher Education Qualification Framework (NHEQF) and Curriculum and Credit Framework and Pursuing Two Academic Programmes Simultaneously has been approved by Academic Council and will be implemented from the academic year 2024-25 onwards.
2. Digital Empowerment and Online Education:
Necessary steps will be taken in this domain in the near future.
3. Skill Development and Employability:
The National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 in India places a strong emphasis on skill development and employability to align education with the needs of the 21st-century job sector. The changing dynamics of the industry and the growing concerns about secure jobs has created the necessity of intense focus on the skill-oriented programmes and training in the form of internships. Akal University has taken necessary steps in this direction and it offers different programmes such as MBA, BBA, BCA, B.Ed and B.Tech. These programmes are internship embedded programmes. For putting the internship programmes into action, the University has signed MOU’s with various Technical industries and institutions. The number of students who got placed in different sectors as interns are given in the table below.
| Academic Year | Place of Internship | Programme | Students Placed |
| 2022-23 | Industry | UG | 13 |
| 2022-23 | Institution | UG | 27 |
| 2022-23 | Industry | PG | 11 |
| 2023-24 | Industry | UG | 19 |
| 2023-24 | Institution | UG | 33 |
| 2023-24 | Industry | PG | 9 |
The University has also signed MOU’s for building up a strong Industry Institute linkage. The University has established a committee in the year 2022 for maintaining the links of Institution with the industry. The committee was headed by Mr. Amanjeet Bhandari in the year 2022-23 and during this duration the university has signed 4 MOU’s. In the next year, Ms. Sandeep Kaur was the head of the committee for the academic session 2023-24. During this period University signed 5 MOU’s. the University also established the Entrepreneurship and Innovation Council in the session 2023-24. The numbers of MOU’s signed in the different academic years are given in the table below:
| Academic Year | Name of the Coordinator | Designation | Broad Areas of Industry | No. of MOU’s |
| 2022-23 | Amanjeet Singh Bhandari | TPO | Business, IT and Digital | 4 |
| 2023-24 | Sandeep Kaur | TPO | Business, IT and Digital | 5 |
4. Research, Innovation and Entrepreneurship
Research and Development Cell
The University has a highly efficient cell for promoting Research and other innovative activities among the faculty as well as the Research scholars and the students. Prof. Dr. Gurmail Singh is the Chairman of Research and Development Cell (RDC) of Akal University.
The University has received various distinguished research projects and fundings from different organisations. Dr. Sandeep Singh, (Mathematics) got the project titled “On the classification of finitely generated groups having isomorphic automorphism subgroups” with an amount of 6.6 Lakhs. Dr. Birender Kaur (Education) got the Project Titled “Techno-pedagogical competence of Pre-service Teachers: Predictive role of Cognitive Flexibility and Mindful Attention Awareness” with an amount of 4.72 Lacs in the academic session 2022-23. Dr. Rashim Wadhwa (Education) has got a project titled “Diagnostic Analysis of the relationship between Space, Resources and University Enrolment of First-Generation Students in Rural Punjab” worth 8.9 Lacs. Dr. Sandeep Singh (Mathematics) received another project entitled “On Sumset Problems in Different Types of Groups” worth 19.01 lakh in the session 2023-24. The number of Research projects received, number of Patents and Number of IPR’s received by the University in different years is given in the table below:
| Academic Year | Industry-sponsored research projects | Number of Government-sponsored research projects | Number of Intellectual Property Right (IPR) Policy | Number of Patents |
| 2022-23 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 5 |
| 2023-24 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 4 |
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5. Capacity Building of Teachers for Quality Education:
Necessary steps will be taken in this domain in the near future.
6. Governance and Autonomy:
The National Education Policy (NEP) seeks to balance governance and autonomy within the education system to foster innovation and excellence. Governance under the NEP involves establishing independent regulatory bodies, ensuring accountability, and setting clear guidelines for educational institutions. At the same time, the policy emphasizes granting academic, administrative, and financial autonomy to institutions, allowing them to design curricula, manage resources, and make decisions independently. Akal University has established Student Grievance Redressal Committee in order to establish a proper way of governing the student body and to give them a degree of autonomy in their everyday conduct. With vide Notification no. 44/2023 dated 16/12/2023, Prof. Suresh K. Chadha, Former Chairperson of University Business School, Panjab University, Chandigarh has been appointed as the Ombudsperson of the University as per the guidelines given by UGC.
7. Accreditation and Excellence:
Akal University is duly recognized by the University Grants Commission (UGC) in India. Akal University is a full-fledged University established by the Punjab State Legislature (Punjab Govt. Act-2015) and is included in the list of universities maintained by University Grants Commission with the right to confer degrees as per section 2(f) of the UGC Act, 1956. The University has got the approval of National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE) for its Four-Year Integrated B.Sc.-B.Ed./B.A.-B.Ed programme. Apart from this, Akal University has the certification of ISO 45001-2018 Certificate and ISO 9001-2015 Certificate.
8. Equitable and Inclusive Education:
NEP 2020 seeks to achieve equity and inclusion in higher education by giving all students equitable access to high-quality instruction with special emphasis on Socio-Economically Disadvantaged Groups (SEDGs). The University provides scholarships to the Economically weaker students in order to support their education. Akal University is certified to be structurally safe. The building meets all the requirements of a disabled friendly building and is barrier free. Akal University has always been quite efficient at providing an inclusive environment to its students as well faculty and other staff. It is an important step for a safe and stimulating learning environment for the learners.
Gender Parity:
The University promotes Gender parity at every level. The number of male and female students as well as faculty is always established in a healthy and balanced way. The students are helped and provided necessary support in terms of financial as well as moral support irrespective of the gender.
| Academic Year | Number of Male Students | Number of Female Students | Number of Male Faculty | Number of Female Faculty |
| 2021-22 | 38 | 181 | 50 | 35 |
| 2022-23 | 54 | 224 | 54 | 30 |
| 2023-24 | 155 | 635 | 52 | 47 |
9. Promotion of Indian Languages and Indian Knowledge System
The University has established various programmes which are at promoting the Indian Languages and literature. These courses are aimed at making the students familiar with the rich cultural heritage of India. For this purpose, the University has established the Department of Punjabi and Shri Guru Granth Sahib Studies. Apart from this B.A. B.Ed. also offers a few courses which are useful for promoting the Indian languages such as Punjabi and Hindi. These departments exemplify the steps taken by the University for the promotion of Hindi, Punjabi and other regional languages. Apart from this the University has also ensured the empanelment of the Artists who play a crucial role in the overall development in the higher education environments. The special trainer has been appointed by the University to teach ‘Gurmat Sangeet’. The University has also established the Punjabi Culture and Heritage Museum in the campus. It is a reflection of the rich cultural heritage of Punjab. It’s an attempt to revisit the cultural past through the picturization of the old age traditions and the life style. It fills the visitor with a sense of Nostalgia.
10. Internationalization of Education
Internalization of Education is a very important step in order to achieve the aims set by National Education Policy. For this purpose, the University has constituted the Office of International Affairs. With vide notification no. 28/2024, Dr. Birender Kaur, HoD, Department of Education is the chairperson for this office along with two other members. The University has Akal Alumni Association. Its major aim is to connect to the students from all the different pass out batches. The University stands in a great solidarity with its student body. The Coordinator of the Akal Alumni Association is Dr. Sandeep Singh, Mathematics. Under his guidance the Association is building up a great web of connections with the students.
| Academic Year | No. of Students Registered |
| 2021-22 | 289 |
| 2022-23 | 232 |
| 2023-24 | 338 |