We believe in having value-added curricula in our institutes,” says Cecil Anthony, chief patron of NSHM, the largest All India Council for Technical Education-approved non-engineering college in eastern India. NSHM has spread its wings — it has twin campuses at Durgapur and in Calcutta. “We aim to develop industry-driven courses that hone the skills of individuals,” remarks Anthony.

NSHM started off 10 years ago as the National School of Hotel Management in Durgapur but the institute uses only the acronym now. “The institute is registered as NSHM and has no other name,” says Jayanta Bagchi, deputy general manager, branding and communication. Today, the Durgapur campus, spread over 25 acres, represents the most dynamic aspect of the development of NSHM as a reputed institute.

Last year, a campus was started in Calcutta to house the NSHM Business School and the NSHM Institute of Media and Communication. “The importance of the media industry in India is growing by the day and we try to provide students with the best professional training,” says Pradeep Mallick, principal of the NSHM Institute of Media and Communication.

The media school has 11 faculty members who have a combined industry experience of 175 years. “Our media students are given thorough practice in fields like marketing communication, graphics and animation, event management and dramatics,” he adds.

Pioneering courses

Currently, NSHM has around 1,800 students in Calcutta and Durgapur. It is planning to start colleges in Goa, Chandigarh, Bangalore and Pune. NSHM also has academic alliances with major institutions abroad, such as the International Hotel Management Institute of Switzerland and the College of Tourism and Hotel Management in Cyprus. “While doing the BCA course, students get Oracle certification and as a result get the best offers,” says Bagchi.

Industry-endorsed courses provide students with the vital technical skills and experience required at the workplace. The Retailers Association of India and the department of management studies of the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, have entered into agreements with NSHM. “We also offer a bachelors degree in optometry and vision science that gives students practical skills in low vision aids and rehabilitation,” he adds.

NSHM has now teamed with the renowned De Bono School of Lateral Thinking (which offers courses on positive thinking), US, to set up the NSHM-De Bono Centre of Innovation and Thinking Management on its campus in Calcutta. “Lateral thinking makes use of methods of thinking concerned with changing concepts and perceptions,” explains Anthony. The De Bono tie-up is the first step to a project named Fine Cube, to be based in a facility in Calcutta.

Students are encouraged to develop entrepreneurship skills. “The entrepreneurship cell gives special training to people who want to start their own businesses,” says Anthony.

The college also provides free kits to students in some courses. For example, BCA students get laptop computers, media students receive camcorders and optometry students get free opthalmoscopes for their courses of study. “We have introduced this scheme so that students get the requisite technical support for their chosen fields of study,” reveals Bagchi.

NSHM has a corporate relations and talent transfer cell that is focused on training and placement activities in tune with industry requirements. “We offer 100 per cent placement to our students in all courses. Reputed companies like ITC, WIPRO, JW Marriot Hotel, Sankara Nethralaya and Escorts Hospital of New Delhi have hired our students,” he says. Forty-eight campus recruiters and 69 corporates give internships.

Complete care

There are hostel facilities for students in Durgapur and Calcutta. Lifestyle management modules are also offered. “At NSHM, academics is only one part of the learning process,” explains Anthony. As part of a complete learning experience, students are encouraged to take part in sports and adventure activities. According to Anthony, today’s employers place as much emphasis on personality traits as they do on technical skills. “We therefore do everything in our capacity to help our students emerge as individuals who have creative thinking abilities,” he adds.

Deboprotim Moulik, who is studying for a postgraduate diploma in advertising and management, stresses that the infrastructure at NSHM guided his choice of subject. “My time here should help me realise my dreams to become an advertising professional,” he notes.

Avishek Rakshit, a student of the postgraduate diploma course in television journalism, agrees. “I have been exposed to several technical systems in audio visual communication and to a wide variety of stuff on the web,” he says. According to him, the course at NSHM is important since modern media work is all about convergence. That, as Anthony puts it, is what makes NSHM distinct.

Vital Statistics

WHAT IS IT? It is a non-engineering college that has been authorised by the All India Council for Technical Education to offer undergraduate and postgraduate professional
courses.

WHO’S THE BOSS? Cecil Anthony is the chief patron.

WHAT was it called earlier? The National School of Hotel Management.

WHERE to stay? There are hostel facilities.

WHERE is it located? 124 B.L. Saha Road, Calcutta-700053.
Telefax: 2403-2300
E-mail: info@nshm.com
Website: www.nshm.com

Shubhobroto Ghosh