Education

ICASL goes to Ratnapura

As part of a major initiative to develop and strengthen the Accountancy education in the regions, the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka (ICASL) commenced its fifth Information Centre in Ratnapura at Sabaragamuwa Provincial Chamber of Commerce and Industry recently.

“We are keen to provide education facilities for Chartered Accountancy to the students from the regions and by now we are in four other locations; Kandy, Anuradhapura, Kurunegala and Matara. These Information Centres are already being patronized and used by a large number of students. The response so far has been very positive,” President ICASL, Nishan Fernando said.

The main objective of the expansion program is to introduce the premier Accountancy qualifications throughout the country,” he said.

The ICASL decided to expand its services to the Sabaragamuwa Province because it is a fast developing region in Sri Lanka, with a vast potential for promoting Accountancy education and developing new businesses with a lot of employment opportunities.

In this effort, ICASL works in unison with the Sabaragamuwa Provincial Chamber of Commerce and Industry. “Through this combined synergy we expect to deliver our best services to the youth in the province and support their education plans, so that they can be the future leaders who could develop the region’s economy,” Fernando said.

The two institutions are planning to contribute their best to improve the quality of education in the province and also to encourage many students to enter the higher education path through this partnership. “We want to provide the latest opportunities to the students in the area; they lacked such opportunities earlier,” said the Chief Executive Officer of ICASL, Aruna Alwis.

ICASL Information Centres are designed to provide comprehensive details about Accountancy education including training and employment opportunities and how to plan a career in the Accountancy field. They can also get information about ICASL and its current and future programs among other things.

University of Melbourne ranked top in Australia

The University of Melbourne has been ranked in the Top 100 in the world - and topped Australian universities - in a major international ranking of scientific papers.

The rigorous 2008 Performance Ranking of Scientific Papers for World Universities puts Melbourne at No 58 in the world (up from 64 in 2007) and No 5 in the Asia Pacific. The ranking, by the Higher Education Evaluation and Accreditation Council of Taiwan (HEEACT), evaluates and ranks the scientific paper performance of the world’s top 500 universities. HEEACT ranking claim the emphasis on current research makes it fairer than some traditional indicators, such as a university’s reputation or the number of Nobel Laureates, which tend to favour universities with longer histories or universities in developed countries

In Australia, Melbourne ranks ahead of the University of Sydney (83), University of Queensland (101), Australian National University (146), University of New South Wales (148) and Monash University (176).

The University of Melbourne is also the only Australian university in the Top 30 in all five discipline areas surveyed by the Times Higher Education (THE) 2008 World University Rankings.

The world ranking for Arts at Melbourne is 16; Social Sciences, 19; Life Sciences and Biomedicine, 26; Natural Sciences, 27; and Engineering and IT, 28. Melbourne’s two biggest Melbourne Model faculties - Arts and Science - moved up in the 2008 ranking. Arts went from 17 to 16 and Science from 33 to 27.

The THE World Rankings also showed University of Melbourne graduates are highly sought-after and the University is well-regarded by academic peers around the world.

Melbourne is ranked No 9 in the world by major global and national employers across both the public and private sectors, and No 21 in the world by its academic peers in a THE survey of more than 6300 academics around the world.

Academics cannot vote for their own university. Melbourne is No 38 overall in the 2008 THE ranking Earlier this year it ranked 73, up from 79 in 2007, in the academically-based Shanghai Jiao Tong University rankings.

The Vice Chancellor, Professor Davis said that it is very difficult for Australian universities to compete in these rankings with well-resourced UK, US and Japanese universities. “It is therefore good to see that Australian universities continue to punch above their weight in these volatile rankings where the universities at the top of the list enjoy significantly better funding than Australian universities.

The introduction of the Melbourne Model in 2008 set the University of Melbourne apart from other Australian universities The University’s New Generation undergraduate courses - Arts, Biomedicine, Commerce, Environments, Music and Science - is the cornerstone of the University’s Melbourne Model. They all provide excellent employment opportunities and pathways to a wide range careers and further study options.

ICBT Campus opens in Nugegoda

The ICBT Campus will open its latest branch campus in Nugegoda.

Nugegoda is considered to be one of the leading education hub cities in Sri Lanka with over 30,000 students attending classes on weekends. Establishment of ICBT Campus in Nugegoda will be a good opportunity for students to study for internationally recognized programs.

ICBT Campus Nugegoda will be offering a range of Diploma to Degree level programs in IT, Business Management, Construction, Quantity Surveying, Engineering and English Language programs in association with some leading universities and education service providers in UK and India.

s the leader in private sector education ICBT will be offering modern facilities at the Nugegoda branch which will include modern class room with A/C, labs with latest computers, audio visual equipment and library facilities.

 More Indians find ‘superior’ career options at home than in US

Uncle Sam’s land may not be as attractive a destination as widely believed, as a survey shows that many Indian immigrants found professional and career prospects far better in their home country than in the US.

Besides, in several cases, better career avenues back home influenced their decision to return.

The study conducted by Harvard professor Vivek Wadhwa surveyed highly-skilled immigrants, who had worked or received their education in the US and later returned to their home countries.

“Respondents strongly indicated that they felt that professional and career opportunities at home were superior to those in the US. Eighty- four per cent of Chinese and 68.7 per cent of Indian respondents said that better professional opportunities were strong factors in their decision to return home,” the study titled ‘America’s loss is the world’s gain: America’s New Immigrant Entrepreneurs, Part IV’ said.

PTI

JKSRF enhances English knowledge

‘English for Life’ conducted by the John Keells Social Responsibility Foundation (JKSRF) in collaboration with Gateway, is a program that focuses on teaching Business English together with basic IT and career success skills to the 17-25 age group, i.e. students who are post O/L and post/pre A/L and/or job seekers.

Launched in mid-November 2008, the program is now in its third month.

The rationale for this program is to provide English and basic career skills to youth who have completed or in the process of completing their secondary schooling. As such, it aims to enhance the employment prospects of eligible youth who have been selected for the scholarship program. The program is also important in the context of the Government of Sri Lanka declaring 2009 as the year of English and IT education.

Director, John Keells Holdings PLC Sumithra Gunesekera, said, “It is widely accepted that English and IT knowledge provide a vital competitive advantage in today’s digital age, helping individuals become better communicators to expand their knowledge and outlook.