Rajendra KC is the founder of Southwestern State College and one of the founding members of Nepal PhD Association. He has previously served as the chief advisor to HISSAN central committee, chairperson of Rural Environment and Development Association (REDA-Nepal) and board member of Kathmandu Capital Ltd as well. A notable person in the education fraternity, KC now has developed a concept of University of Three Generation (U-3G). Pratik Ghimire ApEx talks to him in this context.
How did the concept of the U-3G come about and what does it actually mean?
If we look around the world, we see different institutions teaching students a variety of courses in the name of universities. But they are essentially operating only to provide academic certificates. This makes it difficult for the students in the future, because certificates alone can’t help them compete in the global market. What we need to do is connect formal and informal education.
In this method of education system, a senior professor, for example, can share his or her career story, of all the ups and downs. And as formal education, students are taught the academic curriculum.
U-3G means three generations coming together and sharing their understanding, experience and knowledge. It brings all three generations: youths, working men and women, and retired citizens together to empower and involve the students, so that they could lead and transform society.
Why do you think we need such a university?
A large number of Nepali youths are abroad. Young energy, be it physical, mental or psychological, is extremely important for a country. But our youngsters have been migrating overseas for jobs and higher studies. To stop this, what we thought would come into use was the experience of adult citizens. The citizens mostly of the 50-59 age bracket who are experienced in different areas could motivate the youths. Their network or finance could also be helpful. This exchange of experience between adult citizens and those below 40 years will act as an informal education to enhance the overall personality of our students.
And since this university aims to promote, foster, and encourage all stakeholders for collaboration, partnership, alliances, and development based on 4Ps modalities (public-private-people partnerships), this concept is the need of the hour.
Are the works going well with the establishment of university?
Yes. We are in our initial phase and all the legal work has been completed. We have a team of experienced individuals like former government secretaries, retired Nepal Army officers, bank CEOs, academicians, and social workers, among others.
How could we utilize human capital?
In Nepal, especially for political leaders, capital basically means property, house and vehicle. What we have failed to realize is that the first capital for any nation is its citizens. This human capital is what eventually makes what we know as financial capital.
Human capital includes the ideologies of the youth and their enthusiasm and the experience of adult citizens. As a university, we can provide the best education and experience to our students with which the trend of moving abroad could be reduced. Of course, we cannot and should not stop anyone if they wish to go abroad, but we can limit the trend of Nepali citizens migrating overseas permanently.
What should our educational system look like?
In the name of globalization, we are adapting a combined curriculum from different countries. We should plan our own curriculum depending on our needs and resources. So, it is clear that our educational system has many loopholes. They should be revised as soon as possible.
