What is the most obvious testimony to the success of an educational establishment? One answer would be the laurels that the students bring to their alma mater. Beyond loud proclamations that an institution places its best interests in the students, it takes a lot of care, effort and perseverance to shape young minds to be responsible individuals and make a mark for themselves in the world. This is where many so-called established educational institutes fail spectacularly. Rising above its peers and showcasing exemplary results is Karnataka based The Oxford College of Pharmacy.
Chairman
This year alone, the college has seen it students walk in through the gates, heads held high, with university gold medals, and individual subject ranks. It is also to be noted that the college bagged the first, second and fifth ranks in B.Pharm examinations held throughout the state. Similarly, the first, sixth and tenth ranks in Pharm.D[PB] examinations belong to the Oxford College of Pharmacy. The college is also proud that of all the individual subject ranks announced by Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences (RGHUS), 75 belonged to the college. If these achievements do not speak about the proficiency and competency of the leadership and faculty team at Oxford College of Pharmacy, maybe this will: A major chunk of last year graduates were placed with corporate giants like Life Pharmacy Dubai, Bioclinica Mysore, Medlife Pharmacy Bangalore, IQVIA RDS (India) Private Limited, Mylan Laboratories Ltd, Accenture Pharma. For more proof that The Oxford College of Pharmacy does not dilly dally when it comes to shaping students, one need only see that 2 students from the 2018 batch was hired by the colleges itself as Assistant Professors.
Tweak the Curriculum to Suit Industry Changes
With the mission of providing learner-centred education, the college teaches the students to render patient-centred service, perform community-oriented research, build strong community relationships, be efficient to meet global health care standards, work with strategic future-oriented planning, and to nurture inter-organizational linkages. Although the college invites several notable industry experts to interact with students via seminars and workshops on Intellectual Property Rights, keeping in mind the current pharma trends and the recent unfortunate events, wherein several pharma giants were booked for embezzling, the college also intends to equip students with information pertaining to regulatory affairs, Drug Safety and Pharmacovigilance and Clinical research. Along the same lines, the college also offers few Industry-oriented Certificate courses and value-added courses in addition to the regular degree programs.
The college also encourages its students to attend various national and international conferences and workshops to stay upbeat of the changing pharma trends. It is also commendable that the teachers, too, attend these events, thereby polishing their existing knowledge base. Moreover, thanks to the fruitful bonds that the colleges enjoy with neighbouring industries and clinical research organizations, these institutions are a regular at organizing seminars, workshops, and medical camps and holding campus interviews in The Oxford College of Pharmacy. Also, the students and faculty take regular trips to several, industries and hospitals to get a first-hand feel of how the industry wheels turn.
Extending due importance to research activities, the colleges has currently secured two ongoing faculty researches with the financial support of Rs.9.5 Lakhs from RGHUS. In 2018, 9 Research projects were carried out by PG students under the guidance of RGHUS recognized PG teachers. Additionally, 8 clinical Pharmacy related research projects were carried out last year by Pharm.D students under the joint guidance of our Faculty members and doctors of The Oxford Medical College Hospital and Research Centre, Attibele. Moreover, the NAAC accredited college has signed 10 functional MoUs since the last five years to develop industry collaborations and academic advancement. Some of the notable names with whom the MoUs are with is the University of Malta, since 2012 for the next 10 years, and with Pharma industries like UWIN Life Science, BAL Pharma Ltd., Bangalore, World Alumni Network Private Limited and many.
changing pharma trends
Teaching Students to Responsibly Enjoy Freedom
The college allows its students to utilize the well-endowed libraries irrespective of the college working hours. This enables the students a much-needed breather to go back to the library and utilize the materials at their own time. This consideration from the college’s side is more visible from its gesture of waiving off tuition fees of those students who show tremendous potential. The Oxford College of Pharmacy is a paradise for students as it does not have a list of unnecessary rules; however, at the same time, to ensure a safe and sound campus, the college has in place several active internal committees that fosters women empowerment and monitor research development and sustenance, and several others committees like: Internal Complaint Committee, Minority Cell, Institutional Ethical Committee, Sexual Harassment Elimination Committee, Committee To Eliminate Ragging, Grievance Redressal Cell, and Student Council.
Principal
At The Oxford College of Pharmacy, emphasis is on nurturing a bond between the mentors and mentees. This ensures that there is a personal touch to the quality education imparted. This further paves way for the mentor to instil confidence, teach life skills, and prepare the students to face the challenges of life. This bond is reflected in the yearly alumnae meetings when old students flock around their beloved alma mater to reconnect with their favourite teachers.
Making a difference to how pharma education is furnished, The Oxford College of Pharmacy plans to bag a couple more international accreditations and set further milestones.