New university launched

KOLKATA: A new university offering courses in M Tech was launched on Saturday. The university, christened the Asia Pacific International University, currently has four institutes under its purview and centres at Kolkata and Bhilai.
"We found that few universities in West Bengal offered M Tech. With the number of private engineering colleges mushrooming, we felt students needed more scope at the masters'' level.That is why we set up the university," said chancellor Suborno Bose.
The institutes under APIU are the Institute of Advanced Management, International Institute of Information Technology, International Institute of Hotel Management and the International School of Business Management, all based in Salt Lake. There are over 1,200 students in Kolkata and the Bhilai centre will be operational soon.
The university, headquartered at Bhilai, was formed by a Chattisgarh state act in July this year. It has tied up with Scotland-based Queen Margaret University College, the Napier University and City and Guilds, UK’s awarding body for vocational training to offer international certification at much less cost. The university has also tied up with the educational institute of Americal Hotel and lodging association.
APIU students can complete two years of their degree here and then go abroad for one year. For the MBA programme they go to Napier for the final semester. “Usually MBA programmes cost £ 9,000 per annum but for our students, this comes to around £ 4,000 plus boarding,� Bose said.