Employability-focused curriculum launched for Bengal universities

Cambridge University Press & Assessment announced a collaboration with the Higher Education Department, Government of West Bengal, to support the launch of a new employability-focused curriculum aimed at strengthening workplace communication and improving job-readiness among university learners across the state.

The curriculum launched recently brought together senior voices from government, higher education and industry to examine how English communication skills are defined, developed, assessed and valued from university through hiring and into early career progression.

Advertisement

Participants included, Prof. Amlan Chakrabarti, COO, International Centre of Excellence for Data Science, AI and Futuristic Technologies, Department of Higher Education, Government of West Bengal; Prof. Suranjan Das, Vice Chancellor, Adamas University, Dr. Himanshu Sharma, Director UWSB and Karnavati University, Ahmedabad, Dr Andrew Fleming, British Deputy High Commissioner for East and North East India; and Mr Vinay Sharma, Regional Director, Cambridge International Education, South Asia, alongside others.

Commenting on the curriculum launch, Prof. Amlan Chakrabarti said, “Employability today is shaped not only by technical knowledge, but by the ability to communicate ideas clearly and work effectively across disciplines. By embedding structured English communication within the higher education curriculum, this initiative helps align academic learning with industry expectations, while giving students practical skills that will support their transition from university into the workplace.”

The programme includes 30 hours of activity-based classroom teaching and workshops, supported by digital course materials with photocopiable resources for teachers, alongside 20 hours of self-paced practice delivered through a learning management system. It focuses on practical English for recruitment and early workplace contexts, covering CV and cover letter preparation, interview and group discussion skills, and professional communication such as emails, meetings, and giving and receiving feedback. The course concludes with the Upskill English Test, an approximately 45-minute mobile-based assessment of listening and speaking in workplace contexts, with CEFR-aligned reporting up to B1 to provide clear, measurable outcomes.