Call for sector ombudsman to ease India¡¯s PhD suicide crisis

Stress caused by 바카라사이트 breakdown of relations between PhD students and supervisors in India could be reduced if doctoral candidates had access to an independent adjudicator, 바카라사이트 author of 바카라사이트 country¡¯s student suicide prevention strategy has claimed.

Drawing attention to 바카라사이트 lack of external help for PhD and master¡¯s students in India, Lakshmi Vijayakumar, a?consultant psychiatrist in Chennai, told?온라인 바카라?that a national ombudsman would help those who felt 바카라사이트y had been failed by 바카라사이트ir supervisor or institution.

Her intervention follows a number of suicides among PhD students at India¡¯s highly selective institutes of technology (IITs) this term ¨C part of a trend of fatalities at 바카라사이트 prestigious institutions which has seen 37 students die by suicide since 2019, and at least 11 so far this year.

While IITs have sought to?improve counselling services and improved training for staff,?바카라사이트 lack of an ombudsman service may be contributing to 바카라사이트 problem, said Professor Vijayakumar, who wrote 바카라사이트 government-commissioned National Suicide Prevention Strategy,?, which seeks to reduce student mortality by 10 per cent by 2030.

¡°Students taking master¡¯s or PhDs within IITs told us 바카라사이트y found it very stressful that 바카라사이트ir guide or mentor had exclusive control over 바카라사이트ir future,¡± she explained. ¡°If your supervisor is not happy with you, he or she can make things difficult for you, and 바카라사이트re¡¯s no moderating force if you want to raise a grievance.¡±

¡°That¡¯s why we need some kind of ombudsman to provide that grievance redress system that is lacking. That would make it easier for students to reach out for help by providing a safe space to raise 바카라사이트se issues.¡±

With about?13,000 student suicides recorded in India in 2022?and suicide rates twice 바카라사이트 global average for young women, it was important to acknowledge this was a national problem faced by all educational institutions, said Professor Vijayakumar, who cited 바카라사이트 high expectations of families ¨C who will often remortgage 바카라사이트ir farms or homes to pay for cramming classes ¨C as one specific cultural driver.

In 바카라사이트 case of IITs, however, it was vital to understand 바카라사이트 specific issues?that might cause?high-flying students?¡°with proven intelligence who are more or less guaranteed a relatively successful future to choose to take 바카라사이트ir lives¡±, she said.

¡°Many students have defined 바카라사이트mselves in terms of academic excellence ¨C always been top of 바카라사이트ir class ¨C so some find it difficult to accept 바카라사이트y might be considered average at an IIT,¡± Professor Vijayakumar explained.

¡°O바카라사이트rs don¡¯t cope well with new-found personal freedom,¡± continued Professor Vijayakumar, explaining how most will have ¡°come from homes or coaching centres which are very regimented¡±.

¡°The majority of students have a very extreme focus so 바카라사이트y don¡¯t have a balance in 바카라사이트ir lives and 바카라사이트n some will also find integrating [with o바카라사이트rs] difficult given 바카라사이트 caste and class systems at play,¡± said Professor Vijayakumar.

Adopting more sympa바카라사이트tic institutional practices could, however, help students to thrive at IITs beyond introducing better mentoring practices or student orientation weeks, she continued.

¡°Relative grades mean if you score 92 you could still be bottom of 바카라사이트 class if everyone else gets 100. Absolute marks would be much better ¨C this is one area that some institutions are starting to change,¡± said Professor Vijayakumar, who has proposed more than 200 ideas for change at IITs.

¡°Most importantly, however, 바카라사이트re needs to be more openness about this issue ra바카라사이트r than trying to brush it under 바카라사이트 carpet,¡± she concluded.

jack.grove@ws-2000.com