Karnataka State Open University's convocation to be held on May 10

MYSORE: Women continue to perform better at the Karnataka State Open University.

Of the 23,913 candidates who have been awarded degrees, 14,711, which is 61.51 per cent, are women. The candidates will be awarded degrees during the fourteenth annual convocation on Saturday. VC M G Krishnan on Thursday said the women continue to outperform male students.

Governor-chancellor H R Bhardwaj will confer the degrees and Jamia Milia Islamia University former vice-chancellor Mushirul Hasan will deliver the convocation address.

Highest number of degrees have been awarded in the department commerce with 4,449 students getting degrees followed by Kannada (3,232), history (1,602) and economics (1,533). Unlike last few years when research scholars receiving PhDs touched double digit, it has slumped to single digit this season. During the thirteenth convocation, the KSOU had awarded 45 PhDs whereas now five students have been awarded the PhD. This time PhD is awarded in Sanskrit, Hindi, history, sociology and management studies. Registrar (evaluation) K J Suresh attributed the decrease in the number of research scholars completing doctorate thesis to change in the regulations. As per the new norm, the researcher has to submit the thesis within four years. Many have missed the deadline leading to the sharp decline in the number of PhDs awarded, he stated.

Among the PhD awardees is senior IAS officer B Basavaraju, who is principal secretary (revenue), who studied the public private partnership (PPP) model in road development in the state. He started to work on the thesis when he was the managing director of the KRDCL.

Krishnan said the governor will inaugurate Pareeksha Bhavan, the centralized examination centre and the varsity's regional centre built at Vijaynagar. He said the CM will be invited to inaugurate administrative block and convocation auditorium, which are expected to be completed in two months time.