Women's College

WOMEN'S COLLEGE

Dept. data last updated on :16/03/2024

HISTORY OF WOMEN'S  COLLEGE, 

ALIGARH MUSLIM UNIVERSITY, ALIGARH.

 

Women’s College is a top-echelon part of Aligarh Muslim University, attracting outstanding students and academicians from all parts of India. The College provides a stimulating, challenging and rewarding intellectual experience to the students joining different programmes. The objective of each programme is to sustain and impart a high standard of teaching and scholarship. The dynamism of the intellectual atmosphere is evidenced by the wide variety of open lectures and workshops held besides the regular classes and interactions organised for specific programmes.


The Women's College came into being as part of philanthropy and a conscious awakening first, which has evolved into a gateway to excellence with time. As a key institute of Aligarh Muslim University, the College takes pride in its history of 115 years dedicated to the cause of Female Education in India.  With its modest beginning as an inconspicuous school in 1906 at Upper Court, Aligarh on the initiative of the founder Dr. Sheikh Mohammed Abdullah and his wife Waheed Jahan Begum (fondly remembered as Papa Mian and Aala Bi), it developed to a high school in 1921; to an Intermediate College in 1922 and in 1937, it was elevated to the status of an Undergraduate college as part of the Aligarh Muslim University. 


Women's College is recognised today as a premier institution of Sciences, Social Sciences, Humanities and Commerce Undergraduate courses for women. It has played a perennial role in educating the Muslim women specially those who faced more rigid barriers in their efforts to get empowered. At present, 3236 girls students from various parts of the country including overseas students from Turkmenistan, Yemen, Thailand, Nepal, Indonesia, Mauritius and Bangladesh are studying in Women's College. Thirty four (34) different courses are offered (through respective Departments of Studies) under seven faculties: Arts, Social Sciences, Science, Life Sciences, Agricultural Science (Home Sc.), Commerce and Theology. Women's College has a total strength of 105 teaching staff and 75 non-teaching staff members helping in achieving the target of imparting knowledge. The current student teacher ratio is 29:1.


Women's College is striving hard to fulfill the dreams of Sir Syed Ahmad Khan and Sheikh Mohammed Abdullah, who held immense faith in achieving education for all.  Keeping with the mission of the College to nurture a community of lifelong learners who value healthy traditions, the students are well equipped with knowledge and training to deal with modern needs of the contemporary society.  Apart from syllabus-based learning, the College provides ample opportunities for participation in various co-curricular, extra-curricular and sports activities. The college has a swimming pool of Olympic standards, a well-equipped gymnasium, an active NCC arrangement, an aware NSS group as remarkable features of the curriculum.  Girls’ empowerment at Aligarh Muslim University has always been a focal point of interest due to the visionary zeal of the pioneers.  Over the years, the number of access areas available to girls has increased.


In its endeavour to keep pace with modern technology and teaching methods, the college is gradually upgrading its classrooms. Presently we have ten smart classrooms, updating the learning and teaching practice. The college has a library of its own with proper infrastructure, catering to the needs of undergraduate courses. It has a Book Bank facility and modern software for visually challenged students. Three air-conditioned reading rooms are available in the college library. The college is an integral part of Aligarh Muslim University and has a permanent representation in the Academic Council, Executive Council and AMU Court. The faculty of the college are members of the Board of Studies in their respective departments. They exercise the right to take the prestigious positions of Chairpersons of Departments and Deans of their faculties on the basis of their seniority.


A distinct feature of the college is the Centre for Skill Development and Career Planning. This Centre provides vocational training to girls and prepares them for economic independence while counseling them on a possible future career. Currently, 20 professional skill training courses are operational at the centre.  The Day Care Centre for children of the staff is also a special feature of the College. Women's College boasts of an enviable residential facility available in India, it holds annual elections for the students, provides scholarships to the deserving and meritorious students. A look at the many university rank holders across departments as well as the number of awards won at national and international literary, cultural and sports competitions, numerous distinguished visitors  as well as the multitude of societies that the college is humming with, bears testimony to the rich ethos that characterises the Women’s College. Both teachers and students make the upper crust of the most accomplished in the University. Women’s College is esteemed as a pivotal asset of this central university.


VISION

The College aims to fulfill the vision of the founders by empowering girls from all section of society.

MISSION

  • Aspire for excellence.
  • Cultivate inquisitive minds for academic and intellectual development.
  • Develop graduates committed to their personal and professional endeavours.
  • Promote knowledge which is global in its perspective.
  • Nurture a community of lifelong learners in a culturally and traditionally rich environment.
  • The residential life within the College strives to reinforce the vision of the founders.