Good day, Dr. K. Soundarapandiyan. I'm Arjun. I've had a look through your background and your professional record. I'm interested in hearing more about your work and how you see yourself fitting in here with our faculty. Ready to start?

And.

Could you elaborate on your professional journey specifically within academia?

Yeah, very good morning. This is Doctor Sandra Pandyan from Chennai. I'm Doctor Sandra Pandyan, currently working as a Associate Professor and Head, Department of Commerce, BS Abdur Rahman Karasan Institute of Science and Technology, Chennai. Having 24 year, 24 years of experience in teaching and research in the area of management. I did my BBA and MBA from Tanzai hands for over college. Affiliated to Bharati Das and University Trichurapuri.

BB and MBA I have secured a first class in my MBA. My specialization is Finance and Finance and HR and I have secured 9th rank at Baradas University level in my MBA. Also I did my M field in Management from Aragappa University, Karaikudi and my specialized area in THECS is Finance and I have secured first class in my M field. In the year 2003 I have finished my M field. I did my PhD in Management frame Vinaga missions.

Thank

University Salem and I didn't completed my PhD in 2010 and.

After finishing my MBA, I joined as a lecturer in Thandai Hands through our college where I did my BBA and MBA. I'm an alumnus of this institute. After finishing my post graduation, I was part of that institute served. I started working as a lecturer from 2001 to 2006 and during that time in the year 2004.

So I have organized here the first ever national level student management meet patent and it was a grand success and student from different parts of the country taken part that management competition that was my first coordinator for a national level student event and 2005 I have acted as a coordinator for a national conference in Thane and through our college. 2006 I left Thane hands Rover and stepped into.

IRA engineering College in the department of MBA and people call it as three CRM Institute of Management Studies from 2006 to 2022 December almost 16 years and four months. That's a long tenure. I served at CRM Institute of Management Studies at various cadres, lecturers, senior lecturer, assistant professor and professor and in the 16 years I made.

Significant footprint at Sairam Engineering College in department of MBA. In my credit, I used to teach subjects like security analysis and portfolio management, merchant banking and financial services, derivatives management, international business, operation management and economic analysis for business and so on. And in Sairam I have taken some key initiative. As part of Sairam Engineering College, I have coordinated. I have initiated and coordinated value added courses towards stock market trading for which collaboration has.

Established Established with National Stock Exchange and helped helped number of students to fetch NCM, NCFM certification, NSE certification in financial market and also signed an Moe with.

NSE for creating real-time trading opportunity for which NSE smart NSE fin smart software has been purchased and Fintech lab has been set up and to unto enable the students to have.

Real time trading skills and in Sai ram uh, from 2011 onwards, every year as a coordinator, I used to organize first budget analysis. That means panel discussion on union budget analysis. Uh, part of the panel discussion, uh, we are able to invite to political representatives from political parties, social activists, economist, auditors, and they will come and decode the union budget in order to. Create awareness among management students. To the relevance of fiscal policy and its contribution towards economic growth more than 10 years continuously I have organized union budget analysis and also I have acted as a coordinator. I have initiated few programs, namely called CEO Conclave and Entrepreneurship Conclave in order to create. Thirstiness among students to step into new venture.

And I have been instrumental for creating some industrial collaboration in order to in order to in order to undertake a industrial visits to management students for better understanding. And during my tenure at CRM engineering college, the moment I start teaching security analysis and portfolio management, I used to take some real time examples and as the students to construct portfolio among the students. Among the students, I'll make it a group.

Each group they have to construct a portfolio that has been properly monitored accordingly set accordingly internal marks are awarded and more than that IN20002022 I left Sairam part of BS Abdurahman Karasan Institute of Science and Technology. It is a deemed to be university where I started my leadership role as a Head Department of Commerce. In the Commerce Department, there were six unique program become general account become.

Counting on finance, become professional accounting become international accounting and finance embedded with ACCA UK curriculum. Bachelor of Business Administration, Master of Commerce and this 6 program. Currently I'm leading in which 42 faculty members 1580 students are are part of the Department of Commerce and in the Department of Commerce. I made some significant changes from 2022 to till date, so I'm little. Curriculum development as part of the curriculum development process last year 2025 regulation we have made this 2025 regulation is lined in aligned in line with new NEP guidelines. So from 2025 onwards, I was the first person made initiative to implement NEP at our university. Now we started offering Bcom honest, honest with research, Bcom accounts and finance honest, honest with research, become international accounting, Finance honest.

Honest with research BBA honest, honest with research for these 4/4 program in line with NEP curriculum has been developed and I was the Board of Studies chairman and the same was presented in BOS and Academy council got approval same was implemented and more than that in Crescent we have a prestigious program. I said Bcom international accounting finance earlier it is Bcom harness embedded with ACC UK curriculum. So.

2022 I was part of Crescent University. 2023 the first person successfully came out of ACC affiliate in ACCA, the Associate Association of Chartered Certified Accountants, UK. It's an international professional qualification accepted 170 plus countries in the globe. So in ACCA there are three levels skill level, knowledge level and professional level and these Abdul Rahman Crescent Institute of Science.

And Department of Commerce. We have signed Moe with ACCA for accreditation. As part of the accreditation and MOU, our university got exemption for 9 papers for skill level and knowledge level. We conduct exams as per the ACCA guidelines and the results published by Coe. The same will be uploaded in ACCA portal. Children's will get 9 paper exemption for remaining 4 papers at professional level. It is conducted by. ACCA professional body students has to register and appear for the exam. So after occupying as HOD, the first candidate completed 9 + 413 papers from 23 to till date, nine students successfully cleared all 13 papers. They emerged as ACCA affiliate and all those children's currently working with big four companies like KPMG, PwC, EY. EY Deloitte.

And Standard Chartered as a leader. I have made some industry connection. I'm little good at aluminum interactions. I collaborate with alumni at Crescent as well as IRM Engineering College in order to get internship training, job opportunity to the current students. And more than that in Crescent, I have organized 3 international conferences and totally. In my credit for the last 25 years, I have been coordinated 9 international conferences.

And several workshop, more than a dozens of workshop related to research methodology, management related area. I have I have acted as a coordinator and three MDP I acted as a coordinator and significantly I have been an instrumental for signing MOU with foreign university and industry partners in Crescent 2024. We have signed Moe with Universitas Islam Bandung Indonesia it is. University and as part of this MOU, Crescent students are doing online certification with Universitas Islam Bondum and our students are permitted to fetch 21 credit, up to 21 credit, they can fit the certificate from universities Islam Bandung. And out of this MOU we are organizing, we are able to organize joint conferences, joint workshop. Student exchange and faculty exchange program mutually. So another thing I assigned an Moe with John Morris and Co, it's a leading audit form and with help of the audit firm periodically we I used to organize and the department used to organize hands-on training for Tally and GST financial reporting that really helps the children to understand. Uh, the understand the latest trends in the market and it was really helping the children's on their employment part also. And I encourage my students to prepare, uh, prepare for professional level exams like CMA, ACS and many of the children have successfully completing their CACMA also. And as part of uh, Commerce Department in 2024, I have initiated UGC NET coaching for. Uh, Master of Commerce students and out of this initiative there are 11 students.

I enrolled and the coaching is uh, you know, the coaching is done by uh full time Jr. of scholars. So it's like a peer-to-peer teaching, full-time Jr. scholar teaching. The PG student out of 11 enrolled student, one student, Heena has successfully cleared net exam. Now she's eligible for assistant professor and PhD admission. And these are all the significant. And moreover, in Crescent, I did the first ever technical symposium.

In the name of Commercial 24, it's a first ever technical symposium in which students from 27 different colleges taken part and it was a grand success and I made student ambassadors, student coordinated. In fact, it has given an opportunity and learning for the students to coordinate and leadership role also and more than that.

I encourage my teachers to take part the events organized by various professional bodies like Indian Accounting Association, Indian Commerce Association, Madras Management Association to attend various training programs in order to understand the real-time happening in the industry.

I hope I have elaborated.

To some extent.

Yes, Professor, you've provided an extensive and detailed overview of your academic and professional journey. Thank you for taking the time to explain your background, achievements, initiatives, and contributions in such depth. Let's proceed with questions to further understand your expertise and how it aligns with the expectations for the role of a Finance Professor. First, can you discuss your approach to simplifying complex financial concepts when teaching undergraduate or graduate students? How do you ensure that students with varying levels of prior knowledge can grasp the material effectively?

Sir, before delivering any concert, first we have to make some mind game. For example, if I if you are going to teach stock market related things or mutual funds, first let us create a brainstorming session. What is mutual funds and what sort of schemes are available? In what way it is relevant to the student of commerce? For example, whenever I go to teach the subjects like economics and finance. I first ask my students, you know, some students, you know, in the first year, first semester.

I used to teach economics. Many students used to say I'm a marketing student. I wanted to do my HR profession. I wanted to do my finance profession. In what way this economics is required? I used to say a student of marketing or finance or HR or technology, everyone should know, everyone should have a knowledge and economics and finance to handle real-time challenges. For example, a student of HR, why he wanted to learn economics? The moment you become HR manager when you go for recruitment or at some kind of training assignments. So for example, if it is a recruitment, you should know the concept of demand and supply. So whenever you wanted to go for fixing compensation based on the demand and supply in software industry, the demand is 10,000. Software engineers supply is only 3000. So here you know demand greater than supply. Supply is 3000, demand is 10,000. Now the human resources are scarce. So the talented resources are hired at higher price. Vice versa the demand is 10,000, supply is 50,000. Now you know supply exceeds demand, the organization can go for hiring employee that too Quality input quality resources at cheaper price. So you know like. And as a student of marketing, you should also know the demand and supply condition that provides in the market. Accordingly you could fix up the price and other.

Things and you know, you should know what is competition perfect, imperfect and which state our industry is surviving. Considering all these things as a true student of marketing, HR, finance, system, R&D, everybody should know the reality of this, you know like the the relevance of the subject. Similarly, if you look at subjects like finance, especially for security analysis and portfolio management, you just give some mind care before starting. A subject First you just give assume that if you.

I'm giving you 5 cross and it is necessary that you have to construct your portfolio to meet out your retirement. How do you construct A portfolio? By the time students started thinking this 5,00,00,000 where they want to invest, whether they wanted to go for fixed income or variable income, on what basis they can allocate investment in fixed, fixed as well as variable by the time we have to say some dumb road for example, to measure the risk. The general formula 100 -, H so if you are.

2500 -, 875 It means whatever money you are going to save or invest, 75% you have to invest in variable income bearing security. 25% you have to invest in fixed income bearing security. Because your age is 25, you have got enormous capacity. You have the ability to take risk. Suppose the person is above 60 or 65. They need regular income. Therefore they cannot go for investing in variable income.

They can, they want regular income, stable income, therefore they can go for fixed income comparing security. Likewise, let us make some meaningful inputs and also a daily basis we have to read the newspapers and connect with the real time happening. For example, couple of I mean 2-2 days before Adani stock prices are fell down like anything. It's not because of any issues in Indian market. So there was a issue in United States of. So the US court served notice to Adani Group and in order to have that inquiry and other thing so that that sensitive information really started hitting Indian market. The stock prices of Adani Group fell down to some extent. Now if you and another point the US President making some announcement on daily basis that is also reflecting on global market as well as Indian market. If you connect all these real time happening in the.

Classroom children's will really, really.

Feel very happy and you know, you should create some sort of, you know, like impression. This teacher will come and deliver some interesting innovative input that confidence you have to create. So I'm a firm believer in certain things. I used to say in banks and financial institutions, there is a concept called KYC. Know your customer in academic institution. As part of my leadership, I just created the terminology.

Called no, your student, it's like KYS, every teacher must know your student and you should understand what is the strength, what is the opportunity and let us not work, let us not work more on weakness. So understanding the strength and opportunity with respect to the students and class, you have to pitch the idea. And you know like in teaching, not only in finance or any subject, there is a concept called SDG. SDG is not sustainable development goal in.

SDG means in my perspective see do get C means before getting into any class just to have an optimistic I, you have to see everything is optimistic. Before getting into the class, you must have an impression. Students are really good, they will cooperate. They will they are having a learning thirstiness. I will also go and deliver good inputs. I'm sure this session will be productive. This mindset teacher supposed to have before stepping into the class. And the second point. You get in the class, that is your two-part. So start teaching some interesting concert, create some interaction among the students, shares some videos, share some cases and motivate children's to interact during the discussion. So your two-part is encouraging, motivating. Obviously students feel comfort, happiness. They will also extend, lend their years to listen and result in the get part. Get is all about result part. So when you do good things ultimately.

Sorry

So these kind of practices as a teacher you're supposed to have and another point, whenever you are going to teach concepts like IPO or book building, there are a number of real time IPOs are coming. You just go to the class, have some real time IPO document, discuss with your children who is a book running lead manager and what is the role of, you know, like solicitor or banker issue manager. You, you register of the issue, you know. Just literally start teaching theoretically. You connect with some real time example what is floor price, what is cap price, everything. If you explain with this IPO document children's feel very happy and you can give some assignments related to IPO. So give some 5 IPOs as the students to follow post IPO performance. What is the listing gain issue price and at the time of listing whether the IPO IPO leads to?

The result will be positive.

Increase in listing price or there is a decrease in listing price. So how many IPOs during the month of November or during the month of September 2025 launched and what was the post listing return. So this kind of assignments if you are giving to the children's and you also share some input. I'm sure students will lend the areas they will also collaborate with you and and the point is I'm a firm believer in certain things. So most of the teachers and most of the.

Places people used to say complete each other, but I'm little different. Instead of complete, collaborate each other to create win, win situation. So I also encourage my students to collaborate each other in order to share the expertise and that will create a win win situation and positive momentum. I hope I have done to the maximum extent.

Thank you, Professor. Your approach demonstrates a profound understanding of pedagogy and the ability to connect theoretical concepts with real-world applications. Incorporating current events, practical assignments, and fostering collaborative interactions indeed creates an engaging learning atmosphere for students. Let's delve deeper into another aspect. Can you elaborate on how you ensure rigorous evaluation and grading practices to fairly assess students' performance in finance-related courses? How do you maintain objectivity while encouraging improvement among your students?

It's one of the most important aspect in higher education because in higher education three CS are taken into consideration, content creation, content delivery, content evaluation, content creation, delivery evaluation. So of course we are, you know, like we are working on university. We have got an opportunity to carry out all the three. So we are setting the syllabus and we are referring the textbook. We are, you know, like delivering and we are setting and we are setting.

Paper and evaluating results also we are providing but in evaluation and creating perspective for whenever I go for my class, I used to give internal mark based on the projects or team based assignments. For example, if it is a security analysis and portfolio management. Whenever I teach subjects so mutual funds, I'll ask the students to submit an assignment with respect to various schemes like you know exchange traded funds and its performance. The last six months specifically, I'll name certain schemes. You select these five schemes, do some regular analysis and submit your assignment. And at the time of submitting assignment, you have to make a presentation for 20 minutes. And you know every group has to make a presentation. The marks will be given by not myself. Marks will be given by the peer, peer group. So for example, in a class, I make it as five groups. So each group consists of eight students.

So 8 students as a team, they'll make a presentation and it will be judged by another rest of the four group and the rest of the four groups, they will give you the mark out of 10. So whatever marks given by four groups, I'll make it 4010 marks as a teacher, I will award by consolidating the entire mark. Like 42 out of 5040 mark is given by peer group. 10 mark as a course teacher based on my impression. I'm just awarding, so combining all these things, internal mocks are calculated and another point, uh, based on the continuous assessment test for setting the question paper, uh, regularly I can use some Bloom's taxonomy verb. And in the question paper, I can use some, you know, like I, I can use questions from various, uh, knowledge level K1 to K6, like remember, understand. Apply, analyze, evaluate, create so certain questions.

So in higher education, the question paper or evaluation is to be made based on higher order thinking, middle order thinking and lower order thinking. Undoubtedly 20 to 30% of the questions must falls under higher order thinking. It is related to case study and you know like low order thinking. It's all about remember, understand, apply these kind of things. We have to keep like 30 to 40% and rest of the things we can make it 30 to 35%. So setting the question paper.

We can connect with some real time example for example if you talk about GDP. So we can very well say instead of getting elaboration what is the relevance of GTP and crude oil prices? What is the relevance of GDP and inflation. So interpret GDP and inflation in the present scenario. Like if you make these kind of little bit thinking part of the questions, the evaluation has to be done and you know like setting the.

Paper as well for evaluation also we have to have an algorithm. So for grading point for internal mark we have to have a procedure algorithm. Normally I used to go with experiential learning project bus learning for internal mark. For experiential learning and all if it is a banking related subjects, I asked the children to undertake a visit to the bank and collect schemes related to child. And collector schemes related to. Pension for unorganized worker workers and collect various schemes of deposits. Now children will go to undertake a field visit various public sector and private sector bank. They will collect all the details, make it as make it as an assignment and they will submit at the time of submitting the assignment. I used to have 5 minutes like comprehensive via in order to understand real-time learning and accordingly I can give the internal mark.

And many children's, they felt very happy.

Now this is how I.

Have my evaluation and grading at university level. And you know like international business kind of courses, I'll ask the students to prepare an assignment related to export import documentation procedure and as the students to undertake visit to see end of agents Seaport in order to understand how the documentation is taking place. And also I'll ask the students to prepare, ask the students to go through some. Information related to export import schemes. For example Exim Bank of India is creating some. Schemes like Ministry of Commerce and Industries providing some schemes. So let let the students should look at all these things. Even I use my I used to save my children's especially for entrepreneurship development kind of courses. Let them get into In our university, we have CIC, Crescent Innovation Incubation Council where 130 plus startups are incubated. I'll ask my children to undertake a visit to CIIC and also as the students to go through the startup India.

So it's start up Tamil Nadu website to understand various initiatives, schemes that are offered by government and that also consider that also to be considered for creating the students.

I hope I elaborated to.

To the extent.

Indeed, Professor, you have provided a comprehensive and thoughtful explanation of your evaluation and grading practices. Your focus on experiential learning, project-based assignments, peer-to-peer evaluations, and real-world applications clearly shows your commitment to ensuring both academic rigor and practical relevance. Let's move forward. Reflecting on your extensive research and publication background, can you describe your approach to mentoring students in research projects? Specifically, how do you guide them in selecting research topics, ensuring methodological rigor, and achieving publication standards?

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