Principal Fellowship (PF) is indeed a top honour to receive in an academic career. The PF is awarded to a high-impact educator, who is deeply committed to serving the field of education and closing the achievement gap. I am delighted to be recognised for my contribution to student learning and the positive influence I have had on colleagues over the years as a strategic leader in teaching in various settings and across continents.
This very prestigious award provides a competitive edge in any setting (promotion, job search, consultations). The access to the PF network brings with it a growth mindset, tremendous opportunities, enhancement of collective intelligence and exposure to innovative research. For instance, I was aware of the successful Finnish Education Model but through the PF system, I got an invitation to a special talk for a closed group of attendees. This experience brought me a deeper understanding of the country, their successful education model and approaches towards continuous education reforms that influence their overall competitiveness. I was extremely pleased with the knowledge I gained and disseminated similar practices in places of my work contribution.
Furthermore, the PF brought me other exclusive prospects. I was selected for initiatives with UK India Education Research Initiative (UKIERI) - Higher Education Leadership Development Programme for Administrators (HELDPA) Mentoring and the National Teaching Fellowship Scheme (NTFS) reviewing.
The mentoring for the UKIERI HELDPA in collaboration with University Grants Commission (UGC) aimed at leadership capacity building for over 230 higher education leaders in the Indian higher education institutions (HEIs) and aligned to India’s New Education Policy (NEP). A key theme of the programme was inclusion of women, in leadership roles across higher education in India and substantial transformation of Indian HEIs so that their names are on the top in global university ranking in the future. This experience gave me exposure into the Indian HEIs and I made several connections because of this project.
Acting as a reviewer for the NTFS gave me a chance to keep myself well-informed on innovative approaches to excellence in teaching and learning. The diversity of applications helped in further learning and deeper reflection. Moreover, it sparked ideas to improve my own practices.
Additionally, post-PF, several faculty members and colleagues have requested me to mentor them to support their career goals in academia. Lastly, I have received several calls and nominated to be an expert on education panels.
Dr Chakravarti is a Program Leader of Business Studies in a Federal institution. Her career is decorated with several awards. Sriya is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts (FRSA), Life Fellow of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland (FRAS) and a Principal Fellow. She holds memberships with the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (MCIPD) and the Royal Institute of International Affairs (Chatham House).
Sriya has also worked on various educational projects for the United Nations fraternity. Her expertise revolves around hybrid learning, blending learning, gamification in learning and creating microlearning modules. She has researched, developed, taught, and led educational initiatives in the USA, UAE, UK, India, Germany, Malaysia, Mexico, Thailand, Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia.
Principal Fellow Record of Educational Impact
Colleagues who are in the process of completing their direct Principal Fellow application and looking for more guidance on the Record of Educational Impact (REI) element of their submission can book Principal Fellow Record of Educational Impact Support Session at Advance HE. Participants will be asked to complete a template on which to collate their strategic interventions, and will receive constructive feedback in a convenient, virtual, one-to-one session with an experienced Advance HE reviewer. Find out more
Professional Standards Framework Review 2022
The Professional Standards Framework (PSF) has become a globally-recognised framework for benchmarking success within HE teaching and learning. Since it was last updated in 2011, the learning and teaching landscape within HE has changed considerably making a review necessary to ensure the framework continues to be relevant to higher education now and in the future. As custodians of the PSF, we committed to this review on behalf of the sector in our Strategy 2021-24. Find out more