1. To provide students a forum to discuss their educational and professional concerns and identify the skills required for 21st century leadership;
2. To enable students to make informed educational and career choices by interacting with experts in their respective areas of study as well as educationists
3. To give students a voice in the planning of various learning experiences in universities;
4. To enable educationists to hear students, identify their requirement and enhance quality of education;
5. To facilitate the development of knowledge, skills and competency required for 21st century leadership.

The Institution
This student conference is organized as part of the run-up events for the centenary celebrations of the University. The SNDT Women’s University was born out of the idealism of the early 20th century - at a point of time when the country was filled with the fervour of nationalism and social reform. In this long history, the University (from its core commitment to gender justice) has contributed significantly to the education of Indian women. It is now stands poised to take on the challenges of the 21st century-a period of radical change. In evolving its future plans and strategies for the future, the University would like to have a feed-back from students and at the same time enable students to reflect and plan on their future growth.

Rationale
The need for such an interactive conference, that connects the various stakeholders in higher education, is because of the challenges of the 21st century higher education. These challenges are partly because of the changing global socio-economic and political scenario and partly because of the huge possibilities of new age technologies. In this changed context, the old familiar models of higher education are no longer relevant. The new age information technologies enable access to information on a scale not envisaged in the earlier centuries. These technologies enable students to take charge of their own learning in exciting new ways. The potential of educational technologies for education are not yet fully tapped within the Indian university system.

The innovative use of educational technologies in higher education will radically alter universities and institutions of higher education. Students will be able to experiment with newer ways of knowledge acquisition through blended modes of classroom and online learning. They will be able to enhance their creativity and competencies by moving across disciplinary boundaries. As pedagogic practices shift from a teaching-driven activity to learning-centeredness, education can no longer remain a passive transmission of knowledge but rather a process of self discovery. To accommodate these changing modes of knowledge delivery, universities structures will need to change.

While planning these changes in higher education, universities must also consider the macro processes of socio-economic change in the 21st century. State policies and international agreements allow for a free flow of goods and services across borders. Students need not only with professional skills and competency but also soft skills to fit into the new market economy and live in culturally diverse societies. As the future leaders of their respective professions, they need to identify career goals and map the milestones for the future.

Given that demographic profile of India is young, Indian universities have the dual challenge of meeting the escalating demand for higher education and enhancing quality of education. These challenges of quality, equity, inclusion and social justice exist in the context of a market economy when Indian universities face stiff competition because of privatization and globalization of higher education. Indian universities cannot afford to be complacent. Many institutions of higher education have therefore introduced twinning programmes that enable students to study partly in India and partly abroad. Many foreign universities have also established off shore campuses and are scouting for students. These changes are not without costs. The price of education is escalating far beyond the capacity of most middle class families. The challenge for universities is to provide quality education at an affordable cost. In order to address these concerns there is a need for collaboration between the various stakeholders. While student input is required by university management and faculty to design cost effective, quality education, students need to know their options to plan the future directions of growth.