72 Years in Women’s Education

Prasannadeb Women’s College – the oldest and the largest institution in North Bengal imparting higher education exclusively to women – is located on the bank of the river Karala amidst a serene emerald- green landscape, at the south eastern part of Jalpaiguri town. The College affiliated to the University of North Bengal and accredited in the second cycle by National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) with B++ grade (Score 2.88) offers Honours Programs and Program Courses in Seventeen different subjects in Arts, Science and Business Administration faculties. As add on courses, it also offers Career Oriented Programmes (COP) in Travel and Tourism Management and Computer Applications. It is noteworthy that from the academic session of 2018-19 Choice Based Credit System (CBCS) has been introduced at the under graduate level according to the new regulations of University of North Bengal under the guidelines of UGC for achieving excellence in higher education.

The College, founded on the philanthropy of the Late Raja Prasannadeb Raikat and his wife Rani Ashrumati Devi, set forth its venture with only 10 students on 31st August, 1950. Untiring efforts of the employees and patrons helped the college to get past all hurdles it faced in its initial years and gradually turned into a premier institution in the arena of higher education for women in North Bengal. The progress accelerated as the years passed and today it is the only college for women in North Bengal offering scope to study all the major Arts and Science subjects with up-to-date laboratory facilities.

Manned by 73 Teaching staff and 35 non-teaching staff the college at present caters to the need of around 3400 students. The three student hostels inside the campus provide boarding facilities to more than 250 students. The fully computerized Central Library of the college has a spacious reading room attached to it and has more than 33000 volumes of books and 10 academic journals. The library also offers E- document printing & reproduction facilities to the students.

With the objective of all-round development of students, the college gives equal importance to the co-curricular activities. There are four units of NSS and a senior division of NCC functioning in the college. The Nature Club arranges for the relevant programmes for the students interested in understanding and preserving the bio-diversity. The UGC sponsored Career and Counseling Cell provides technical, moral and mental support to students in their endeavor to be ready for the job market. Additional support is being provided by the Centre for Women’s Studies which became functional with the sponsorship of UGC since 2007. The Alumni Association of the college also plays an important role in maintaining a fruitful relation between present and former students of the college. The Internal Quality Assurance Cell (IQAC) of the college takes an active role in quality sustenance. The traditional teaching-learning process is well supplemented with a number of programmes like study tour, seminar/symposia/workshops that not only add variety to teaching but also provide greater exposure to the students.