Why should one become a head of department?

Being a head of department is a difficult job to manage. One should choose their careers wisely after looking at the pros and cons of every profession and keeping their own potential and capabilities in mind. If you're interested in leading and developing a team, curriculum management and running departmental and good at handling things then the job of a head of department is the right choice for you.

How to prepare for the interview for the post of head of department?

The post of head of department is all about your leadership and management skills. Thus, leadership and management related questions are asked during the interview. The most important thing to keep in mind during your interview is to be confident while answering the questions. Questions like what are your best leadership characteristics, why do you want to be a head of department, what are your strengths and weaknesses, how to prioritize tasks, how to implement a plan, etc are asked during the interview for the post of head of department.

What is the role of a head of department?

The job of a head of department is a responsible one. The head of the department is required to manage the activities of the entire department. They have to look after the plan execution, development of the department and many more. The Head of Department has to manage all aspects of the employees of the department and is responsible for performance management. He/She builds high performance collaborative teams that work through an organization, and have the ability to develop and execute functional strategy or plan formed by the higher authorities as well as act as a change leader.

Head of the Department - Teachmint Meaning and Definition

The HOD is the head of the department of an establishment whose responsibility is to manage and run that particular department. It is commonly abbreviated to and referred to as HOD for simplicity and convenience. Most of the people in India who are given the title of Head of The Department are in engineering colleges. There is a HOD for every different engineering branch running in engineering colleges such as mechanical engineering, civil engineering, electrical engineering, computer science engineering, electronics engineering, etc. Their work also includes looking after the needs of the department as well as the teachers and students of that department. HODs might also be positioned in certain medical colleges to take care of certain departments.

The Head of The Department of a particular institution will only be given that position if they have several years of experience and has deep knowledge in that field. This is because taking over as HOD means that they have to both teach as well as do administrative work, which can be done only when they have enough experience in both. Another reason for the same is because HODs have to take over the responsibility of the entire department. The college/institution will therefore feel obligated to give such a massive responsibility to someone who is well versed in the workings of that department.

It is therefore imperative that the head of the department of any institution should be holding a minimum of 10 to 15 years as a professor. This ensures that they know the inner workings of the administration at a particular institution as well as their respective departments.

HODs are usually not called upon to teach because they have administrative tasks to do, but they are required when it comes to explaining complicated lessons.

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