Universities May Conduct Their Own Entrance Exams for Open Seats Under UGC

Unexpectedly, if seats are still open after the regular rounds of admission, the Universities Grants Commission has permitted the universities to hold their own entrance exams for admission to undergraduate and graduate programs. Standard operating procedures (SOPs), which include several admission cycles, have been given to institutions for the use of CUET scores, according to remarks made on social media by UGC chairperson Mamidala Jagadesh Kumar. Universities may, in accordance with SOPs, arrange separate admission examinations at their level to fill seats that remain empty even after multiple rounds of counseling and a relaxation of eligibility requirements.

“The University Grants Commission (UGC) has observed that, even three or four rounds of counselling, certain Central Universities still have open seats. Keeping the seats empty for the whole academic year is not only a waste of money, but it also deprives many students who want to attend Central Universities of a top-notch education. Consequently, the following SOPs have been developed with the Commission’s agreement to help the Central Universities fill their open positions,” the document stated.

Universities may conduct exams or take into account results from the qualifying exam in order to admit students in order to fill seats; nonetheless, the CUET will continue to be the principal eligibility requirement for admission.

Common University Entrance Test (CUET) was introduced in 2022 and has been used by universities nationwide for the past three years to admit students to their UG and PG programs. The announcement coincides with the protests of colleges, like Allahabad University, who claim they are “forced” to take the CUET and are not allowed to have a separate exam in spite of year-after-year admissions delays and empty seats.

The academic periods used to start in July prior to Covid, when there was no entrance exam and admission was determined by a student’s performance in Class 12. The judgment could prove to be a major setback for college applications, especially since August has already arrived this year.

Several participating national, state, and private colleges are in the process of holding admissions. The National Testing Agency (NTA) recently issued the CUET UG results 2024.

Universities looking for substitutes for CUET delay

Many colleges have brought attention to problems with the recently introduced CUET exam. The Delhi University academic committee recently declared that DU should choose not to take the test, claiming a breakdown in admissions for the third year running, essentially since the exam’s introduction.

The vice chancellor of Central University of Himachal Pradesh (CUHP) discussed the “bitter experience” of filling open seats in popular courses with Careers360 and recommended changing the admission exam.

Admissions occur Biannually:

The UGC recently approved universities to hold biennial admissions, providing places to students twice a year, beginning with the academic session 2024–2025. This is another chaotic step. The commission stated that while offering admissions twice a year is not required of higher education institutions, the policy will help expand course offerings and student enrollment.