College Admission

The Common University Entrance Test (CUET) for admission to undergraduate and postgraduate courses is set to undergo several changes in the 2025 edition following a review by an expert panel, according to UGC Chairman Jagadesh Kumar. The University Grants Commission (UGC) had constituted an expert committee to review the conduct of CUET-UG and PG. "Based on feedback from past years, it is also essential to continuously improve the examination process to provide a better, more efficient and conducive environment for students taking CUET. In this spirit, the UGC has constituted an expert committee to review the conduct of CUET-UG and CUET-PG for 2025," Kumar told PTI. "The committee has examined various aspects of the test, such as its structure, number of papers, duration of test papers, syllabus alignment and operational logistics. The commission considered these recommendations in a recent meeting," he added. The UGC chief informed that the commission will soon release a draft ...

UG and PG aspirants will now be able to seek admission in any discipline irrespective of the one studied by him or her in Class 12 or at the undergraduate programme, after qualifying in a national or university-level entrance exam, according to new norms of the University of Grants Commission (UGC). The UGC on Thursday announced the draft regulations that are being set as the minimum standards of instruction for the grant of undergraduate and postgraduate degrees. According to UGC Chairman Jagadesh Kumar, the new regulations will introduce greater flexibility, remove disciplinary rigidity, bring in inclusivity and multidisciplinary learning opportunities for students. "Irrespective of the disciplines taken by a student in level 4 or Class-12 schooling, a student is eligible for admission in any discipline of UG programme if the student qualifies the national-level or university-level entrance examination in the discipline of UG programme," the draft norms said. "Depending upon the

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Delhi University has announced schedule for the allocation and admission process for undergraduate programmes across its various colleges for the academic year 2024-25 under Spot Round-I. According to the schedule notified on Sunday, the application process for spot admissions will commence on September 18 at 10 am and will remain open until 11.59 pm on September 19. The declaration of seat allocation will be made on September 21 at 3 pm, it said. Candidates who applied for the Common Seat Allotment System (CSAS-UG)-2024 but are not admitted to any college as of 5 pm on September 17 are eligible to participate in the Spot Round-I admission process. To participate, candidates must opt for 'Spot Admission' through their dashboard, the notification said. Once a seat is allocated, candidates will have time until 11.59 pm on September 22 to accept the offer. The last date for making the online payment to secure the seat is 4.59 pm on September 24, it added. The notification further sta

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The UGC has allowed central universities to hold their own entrance exams for UG and PG programmes if seats remain vacant after standard admissions

The National Testing Agency (NTA) on Sunday announced the results for the Common University Entrance Test (CUET)-UG, paving the way to begin the undergraduate admission process which has been delayed this year. The NTA had on July 7 released the provisional answer keys of the CUET-UG 2024. A retest for more than 1,000 candidates whose grievances were found genuine by the agency was conducted on July 19. The delay in the CUET-UG results came amid a row over alleged irregularities in competitive exams, including in the NEET-UG and the UGC-NET. Initially, the CUET-UG results were scheduled to be declared on June 30, but the NTA delayed it, as it was grappling with allegations of paper leak allegations in the NEET-UG, UGC-NET and the CSIR-UGC-NET exams. The CUET-UG conducted in a hybrid mode for the first time across the country was cancelled in Delhi a night before the scheduled exam day over "logistical reasons". The exam was held in the national capital later. The NTA had earlier .

Universities in the national capital, including JNU and DU, plan to hold weekend classes and have a shorter winter break in view of delayed admissions due to the uncertainty around the declaration of CUET UG results. The National Testing Agency (NTA), the body that conducts the entrance exam, announced on Sunday a re-test for over 1,000 CUET UG candidates on July 19, following complaints from candidates, including issues of time loss due to the distribution of the wrong question paper. The agency, however, has not clarified on the declaration of result, which was originally scheduled to be released on June 30, and has now been delayed by over two weeks. The final answer key of the undergraduate admission test has not been notified yet. A senior JNU official said the delay in the declaration of results will impact the university's plan to release an unified academic calendar for all the batches of students. The university will have to rely on extra classes on Saturdays and may have

The National Testing Agency (NTA) has decided to conduct a retest for over 1000 candidates of CUET UG on July 19. The NTA had on July 7 released the provisional answer key of Common University Entrance Test (CUET)-UG 2024 and announced that it will conduct a retest for CUET UG candidates between July 15 and 19 if any grievance raised by students about the conduct of the exam is found to be correct. While the agency notified the retest schedule on Sunday, it remained silent on the declaration of the result which has already been delayed by over two weeks with the final answer key not yet notified. The delay in CUET-UG results comes amid a raging row over alleged irregularities in competitive exams, including NEET and NET. According to NTA sources, the distribution of question papers in language not opted by the candidates is one of the reasons for the retest and the 1000-odd candidates are spread across six states. "Some of the grievances include time loss due to distribution of wr

Female candidates outnumber males in the number of applicants to West Bengal's central undergraduate courses admission portal, a higher education department official said on Monday. The portal which was opened on June 24 for admission to seats in 461 colleges and 16 universities closed on July 6 midnight. The portal was launched for the first time this year by the higher education department. "Of 5,27,673 applicants which were validated after scrutiny, 2,99,800 were women," the higher education department official told PTI on Monday. The official said there were 50 applicants from 'others' category. The 'others' in the parlance belong to the LGBTQ+ community, he said. Altogether 34,64,918 applications were filed with 98,089 coming from outside Bengal. Welcoming the trend as an encouraging sign, the Principal of Lady Brabourne College Siuli Sarkar told PTI, "It has been a trend in recent times that more girls are opting for higher education." However, another factor is the minds

Indian universities and higher education institutions will now be allowed to offer admissions twice a year on lines of foreign universities with the University Grants Commission giving a go ahead to the plan, UGC chief Jagadesh Kumar said. The two admission cycles will be July-August and January-February from the 2024-25 academic session. "If Indian universities can offer admission twice a year, it will benefit many students such as those who missed admission to a university in the July-August session due to a delay in the announcement of board results, health issues, or personal reasons," Kumar told PTI. "Biannual university admissions will help students maintain motivation since they do not have to wait one full year to be admitted if they miss admission in the current cycle. With biannual admissions in place, industries can also do their campus recruitment twice a year, improving employment opportunities for the graduates," he added. The UGC chief explained that biannual admissi

Amid a controversy over UGC's draft guidelines on filling of reserved posts in higher education institutes, Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Sunday clarified that not a single post will be de-reserved. Pradhan said there is no scope of ambiguity in reservations after introduction of the Central Educational Institutions (Reservation in Teachers' Cadre) Act, 2019. Not a single reserved post will be de-reserved. There is no scope for ambiguity after the Central Educational Institutions (Reservation in Teachers' Cadre) Act, 2019, Pradhan told PTI. The draft guidelines by the University Grants Commission (UGC) have proposed that any vacancy reserved for SC, ST and OBC candidates can be "declared unreserved" if enough candidates from these categories are not available. The draft guidelines have been receiving backlash from several quarters. The Congress alleged there is a "conspiracy" to end reservation given to SCs, STs and OBCs in posts in higher educational institutions

The University Grants Commission on Tuesday announced schedule for three key entrance exams -- CUET-UG, CUET-PG, and NET for 2024-25 academic session. Common University Entrance Test (CUET)-UG for admission to undergraduate courses will be conducted from May 15 to 31, 2024. "Results will be announced within three weeks of last test," UGC Chairman M Jagadesh Kumar said. The CUET-PG will be conducted from March 11 to 28. The National Eligibility Test (NET) will be conducted from June 10 to 21, he announced.

According to the official data, 2,18,355 candidates have registered on the CSAS portal, with 1,54,645 of them submitting the CSAS DU application form 2023 while 63,710 did not

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After the introduction of four-year honours system in the UG level, several varsities in West Bengal have decided to introduce the option for exiting after three years in major disciplines for those students who want to graduate without an honours as per the New Education Policy 2020 guidelines. As per the guidelines of NEP 2020, the UGC in its recommendations referred to an option where a student can either exit three years after pursuing the Bachelor of Honours course in major subjects as a graduate or complete the four year course to qualify as an honours graduate. Those who study further can get an honours degree or an 'honours with research'. State-run Calcutta University Pro-Vice Chancellor Ashis Chatterjee told PTI Wednesday "We have made an exit option for those students who want to opt out after three years in certain BA, BSc courses and for those who want to complete it in four years." To a question, he said "we have passed on the communication to all the affiliate college

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The second edition of the Common University Entrance Test began on Sunday on a glitch free note, registering 77 per cent attendance even as the exam was delayed at a few centres. The examination, however, was not marred with technical glitches like the debut edition. Meanwhile, for those who were allotted May 28 as exam dates and also have Joint Integrated Programme in Management Admission (JIPMAT) the same time, have been asked to continue with their management test as the National Testing Agency (NTA) has decided to reschedule their CUET-UG dates. "The exam went smoothly without any technical glitches. At certain centres, the exam was delayed due to issues in the biometric identification process. However, they were sorted and all candidates successfully completed their exams and were given their allotted time," a senior NTA official said. Compared to last year, when on the first day, around 75 per cent attendance was recorded, and overall attendance was 64 per cent, this year, 77

The CUET-UG examination days will be extended by at least four days to accommodate the higher number of candidates in certain cities, according to the National Testing Agency (NTA). The second edition of Common University Entrance Test (CUET)-UG is scheduled from May 21-31. "In some cities, the count of registered candidates is very large. To accommodate these candidates, the CUET examination days will be extended to June 1-2 as well as June 5-6. Moreover, buffer days of June 7 and 8 are also being kept as reserve days. In the coming days, NTA will issue the City Intimation Slip for these additional days," said Sadhana Parashar, Senior Director (Exams), NTA. The NTA has also clarified that the City Intimation Slip is not the same as admit card. "These slips are for advance intimation for allotment of city where the examination centre will be located, to facilitate the candidates. The admit cards will be issued later," she added. Nearly 14 lakh applications have been received for t