Students and parents apprehend there is no authenticity in the PG admissions being carried out by colleges and universities without exams being conducted for third-year UG students.
Although the verdict of the Supreme Court on whether final year degree examinations in universities should be held before September 30 is still awaited, a good number of higher educational institutions have apparently almost completed the process of admission for postgraduate programmes based on scores obtained by students till the fifth semester.
Shortly after the nation-wide lockdown took effect following the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic, the University Grants Commission spelt out the need for a change in the academic calendar for the academic session 2020-21 based on suggestions from an expert committee. Subsequently, the UGC released its guidelines mandating conduction of final year examinations in every university in the country, after the Delhi and Maharashtra governments cancelled final year exams due to the pandemic.
According to a college head here, the UGC had earlier this year permitted completion of provisional admissions by August-end subject to the condition that the relevant documents of the qualifying examination must be submitted by September 30.
However, parents say the colleges have not factored in the UGC's emphasis on conduct of exams for the final year UG students.
K. Murali, a parent, says conduct of PG admissions without completion of final year UG exams is injustice to students. “Normally, students look for PG admissions only after the results are out. When there is no decision on further plan of action, all such admissions should be declared null and void.”
The Higher Education Department, according to professors of Bharathidasan University, has not taken a call on conduct of examinations for even semester for final year students.
College principals say conduct of exams through adherence to social distancing protocol, as enunciated by UGC, is not possible at this juncture.
“Nevertheless, the PG admission process cannot be delayed indefinitely,” another principal of a leading arts and science college adds.