MUMBAI: Semester-end theory examinations for professional courses in colleges affiliated to Mumbai University will have a mix of multiple choice and descriptive questions while those for traditional arts, science and commerce courses will be solely MCQ based.
For traditional and management courses, the university has set a deadline of December 31 to complete all the exams and January 15 for professional courses such as engineering, law and pharmacy. The university issued a circular on Wednesday evening, detailing the exam process for its affiliated colleges.
While undergraduate (UG) students of first, second and third years from arts, science and commerce colleges will have to attempt a 60-mark paper with 40 questions (out of 50) in one hour, the paper pattern for professional courses will include descriptive questions too. All professional courses will have a 50% descriptive component in the exam. The duration of the exam varies from an hour and half for law, architecture and interdisciplinary studies, to two hours for engineering and pharmacy, among others.
While the circular only mentions that the descriptive test will be taken online, it does not specify whether students will have to type the answers on the screen or write them on a paper, scan and upload on the exam portal, said a teacher. But it mentions that the answer sheets will be assessed by the teachers online only from college computer laboratories, he added. An official said colleges may ask students to write the paper and upload it on a software they are using to hold the exams. All the exams will be decentralised and conducted at the college level, with help from lead colleges in a cluster. Cluster colleges will follow a common schedule and the lead college will ensure that question papers are balanced, carry questions of all difficulty levels (easy, moderate and higher) and every unit from the syllabus is covered and given proper weightage, states the university directive.
Oral, practical and viva exams will commence from December 10 and will be taken on online platforms such as Google Meet, Skype and Zoom and on phone, wherever required. Not a single college has conducted physical practicals so far, though. Marks for internal assessment will have to be sent to the university by December 24.
The university will release a separate schedule for post-graduate exams, as many of the admissions are yet to commence. The schedule for first-year professional courses will also be released at a later date, as admissions are on hold for all professional courses in the state due to the pending decision on Maratha quota.
Colleges have been asked to ensure that students have the required devices to take the exams online. "Students should be informed about the examination mode well in advance. Students who miss the exam for any reason should be given another attempt in consultation with the lead college," said an official.