Delhi University to start admissions on August 2, to stay online

NEW DELHI: Delhi University announced no major changes in the admission process while releasing the registration dates for different programmes on Saturday. Like last year, the entire admission will be online in view of the Covid pandemic.
The registration process for merit-based admissions to undergraduate courses will commence from August 2 and continue till the end of the month. Registration for admission to postgraduate, MPhil/PhD and 15 select undergraduate programmes via computer-based, multiple-choice entrance tests will go on from July 26 to August 21.

Assuring aspirants of smooth conduct of the admissions from the “comfort of their homes”, acting vice-chancellor P C Joshi said, “Please do not feel stressed. We will be there to help. We will make sure the whole process is smooth and hassle-free.”
The criteria decided by the university for the enrolment process in 2020 considering the challenges posed by the pandemic remain unchanged for the current admission cycle. There will also be no change in the registration fees for merit-based admissions and for the DU Entrance Test (DUET) or in the cancellation charges.
DUET will be conducted by National Testing Agency and the dates will be announced later. Rajeev Gupta, chairperson, DU admission committee, however, added that while all trial-based admissions (extracurricular activities and sports quota entries) would be based on certificates, students would be asked to apply based on four years of performance. “But the students are free to use the best of three years’ certificates. We are aware that many would have participated in online events from home even during the lockdown this year,” said Gupta.
The centralised UG admissions will be carried out through a common registration-cum-application form and all departments and constituent colleges will use the same form for the admissions. Similarly, for the postgraduate programmes, the candidates need only fill a single common registration form but pay separate registration fees if opting for more than one programme.
Sanjeev Singh, joint director, DU Computer Centre, claimed that the 2021 online admission process would be more student-friendly, transparent, centralised, contact-free and paperless with the launch of a “new, refined website” dedicated to admission-related information. He said this would have matrices on seats, cutoffs, etc, as well as an automated chatbot to answer the applicants’ queries.
On the cut-off marks will be determined this year with Class XII results based on internal assessments, Gupta said, “We trust CBSE and other state education boards to leave us with no technical issues to grapple with. Every college has an admission committee, and each will consider its factors before deciding the cutoffs a few days after the closing of registrations. The admission branch will see if these qualifying marks align with the current trend.”
DU will release its information bulletin closer to the registration dates. It is also planning a number of webinars and tutorial videos on its website and on social media to assist admission aspirants.