Online Admissions: Easy For All?
Careers 360|March 2020
Online admissions have relieved the universities of a huge burden. But the process is less convenient for poor and rural students.
Pritha Roy Choudhury
Online Admissions: Easy For All?

Every summer, during the university admissions, Chinglen Khumukcham gets very busy.

Based in Delhi, he is part of the North- East Forum for International Solidarity which works on rights issues in India’s north-eastern states. But he also helps large numbers of students from Manipur take admission in Delhi’s central universities. From registering online to making payments, his assistance is needed at every step of the process ever since Delhi University moved its entire admission process online in 2016.

The application process for central universities was made online at the University Grants Commission’s prompting. In December 2015, the higher education regulator issued a notification asking all universities to introduce an “online admission system” for all their programmes. The notification said it will “facilitate the students and parents to make informed choices” as it will “not only ensure greater efficiency but also promote transparency in the functioning of the institution”.

Few universities were as quick to implement as DU and most institutions Careers360 spoke to had initiated it only in 2018-19.

The intervention itself has had mixed results. It has definitely eased the administrative burden on the institutions and cut down on travel for students applying outside their own states. However, the policy also presupposes a degree of access to and ease with the internet that large sections of students still don’t have. For students in rural areas and remote parts of the northeastern states, it has also meant added spending on cyber cafes, admission forms full of errors and having to travel to district headquarters to follow up on applications.

This story is from the March 2020 edition of Careers 360.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the March 2020 edition of Careers 360.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM CAREERS 360View All
249 New Universities In 5 Years
Careers 360

249 New Universities In 5 Years

Private universities have grown but over 70% students still attend public universities. Women's enrolment has risen 20%, Tamil Nadu has the higher GER among states.

time-read
3 mins  |
July 2023
AIIMS Delhi: Changing The Way It Teaches
Careers 360

AIIMS Delhi: Changing The Way It Teaches

AIIMS Delhi has started reforming the way fourth-year MBBS students are taught to draw them away from coaching and in lecture classes.

time-read
5 mins  |
July 2023
'FEELS LIKE HOME HERE'
Careers 360

'FEELS LIKE HOME HERE'

With apps for using everything from the mess to laundry services, specialist firms are bringing a new level of ease and convenience to private university hostel residents.

time-read
4 mins  |
July 2023
A MODERN TOUCH
Careers 360

A MODERN TOUCH

Sanskrit universities are launching modern courses, and offering programmes in different disciplines after becoming central universities.

time-read
5 mins  |
July 2023
HOW MEDICAL EDUCATION IS CHANGING
Careers 360

HOW MEDICAL EDUCATION IS CHANGING

A new 'exit' exam, proposal for common NEET counselling, new regulations on making medical college assessment reports public - here's everything that NMC is changing.

time-read
4 mins  |
July 2023
UNDERGRADUATE DEGREES ARE GETTING NEW NAMES, STRUCTURES
Careers 360

UNDERGRADUATE DEGREES ARE GETTING NEW NAMES, STRUCTURES

AUGC panel has suggested news names for arts, science, commerce degrees in line with international practices and the NEP 2020. Here's how the new nomenclature will work.

time-read
2 mins  |
July 2023
MEET THE DOCTOR WHO SAVED THE JARAWA TRIBE FROM EXTINCTION
Careers 360

MEET THE DOCTOR WHO SAVED THE JARAWA TRIBE FROM EXTINCTION

The Jarawas, an indigenous tribe of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands have been inhabiting the islands for over 2,000 years. Contact with the outside world had put them at risk of deadly diseases including measles. For 15 years from the late 90's, Dr. Ratan Chandra Kar, alumnus of Nil Ratan Sircar Medical College in Kolkata, treated and protected the Jarawas, preventing their extinction. He was awarded the Padma Shri in 2023 and recognised by NRS Medical College. He spoke to Careers360 about his experience and why young doctors must serve in remote areas.

time-read
4 mins  |
July 2023
'A BOON FOR THE DISTRICT'
Careers 360

'A BOON FOR THE DISTRICT'

170 years-old Krishnath College is transforming into Murshidabad University which is keeping the college's heritage but bringing modern, globally-linked education to the district.

time-read
4 mins  |
July 2023
POSTGRADUATE STUDENTS' DRP WOES
Careers 360

POSTGRADUATE STUDENTS' DRP WOES

The District Residency Programme has been introduced on the heels of the pandemic, without adequate planning or preparation, complained postgraduate students.

time-read
4 mins  |
July 2023
'Every UP district will have at least one medical college by 2027'
Careers 360

'Every UP district will have at least one medical college by 2027'

Thirteen new government medical colleges in Uttar Pradesh are set to begin their first academic session from 2023, raising the tally of government MBBS seats in the state to 5,128. Alok Kumar, principal secretary, department of medical education, UP, spoke to Careers360 about the expansion, meeting staff requirements, the government's focus on nursing and improving healthcare.

time-read
5 mins  |
July 2023