Fewer private universities adopt CUET UG 2023, others hesitate over ‘uncertainty’

As the University Grants Commission (UGC) made it mandatory for all central universities to adopt the Common University Entrance Test (CUET) 2023 for admissions to all UG programmes, some of the private varsities, too, are beginning to adopt the entrance test.

BML Munjal University, GD Goenka University, Lovely Professional University (LPU), Galgotias University, SRM University and many more have adopted CUET 2023 this time. CUET, earlier called CUCET, has been made compulsory by the Centre in 2022.

"BML Munjal University has been accepting CUET scores since the first year of this examination for all our undergraduate programmes. A good score in CUET not just helps applicants in being eligible for the course of their preference, but we also grant merit scholarships to deserving students based on these scores," Shuchika Vinayak, head of admissions, BML Munjal University told indianexpress.com.

However, not all varsities are sure about the UGC-introduced entrance test, given the history of technical glitches and a delay in the admission process.

"This is going to be the first year when LPU would be participating in CUET and if the time frames are kept by the government and the exam does not have glitches, LPU would be happy to evaluate switching to CUET as well. However, as it is going to be the first year, we will not be changing our admission process completely," said Aman Mittal, vice-president of LPU.

The university conducts its own test (LPUNEST) for admission to various courses.

However, the UGC Chief, M Jagadesh Kumar, has said there will be no delay in admissions this year. "This year the CUET UG will take place on 21- 31 May and results will be announced in June. The admission process can start in July's first week and classes can start no later than August 1. Therefore, there should be no delay in the admission process," he said. "We are also working right from the beginning to make sure that the test centres are chosen with suitable infrastructure so that the CUET-UG will be conducted smoothly."

Other varsities have decided to skip the entrance test as they believe "there is a lot of uncertainty surrounding admission through CUET," Major Genernal Bhaskar Chakravarty, director of admissions, Amity University, expressed his concern.

"There is no guarantee about admission. When the students fail to make the grade through CUET for admission into government universities, they fall back on private universities only. So, when the aspirants can exercise that option well ahead of the conduct of the CUET, don't you think is it more prudent and a smart move?" he said.

Chakravarty also added that this is a reason why the varsity begins its admissions early in the year. "Our admissions commence in January. At that stage, the CUET fever has not yet gripped them. So, they can take a cool and calculated decision by going through our selection process, take admission and secure their seats. Also, many students who had attempted competitive examinations the previous year like JEE, NEET, CLAT and so on but did not make it to their desired institutions, try out their luck in private universities. These students are available to go through the selection process right from January onwards. Thus, it comes as a beacon of hope to these students," he explained.

He also expresses his concern over the sudden change in admission pattern on a national level. "In the din and bustle of CUET, have you considered how the CBSE system -- to which the student was subjected for 12 years -- suddenly becomes redundant as the marks scored by them will not be of any avail for admission into government universities. On the contrary, our approach is much more rational. It has kept minimum eligibility based on class 12 performance, plus there is a subject-specific selection process. Moreover, we also give direct admission and scholarship based on class 12 percentage," Chakravarty added.

Mahindra University, which begins its admission process in January too, says that it is important to let students make their decisions in a stress-free environment, and therefore, the varsity emphasises on commencing the admission process early on in the year.

This also helps the varsity get crème de la crème. "Some students opt to reserve seats and finalise after they get the scores for their competitive exams, which allows Mahindra University to get bright students on board," said Dr Yajulu Medury, Vice Chancellor of Mahindra University. "The approximate number of students registered for admission at Mahindra University in April 2022 is 500 out of a total intake of around 1300," he added.

Mahindra University is in the process of getting empanelled with CUET.

"Several universities, including private, are approaching us to join in CUET UG. I welcome all the universities to use CUET-UG score for admissions in their UG programmes. This will be a game changer for the students across India in terms of using a level playing and transparent admission process," UGC Chief said.