M Com, MA and MSc exams can now be conducted by March 30, says new MU circular

Less than ten days after the University of Mumbai released a circular asking colleges to conduct exams for first year post graduate batches by March 10, the varsity released another circular postponing the deadline to March 30, giving colleges a breather.

Less than ten days after the University of Mumbai released a circular asking colleges to conduct exams for first year post graduate batches by March 10, the varsity released another circular postponing the deadline to March 30, giving colleges a breather. Many affiliated colleges had complained that after completing admissions in January this year, most colleges had started regular lectures for the first year PG batches only by mid-January and conducting exams within six weeks would have been unfair to students.

Many affiliated colleges of MU had complained that after completing admissions in January this year, most colleges had started regular lectures for the first year PG batches only by mid-January and conducting exams within six weeks would have been unfair to students. (HT file)

“Most colleges were completing the admission process for first year MCom, MA and MSc courses until January 15 after which classes began. The previous circular by university’s examination department asked us to conduct exams before March 10 and announce results by March 15. How would that have been possible?” said the coordinator of the MCom department of a suburban college, adding that as per the university act, colleges need to complete 90 teaching days before they can hold exams and in this particular case, students had barely attended 40 days of online lectures.

This year, admissions to most courses in the higher education sector got delayed due to the lockdown and confusion over reservation quotas. In colleges that managed to fill up their seats through the in-house quota, admissions to post graduate courses were completed by December 2020 and classes began in the first week of January 2021. However, in many cases, colleges had to wait until January 15 this year to complete the admissions process and finally start regular classes.

Officials from the Board of Examinations and Evaluation (BoEE) told HT that the circular is not binding in terms of the date mentioned. “We had told colleges to hold the examination by March 10 but over time, more and more colleges shared their inability to conduct exams in such a short time so we have extended the deadline until the end of the month,” said Vinod Patil, director BoEE, MU.