Mumbai University admissions: Marginal dip in cut-offs worries students

The second merit list was announced on Thursday.

The announcement of the second merit list of degree colleges by the University of Mumbai (MU) failed to bring much relief to students on Thursday, with cut-offs of some courses in top colleges dipping only marginally.

Students whose names appeared in the second merit list now have until June 24 to confirm their admissions, which is when the third and final merit list will be released. (HT FIle)

The cut-off for Bachelor of Arts (BA) fell by less than a percent at most prominent colleges on Thursday. At 98%, the cut-off for BA had touched a new high in the first merit list declared on Monday. “There were only a handful of seats left for the BA batch of St Xavier’s, so there was a difference of only 0.31% in the second merit list cut-off as compared to the first list. With so many quotas and poor performance of state board students this year, most of us will not manage to find a seat in a college or course of our choice,” said Kritika Patel, who scored 88% in her higher secondary certificate (HSC) exam.

The scenario was not very different across other prominent colleges in the city. At Churchgate’s Jai Hind College, the difference in cut-offs between the first and second merit lists for BA was just 0.33%, whereas at Ramnarain Ruia College in Matunga, the second merit list cut-off for BA dipped by only 1.4%.

“The dip in cut-offs is anywhere between 1-3% across courses, but that is not a big margin because there are hundreds of students who fail to make the cut because of this. We have already allotted all the seats in our first year BA course, so we will have the third merit list only if there are cancellations of admission,” said Ashok Wadia, principal of Jai Hind College.

Meanwhile, among unaided courses, the demand for Bachelor in Mass Media (BMM) and Bachelor in Management Studies (BMS) remained high with most top colleges witnessing a 1-3% dip in the cut-offs. “In the past few years, the humanities faculty has attracted a lot of students and therefore, courses including BMM and BA remain popular,” said the vice-principal of a south Mumbai college.

Students whose names appeared in the second merit list now have until June 24 to confirm their admissions, which is when the third and final merit list will be released. Principals said they are still hopeful that top colleges will have seats for the third merit list next week. “Usually the same student applies to more than one college, and with every list that is announced, many students withdraw admissions to seek re-admission in another college of their choice. There are still plenty of seats left and students need not be disheartened,” said Parag Thakkar, principal (in-charge), HR College, Churchgate.