No extra fee if students want to switch to another junior college: Maha education board

The school education department has asked colleges to not collect fees for the new academic session from students who want to move to another college.

Maharashtra state board students who want to switch to another junior college in Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC), do not have to pay fees for the coming academic session, 2017-18, till the class 12 online admission process begins.

However, the board said that the students need a ‘valid reason’ to make the switch. (Ht File)

The school education department has asked colleges to not collect fees for the new academic session from students who want to move to another college.

In a recent letter to the junior colleges affiliated to the state board, the deputy directorate of education, Mumbai region, states, “Students aspiring to change colleges should not be mandated by their current institution to pay fees for the new session parents right now.”

They can pay the fees to the institution if they do not get admission anywhere else in the online admission process. “Colleges must abide by this rule and ensure that the department doesn’t receive any complaints against them,” adds the letter.

HSC admissions will be conducted online for the coming session, much like first-year junior college (FYJC) online process.

The move is aimed at making Class 12 admissions transparent and curbing malpractices such as donations and non-merit-based admissions.

Students aspiring to switch colleges in Class 12 will need to fill out an application form that will soon become available on the portal mumbai.11thadmission.net.

Students will, however, need a ‘valid reason’ to move to another college. The department states that students can make the switch only if they get a different stream, a college closer to home, or if they have recently moved or their parents have been transferred to another part of the city.

Many students look to change colleges in the middle of Class 11 or in Class 12 if they want to secure admission at a college of their choice — especially if they are unhappy with the college allotted to them in the FYJC online admissions. The new rule will make it tough for them.

Mumbai’s junior colleges are waiting for the department to declare timetable for online admission process before implementing the changes. “Many students have approached us regarding switching colleges. For now, we have asked them to submit applications, and we will admit them only after the online process begins,” said Kavita Rege, principal, Sathaye College of Arts, Science and Commerce, Vile Parle.

Rege added that the government needs to expedite the admission process. “They had announced about the online admissions​ eight months ago, but we are yet to receive any further information about it. This has put our college admissions on hold,” said Rege.