Delay in release of UG results affects students of University of Madras

Uncertainty hangs in the air over the future of undergraduate students at 108 non-autonomous government colleges affiliated to the University of Madras (UoM) as the university is yet to declare the final semester results.

The delay has become a major hurdle for students seeking to enroll in postgraduate courses as many subsidized and private autonomous colleges have already completed admissions for postgraduate courses and even started classes.

Professors from the University of Madras told The New Indian Express that it may take two weeks to a month for the results to be released. Out of the 131 colleges affiliated to the University of Madras, 23 autonomous colleges declared their results on time, in the last week of June.

At a disadvantage

“I had achieved good results and was hoping that PG admissions in aided colleges would be at par with government colleges. Now I have no option but to pursue my PG degree in my present college,” said a student of a non-autonomous government college.

“It is an open secret that many subsidised and private autonomous colleges have already admitted students to PG courses and started classes. This leads to lack of uniformity, putting students from other colleges at a disadvantage,” said a member of the Association of University Teachers (AUT).

He explained that due to this asymmetry, students from government institutions in rural areas are not aware of the admission procedure of autonomous institutions.

Explaining the point

For instance, he said if a student from a non-autonomous government university wants to join a grant-aided autonomous institution known for its MSc Visual Communication course, it becomes difficult because the institution has already closed admission for PG by the time the student’s results are declared and he or she goes to apply.

Worse still, many UoM departments allow provisional admissions into PG courses based on performance in the entrance test and undergraduate scores. However, at present, only the five semesters are taken into account for these students from non-autonomous government colleges. This is considered unfair to those who could have done well in the sixth and final semester.

“Such provisional admissions cause unnecessary stress for students until the results are out. Apart from that, government colleges that wait to admit students until the results are out — like last year when the results came in only in the third week of August — struggle to complete the entire 90 days of classes before the semester exams that are normally held in November,” said a professor from UoM.

Meanwhile, academics said the delay is caused by administrative issues, pointing out that the position of vice-chancellor of the university is vacant. They also urged the government to resolve UoM’s audit issues in a timely manner so that funds can be released for the institution.

“The committee that convenes the university comprises the higher education secretary. He has to ensure that the welfare of the students is not compromised due to administrative issues,” said C Sivakumar, former member of the Madras University union body and former president of the Government College teachers’ association.

Officials at the University of Madras were not available for comment.