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DU extends date for UG admissions registration

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With the first phase of the University of Delhi’s undergraduate admissions for merit-based courses on the verge of culmination, aspirants are racing to finish the online formalities to become eligible for admission in the varsity. However, the University has decided to extend the last date for undergraduate registration to June 13th, 2017, till 5 pm.

The registrations commenced on May 22nd, with various technical glitches and operational delays being experienced over the period of these twenty days. The admissions process, which was completely online, allowed candidates to fill out their personal and academic details on the portal. They could select the courses, choose the ECA and sports quota categories, and upload the necessary documents online as a part of the registration process.

The admissions cycle also witnessed an obstacle due to the slight delay in the announcement of Class XII Board examinations result by the Central Board of Secondary Education, which were released on May 28th, 2017.

The varsity currently offers 60 undergraduate programmes, with more than 56,000 seats for candidates. The undergraduate admissions process for entrance-based courses was scheduled to begin on May 31st. However, the date has been postponed and the final timeline is yet to be announced.

Keeping in mind the functional and logistical delays, the University has announced that the undergraduate merit-based admissions cycle will end on June 13th, offering a one-day extension to candidates to fill up the online forms.

The undergraduate admissions portal can be accessed here.

 

Feature Image Credits: University of Delhi

Saumya Kalia
[email protected]

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Admissions 2017

DU Finally Begins Postgraduate Admissions Procedure

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After having delayed the start of the admissions process for postgraduate candidates more than twice, the University of Delhi is finally ready to open its registration for the same. The University offers a whopping number of 72 courses at the postgraduate level, the details of which can be found at the online portal. All candidates wishing to apply for a Masters, M.Phil, or Ph.D. degree must first register at http://admission.du.ac.in/pg2017.

Unlike the undergraduate admissions portal, the postgraduate one requires all candidates to fill out separate forms for each course they apply to, thereby also paying multiple fees for multiple courses. However, the same login details will be used for all the registration forms. Candidates applying under the SC, ST, and PwD categories must pay a non-refundable fee of INR 250 for each course, while students under all other categories are required to pay INR 500.

Apart from faculties offering interdisciplinary and professional courses, all departments have two modes of admission – merit and entrance. Students from the University of Delhi who have performed well at the undergraduate level will take up 50% of the seats. This mode of direct admission is not available to students of other universities. The other 50% of seats will be filled through entrance tests and interviews or group discussions.

The entrance exams will take place in six cities across the nation – Chennai, Delhi, Guwahati, Kolkata, Nagpur, and Varanasi. The applicant must choose one of these on the registration form, after which no changes will be made. The admit card will be made available on the online portal itself.

The reservation of seats is as per the national policy for SCs, STs, and non creamy layer OBCs. There is a reservation of 5% each for students belonging to the PwD, CW, sports, and foreign national categories.

Candidates applying to the Non-Collegiate Women’s Educational Board (NCWEB) or the School of Open Learning (SOL) can opt for the same through the common registration portal. However, the remaining procedure will be carried out by the NCWEB and SOL. Candidates applying under the sports quota must appear in the entrance test for the relevant department.

Students wishing to apply for hostel accommodation should check the individual guidelines for each residence.

 

Here is a run-down of the postgraduate admissions procedure:

  1. Register on the PG admission portal and update personal details.
  2. If applying under the merit category, your application will only be considered if your qualifying examination results are uploaded on the portal.If applying under the entrance category, your application will be considered even if your qualifying examination results are still awaited.
  1. The departments will declare the First Admission List, for both the merit and entrance categories, on 16 July. The allotment of seats is based on the rank of the applicant and the availability of seats in the department. The name in the admission list alone does not guarantee a seat. The admission shall be considered complete only when all the documents have been verified and the fee has been paid.
  2. Once you are selected, download the Admission Form and take a printout of the same. It will have the name of the Reporting Centre and the Place of Admission on it.
  3. If you are present at the Reporting Centre on the allotted day with your Admission Form and your original documents, including your qualifying examination marksheet, your Admission Form will be marked as Verified. You shall then proceed to the Place of Admission (the college/department/faculty) and submit your original documents. The Place of Admission will then mark your application Approved on the online portal. Finally, you are required to make the fee payment online within the prescribed time limit.If you are present at the Reporting Centre on the allotted day with your Admission Form and your original documents, but without your qualifying examination marksheet, your Admission Form will be marked as Reported. You shall then proceed to the Place of Admission (the college/department/faculty) and submit your original documents. The Place of Admission will then mark your application Reported on the online portal. You will be allowed to submit your remaining documents within 20 days from the announcement of the Admission List. Once you do so and your online application status is changed to Approved, you must pay the fee within the prescribed time limit to gain admission.If you do not report at the prescribed time to the Reporting Centre, you will not be considered in the subsequent lists for admission regardless of whether you meet all other eligibility criteria.
  1. The documents will remain with the Place of Admission throughout the admissions process. They will be returned if you wish to withdraw or cancel your admission, or appear for counselling at another institute. If you have been given the 20-day window to submit your remaining documents and fail to do so, your other documents will be returned to you.
  2. If candidates score the same marks in the entrance exam, those with the higher qualifying examination marks will be allotted the seat first.

 

Here is a list of all the important dates to keep in mind in the upcoming weeks:

  • June 12 – Online registration starts
  • June 22 – Online registration ends
  • July 1-6 – Entrance examinations conducted
  • July 7-12 – Results announced, grievances handled
  • July 12-14 – Group discussions and interviews held, if any
  • July 16 – First admission list released
  • By July 18 – Deposit online fee
  • July 20 – Classes commence

 

Follow DU Beat on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to keep up with all the latest admissions news!

 

Feature Image Credits: Saumya Kalia for DU Beat

Vineeta Rana
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News

DU research team identifies trees for air purification

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If the multi-spheres of pollution are humanity’s most significant survival battle today, then the planting of trees is claimed to be the biggest contributor in cleaning the air which serves as the life valve of every species. Daily reports allude to the deteriorating air, aquatic, and land quality owing to a multitude of reasons. Luckily, this World Environment Day, new research about countering air pollution has been discovered.

A team of researchers from the University of Delhi has identified five trees which might be instrumental in tackling the plight of the degraded quality of air. Plants are known to act as air purifiers by sucking up and trapping harmful gases and particulate matter. The team comprises of 16 members – three assistant professors and 13 students – who collected data on air pollution and the dominant tree colonies from five areas – Mandir Marg, Civil Lines, Anand Vihar, RK Puram, and Punjabi Bagh – over a period of a year from September 2015 to September 2016.

According to their research, certain trees with inherent qualities contribute in cleaning the city’s air more than others. Dr. Vijay Thakur, Assistant Professor of Botany at Shivaji College, comments, “But not all plants have the same ability to bring down pollution and clean the air. Our research shows that there are some trees such as peepal, saptaparni, and jamun which help to clean the city’s air more than others.”

“We compared the levels of five pollutants — PM2.5, PM10, NOx, SOx, and ozone — in these areas as measured by the monitoring stations and then studied the dominant tree colonies,” he added, when speaking to a popular national daily. The parameters considered for the study included the tree’s height, canopy size, leaf size, shape and orientation of leaves, leaf characteristics, dust accumulation, and other factors that were studied in the laboratories.

The results found that areas such as Mandir Marg and RK Puram have lower pollution levels as compared to Anand Vihar and Civil Lines, which are highly polluted areas. These findings conformed to their hypothesis wherein areas which were dominated by trees such as peepal, jamun, devdar, champa, and saptaparni registered lower levels of pollution. Civil Lines, which has trees such as Vilayti Kikar, on the other hand, observed high pollution levels.

“We found that these five trees were able to trap more pollutants, including PM2.5 and PM10, than others. Their leaf structures were such that they helped to trap more dust and other pollutants,” said Dr. Kumar.

Concretisation, infrastructural toll, falling groundwater, termites, bugs, and ageing continue to be the biggest threats to the health of trees occupying the Delhi region. According to statistics, 15,000 trees were felled in Delhi in the last three years for development projects, and there is currently 299.77 sq. kms. of green cover in the national capital.

The project, in addition to testing the ability of a tree to absorb pollution, also studied the presence of birds as bio-indicators of a healthy tree. “It was found that some trees, such as the peepal, not just helped to bring down pollution levels but also supported a wide range of bird species. The grey hornbill and brown-headed barbet were found in large numbers in areas which were dominated by trees such as peepal,” said Dr. Virat Jolli, Assistant Professor of Zoology at Shivaji College.

The project titled “Amelioration of Air Quality in Urban Ecosystem of Delhi – Role of Avenue Trees” was mentored by the ecologist and emeritus professor of Centre for Environmental Management of Degraded Ecosystems, CR Babu. Funded by the University of Delhi, the findings will soon be published in a peer-reviewed journal.

 

Feature Image Credits: TheHealthSite

Saumya Kalia
[email protected]

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Admissions 2017

DU School of Open Learning admissions to begin from June 1st

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Within alternate modes of education, the University of Delhi offers ten different courses from the School of Open Learning for graduation and post-graduation. SOL will start the online admissions procedure for five undergraduate courses from 1st June for the session 2017-18.  Admissions open from July for undergraduate courses and from August for postgraduate courses. The undergraduate degrees include B.A. (Prog.), B.A. Political Science (Hons.), B.A. English (Hons.), B.Com (Hons.), and B.Com (Prog.). Students are required to make an application for admission to the courses offered by the School in the prescribed Enrolment-Cum-Admission form. The application form will be available on its website along with the prospectus. While the last date for application is July 31st, students can apply after paying a penalty fee of Rs. 100 till August 31st and Rs. 200 till September 15th.

The fees at SOL for students residing in India is lower than other colleges in the varsity offering regular courses. The minimal payment structure ensures that students from all financial backgrounds get a chance to pursue higher studies in the course of their choice. The annual fees for general category students enrolling for B.A. (Prog.) is Rs. 3430, Rs. 3530 for B.A. (Hons.) English and B.Com (Prog.), Rs. 3630 for B.A. (Hons.) Political Science, and Rs. 3830 for B.Com (Hons.). The fees are lower for reserved categories. H.C. Pokhriyal, Executive Director of SOL, said approximately 1.4 lakh students had enrolled in the five undergraduate courses last year.

The institute offers video lectures and access to the library, both online and offline. Most of the study materials can be accessed on its website. SOL does not have a cut-off list like regular colleges and the eligibility criterion for students is lower. The highest eligibility criterion in 2016 was for B.A. (Hons.) English at 65% aggregate, with at least 75% in English Core or 65% in English Elective or Functional English. The eligibility for the rest of the courses was 60% or below. The new prospectus will carry all the details regarding eligibility and guidelines for the admission process.

Eligibility Criteria for University of Delhi Correspondence Courses 2017

1) B.A. (Prog.) & B.Com (Prog.)

  • Minimum Eligibility Criteria: Senior Secondary School Certificate Examination (Class XII) of the Central Board of Secondary Education, or an examination recognised as equivalent thereto, or Pre-University Examination of an Indian university recognised by the University of Delhi, or Intermediate Examination of an Indian university board, or an examination recognised as equivalent thereto.
  • Specific Requirements: Passed with 40% or above in any of the examinations.

2) B.A. (Hons.) English

  • Minimum Eligibility Criteria: At least 60% marks in aggregate in the Senior School Certificate Examination, conducted by the Central Board of Secondary Education, New Delhi, or an examination recognised as equivalent to the above.
  • Specific Requirements: Candidates securing 70% marks in the English Core Language in Class XII and 60% in aggregate will be eligible for direct admission, or candidates securing 60% marks in English Elective and 60% in aggregate will be eligible for direct admission.

3) B.A (Hons.) Political Science

  • Minimum Eligibility Criteria: At least 45% in the aggregate with Political Science in any of the examinations recognised by the University of Delhi.
  • Specific Requirements: Candidates securing 60% marks in the aggregate without Political Science in Class XII will be eligible for direct admission in Political Science (Honours) first year.
  • Candidates securing 45% in aggregate with Political Science as one of their subjects will be eligible for direct admission.

4) B.Com (Hons.)

  • Minimum Eligibility Criteria: 55% Aggregate, or 60% Aggregate of the vocational/technical stream with commerce.
  • Specific Requirements: The number of seats in Business Data Processing (Subsidiary) for B.Com (Hons.) is limited and admission will be on the basis of merit.

5) B.Com (Hons.) Optional Computer – Paper VI C

  • Practical Paper VI C: Option will be given on the basis of merit. This paper may or may not be allowed without practical.

Note:

  • SC/ST – Minimum passing marks in any one of the qualifying examinations
  • OBC – 10% of minimum eligibility marks prescribed for the general category students
  • PwD – 5% relaxation in minimum eligibility marks prescribed for the general category students

 

Feature Image Credits: School of Open Learning, University of Delhi

Radhika Boruah
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DU Rejects Plea by CBSE to Grant Concession

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The Central Board of Secondary Education has appealed to the University of Delhi’s Vice-Chancellor, Yogesh Tyagi, to grant appropriate weightage to CBSE students for the undergraduate admissions. The board has done away with the practice of marks moderation and expects to witness a dip in the scores. Consequently, the students might face a disadvantage due to the practice still being adhered to by other boards. However, this plea has been rejected by the varsity.

Last month, in a meeting organised by the CBSE, 32 school boards had undertaken a resolution to scrap off the system of marks moderation, which would inevitably result in a percentage drop. Until now, ‘moderation’ has been a common practice undertaken by school boards to maintain uniformity in the evaluation process. This is done considering the variances in difficulty level and other factors. However, its erroneous usage has also been cited as the foundational reason for the percentage spike every year, leading to cut-offs of 100% for a few courses by various colleges in the varsity since the last few years.

The aforementioned resolution is being implemented by the CBSE from this year onwards. However, considering that certain boards would put this idea into practice from the next cycle, the CBSE students are being put at a disadvantage as opposed to students of other state boards who might receive the inflation in marks. The CBSE chairman, R.K. Chaturvedi, wrote a letter to the DU Vice-Chancellor on May 9th, 2017, alluding to this discrepancy as worrisome:

“CBSE, being a national board, intends to adopt the consensus developed in the (April 24) meeting to do away with moderation of marks in senior secondary examination from the current year examination i.e. 2017 itself, so as to set the trend for other state secondary examination to adopt it on priority.”

“However, different state secondary boards may do away with moderation for the next year as they are in the midst of result preparation during the current year. Therefore, this would place CBSE students at a disadvantage during the admission process in the University of Delhi for the session 2017-18.”

“In view of the above, I would request the University of Delhi to consider awarding appropriate weightage to the students of CBSE applying for admission in Delhi University during the academic year 2017-18 to promote awarding of factual marks by other state secondary boards and do away with unfair practice of upward inflation of marks.”

The request for extra weightage and concession to CBSE students has been rebuffed by the University of Delhi, citing that the “varsity will not offer any special treatment to the UG aspirants from the board.” A senior official in a conversation with a popular national daily stated that “There have been issues with the boards from Tamil Nadu, Kerala, or Andhra Pradesh among others on inflating marks. But they are not exceptions as even CBSE had been ‘inflating’ marks in the past.”

The CBSE board results are expected to be announced by May 25th, 2017. The policy change introduced last month has led to a change of pattern. The Punjab School Education Board (PSEB) Class 12 results witnessed a dip of 14% in the overall pass percentage as compared to last year. The Karnataka Board Class 10 results witnessed a drop of 7.24% in the pass percentage.

The admission cycle for the University of Delhi shall commence from May 22nd for undergraduate admissions this year. The varsity has also announced that the Open Days will be conducted from May 22nd to May 31st to clarify all queries with regards to the admissions process.

 

With inputs from The Indian Express

Feature Image Credits: University of Delhi

Saumya Kalia
[email protected]

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Campus Central

Delhi University Star Appearances: 2016-17

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With the DU fest season finally concluded, we bring to you a timeline of all the celebrity appearances that took place throughout the academic year of 2016-17. From movie promotions and musical performances to mesmerising star nights, this fest season has been an absolute feast for any DU student.

Relive it here!

 

Radhika Boruah
[email protected]

Vineeta Rana
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Admissions 2017

Admission Deadline for Foreign Students Extended

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The University of Delhi (DU), which sees students from all across the world enrol into various courses, has decided to extend the deadline for the admission of foreign applicants. Every year, hundreds of aspirants from countries such as Afghanistan, Mauritius, and Sri Lanka apply to DU for courses such as Economics (Hons.), B.Com (Hons.) etc. in the undergraduate programme. This year, the University saw their number rise to a record 3,300. Thus, a conscious measure taken to extend the application deadline was required, in order to ease up the document submission and screening process.

Ashutosh Bhardwaj, a senior official of the admission committee, verified the news to MAIL TODAY. He said that while the deadline for admission to undergraduate courses for non-Indian students has been shifted to 4th May, the deadline for Ph.D. applications has also been extended to 31st May 2017. Earlier, the deadline for online applications for the upcoming academic session was 20th April 2017 for the undergraduate students. The new deadlines, as Bhardwaj confirmed, give students more time to submit their documents for verification. This step does, indeed, create an opportunity for both the students and the University to participate in the admission process and to make it a smooth and hassle-free affair.

 

Feature Image Credits: CryBytes

Deepannita Misra
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Arts & Culture

College Fests from the Eyes of…

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picture collage

A multitude of people bear witness to the magical fest period; for each eye views the enigma on stage in a different light. What do your eyes see during these vibrant days?

Between the starry nights and stimulating events; between the pre-fest anticipation and the post-fest remembrances; between the excitement of a fresher and the nostalgia of a third year lies the magnificence of the fest season. The long affair is the product of months of diligent planning, hours of tiresome execution, and transcendence of the vision into reality. Read on to explore what strings in the back of the mind of the college factions!

The Enthused Fresher’s

Stories, anecdotes, and experiences are often parted to the first years as the extensive bits of pearls of wisdom. The first thing to grace our minds in relation to DU is the grand affair of fests which lasts for weeks. With elevated expectations do the first years get ready to grace their first cycle to witness the glory!

The Nostalgic Soon-to-be-Pass outs

As the graduation phase draws to a close for the topmost layer of students, a wave of beaming nostalgia hits the hearts and souls of the those who shall bid adieu to the varsity which has managed to envelop our lives. With a stream of flashbacks clouding their thoughts and vision to capture anything and everything, this set of the audience is sure to make the best of the bests!

The Over-worked Organisers

From the department fests to college fests, leave it to the Organising Committee to be flustered with an incessant supply of work and a shortage of time to do it. To see all ideas translated into action is a thing of beauty, but the degree of hard work and hectic schedules which go in the behind-the-scenes is exhausting. Running through the event, they are the architects of the wonderful creations!

The Omnipotent Media Team

Once the stage is set, from hunting for information to endeavouring to achieve the perfect click, the media teams (yours truly!) circle the campus with recording devices, ready to spread all reins of our coverage. The goal of this faction lies in the belief of covering and capturing the very essence of the event, to be chronicled for the world to remember!

 

Image Credits: DU Beat

Image Caption: The varying perspectives of the different sections of people who visit fests!

 

Saumya Kalia

[email protected]

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Admissions 2017

DU may conduct entrance exam for B.Com from 2017 onwards

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DU

An entrance exam for B.Com is in the offing from the upcoming academic session, in order to give students a fair chance to prove their mettle.

It has been speculated that Delhi University is likely to conduct an entrance exam for admission into B.Com courses beginning from the admission process in 2017. Currently, Delhi University conducts entrance examinations solely for professional and post graduate courses; admissions to undergraduate programmes take place on the basis of 12th standard board examination results. The most well known course under DU which does have an entrance examination procedure for the undergraduate course is the Bachelors of Management Studies.

Dr. Manoj Khanna, the convener of the Delhi University admissions committee said, “We are planning to conduct entrance exams for admission to B.Com (Honours) and BA (Programme) for the upcoming academic session. We are ready for this in terms of infrastructure and preparedness. But this needs to be accepted by all statutory bodies.” Dr. Khanna also spoke about forming a tie up with the CBSE board in this regard. He also said that the foundation of this procedure will begin with the Commerce courses, but the committee is also exploring the possibility of this move in the case of other subjects. Dr. Khanna stated, “We are exploring all possibilities. We are taking all stakeholders, including college principals, faculty and students, in confidence and consulting them. If we succeed in organising this competition for the commerce stream, one-third of the student population will be catered to.”

The rationale behind implementing an entrance examination is that many deserving students do not get admission in several reputed courses and colleges due to low scores in board examinations. Through entrance tests all students will be given a fair chance to prove their mettle. Dr. Manoj Khanna also added that the admission committee is discussing the possibility of conducting an entrance test for Science and Humanities courses too. Furthermore, the University is also assessing how to strengthen infrastructure for online admissions and preparation of entrance tests, with a focus towards evolving a “student friendly” admission system.

Image credits: DU Admissions

Joyee Bhattacharya

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Top Picks

5 Controversies of 2016 which every DU student should know

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So here we are, having survived 2016, with all the swag and luster, at Delhi University. This year shall be remembered in the academic vicinity for various reasons. As for the freshers and rest alike, whether you were basking in the carelessness of the post-war (pun intended) vacation or were getting yourselves squeezed in the queue for hours together in the ruthless Northern summer after overnight brainstorming to dismantle the enigma of the Delhi University cut offs, detrimental things were going on around you.
If you failed to pay heed to these developments, we come up with 5 controversies which made the year.

1. Something which took freshers by surprise was the boycott of the admission process by the faculty. Later, we learnt of the boycott of the evaluation process itself. This was all in response of the University Grants Commission (UGC) gazette notification, which intended to raise the working hours. Since we ended up being taught, the crisis must have been resolved.

2. The Delhi University election sent shock waves throughout September. The guidelines against the usage of paper pamphlets fell to the deaf ears of the young candidates as is the pollution in Diwali to Delhi-ites. Three out of four posts, including that of president, were bagged by ABVP, RSS’s student outfit, amidst cries of foul play by NSUI. The 4th October pictures of Amit Tanwar, the president, posing with guns in the varsity campus deepened the charges of hooliganism and criminalisation of DU politics, reducing our expectations from our leaders which had already been weakened by all the freebies.

3. The ceiling collapse on 30th August at Daulat Ram College was the frightful realisation of long time fears of all the 63 DU colleges. This incident brought into national focus the hollow claims about the infrastructure and raised many questions. Students came out on the streets asking for more washrooms, basic sanitation facilities and better heed to grievances from immediate effect.

4. 2016, to an extent, saw the Pinjra Tod movement, an initiative which grew out of a Facebook page in August, 2015 to champion the causes of women in hostels and PG, yield results. In response to the countless protest marches, curfews have been slackened, leading to the removal of guardian’s permission for leave, among many other feats. But as Sabika Naqvi rightly maintains, there is a long long way to go.

5. On 8th November, DU professor Nandini Sundar was booked on the alleged charges of murder of a tribal man Shamnath Baghel in Sukma district of Chattisgarh. She called the allegations ‘absurd’ and fittingly no new development seems on the plate.Interstingly, this is not her maiden face off with Bastar Inspector General Kalluri. Nandini Sundar had been the whistle-blower in the alleged atrocities at the hands of security forces. Earlier this year, her trip to Bastar under the alias of Richa Keshav had already flaked controversies.

Nikhil Kumar
[email protected]

Image credits: www.123rf.com

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