Autonomous status, no convernor quota worries students
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Visakhapatnam: Many other factors are adding to the woes of medical aspirants, who are already panic-stricken with the existing cut-throat competition to acquire a medical seat in Andhra Pradesh.
The medical aspirants have to write a second exam (MCET-AC) apart from Eamcet starting from 2015 to join B-category management seats. Though the government says that this test enhances transparency in filling the management seats, this has not allayed the concerns of students and some are worried that there can be a chance of prejudice, from setting of paper to admitting the students, benefitting only the well-off students.
Many educational activists had protested against the MCET-AC and hike in management quota fees to Rs 11 lakh, which can make medical education a distant dream for the poor, merit students. The looting does not end here. The students have to spend another Rs 20 to 40 lakh (depending on the college) in the form of capitation fees, building fees, etc.
This year, the Medical Council of India has slashed about 350 medical seats in Andhra Pradesh citing inadequate facilities and infrastructure. With this, the number of seats came down to 3,650 seats, making the students evince a keen interest in medical colleges in other states and other countries too. Private colleges getting autonomous status in Andhra Pradesh, which a medical college in Visakh-apatnam has recently acquired, may also lead to many unforeseen ramifications. It is causing a nightmare for the aspirants as there would be no convener quota seats in these colleges and virtually holds no bar on how much they charge.
The activists of the Akhil Bharata Vidyarrthi Parishad Visakhapatnam unit had recently staged a demonstration, demanding cancellation of autonomous status to private colleges and they alleged that the government is in cahoots with the corporate medical colleges.
Foreign shores beckon aspirants with modest fee
With the dearth of medical seats and escalating capitation fees, the medical aspirants of Andhra Pradesh are heading towards medical colleges in other countries, exploring every possible destination. Apart from the popular destinations such as China, US, UK, Singapore, Russia and Philippines, a few small countries are equally attracting students with their easy admission process, low fee structure and scholarships for meritorious students.
At one-fourth of what the medical colleges charge in India, one can complete graduation in these countries. But one has to clear the Foreign Medical Graduates Examination, a licensure examination which makes them eligible to practise medicine in India.
Speaking to DC, a representative of an overseas education consultancy said, “In the recent years, there has been a sharp increase in the number of students pursuing medical education in foreign countries. A few small countries such as Armenia, Georgia and Kazakhstan are providing quality education at cheaper prices.”
A delegation from a state-run Kazakhstan medical university held a public awareness programme in Visakhapatnam in which they explained that you can get a medical degree at a modest 14 lakh in their country, with the government providing completely free lodging. The long distance, language barrier or the arduous task of completing medicine in an unknown country is not proving a deterrent for these aspirants. But experts are warning the aspirants to beware of the self-styled foreign universities and take an informed decision.
( Source : deccan chronicle )
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