Anantapur: The delay in admissions to professional courses has been frustrating that many students, who opted for private universities have ended up in the trap of fake universities.
The Common Entrance Test (CET) was conducted in August and its results were released in the first week of September. EAPMCET, ICET, Polycet, Lawcet, ECET and EDCET have released the merit lists, which are adding to the problem of students. They find themselves in a fix after having confirmed their admissions elsewhere. All private varsities conducted their respective entrance tests in June and began admission in July.
The quandary of some students, who were admitted in various private universities, is that they have secured good ranks in EAPMCET and are worried they may have to forego their fees should they choose to cancel their admissions and attend counselling. Many private colleges and autonomous institutions from Chennai and Bengaluru reportedly attracted and also mounted pressure on parents by creating an artificial demand.
A father from Anantapur recalled when he tried to elicit information about engineering colleges in Bengaluru, he received over 50 calls from a single institute saying seats were about to get filled up.
“I have paid advance towards admission and now my daughter has secured a good rank in AP. There are bright chances of her getting admission in a JNTUA college”, he said.
Lack of official control on private universities and autonomous institutions has created confusion among parents and guardians, particularly of those whose children have emerged in flying colours.
“Private institutions should be allowed to start their admission process only after the government seats are filled up. The other alternative is that government-run institutions should complete the admission process by the end of July”, Praja Science Vedika state president Dr Suresh Babu observed.
The information about courses, affiliation, approvals and intake should be placed on the official website. Not even a single university displays intake details. Or fess regading tuition, admission, affiliation, infrastructure, college fee and other fee details. Authorities should make it mandatory and all details must be available on the college website, failing which the affiliating university or APSCHE should cancel the affiliation. The State Council for higher education should appoint an ombudsman with independent authority to look into grievances of students, he demanded.
Thousands of students have deposited their original memorandum of marks and degree certificates. Students who completed M.Tech, MCA, MBA, B. Tech and diploma in 2019 are yet to receive their provisional certificates. There has been no fee reimbursement for those who joined PG courses in 2018. Many colleges have been taking fake admissions since 2017. A similar fake practise is being indulged upon by an engineering college in Anantapur which had also MBA courses.
Meanwhile, sources said that nearly 16 colleges have closed MBA and M.Tech courses while 14 have reduced their intake in B.Tech (Civil, Mechanical & EEE) courses. There are two colleges in Anantapur district which have neither gone for affiliation nor have closed down. Students admitted in these colleges do not get examination circulars and timetables. Colleges are being converted into schools and other commercial centres, where the revenue is more certain.
