Higher Studies can be completed in any institution: UGC

Updated on: Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Students pursuing higher studies can now do their course in parts in more than one institution.

The University Grants Commission today issued a set of academic reforms to the central, state and deemed universities in the country, asking them to introduce the measures, failing which they could face reduction in their grants.

UGC Chairman Prof Sukhadeo Thorat wrote a letter to all the vice chancellors in this regard. The letter said the universities will have to introduce semester system, credits for various courses and provision for inter-institution transferability of students.

Besides, all academic programmes like certificate, diploma, undergraduate, postgraduate, M.Phil and Ph.D should be subject to upgradation or revision to a limited extent every academic year and substantially every three years.

The UGC asked the varsities to introduce Choice-Based Credit System (CBCS) which will facilitate inter-institution transferability of students after completion of a semester. The CBCS will facilitate part-completion of an academic programme in the institution of enrolment and part-completion in a specialised institution.

For implementing the CBCS, institutions of higher education need to review curricular contents, term papers and assignments of various programmes. There will be provisionsfor core-credits and elective or optional credits for different levels of academic programmes.

Generally, core-credits would be unique to the programme, and earning core-credits would be essential for the completion of the programme. Elective-credits are likely to overlap with other programmes or disciplines of study. Students enrolled for a particular programme or course would be free to opt and earn elective-credits prescribed under the programme or under other programmes within the department, faculty, university or even a different institution of higher education.

The UGC guidelines said that the traditional formal of examination at the end of the session suffers from several limitations.The semester-system encourages and supports faster learning opportunities. Further, it has the ability to accommodate diverse choices that students may like to have.It is time that the semester system is made mandatory for all the institutions of higher education in India, and all the universities are asked to switch over to the semester system,' Thorat said .

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Higher Studies can be completed in any institution: UGC

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