Despite the passage of four months, the University of Karachi is yet to announce a clear policy on admissions to degree programmes in its affiliated colleges.
Owing to KU’s unclear policy on admissions to degree programmes, on the one hand colleges are unable to provide correct information to students, and on the other, the new academic year continues to lapse.“The results of intermediate classes were announced in November 2021 by the Board of Intermediate Education Karachi. While KU allowed affiliated colleges to enrol students in BS programmes, it made no clear announcement about new admissions,” said Zafar Yar Khan, chairman of the Sindh Professors & Lecturers Association’s (SPLA) Time Scale group.
He said students who passed their intermediate exams in 2021 frequently visit affiliated colleges to get admissions to degree programmes, but the colleges do not have a clear policy on admissions, so they are unable to provide correct information to students or even guide them.
He pointed out that during the previous academic year also, KU had made an ambiguous policy on admissions that caused the academic sessions of 2020 to start after a seven-month delay in 2021, so this year it should not repeat its unclear policy.“KU has been deliberately adopting an ambiguous policy on admissions in its affiliated colleges for the last three years, due to which the annual exams for the 2020 and 2021 batches are yet to be held.”
On Thursday a delegation of the SPLA’s Time Scale group comprising Zafar Yar Khan, Imran Khan Qadri, Munir Alam Khan and others had met the KU registrar to discuss new admissions for the academic session 2022 in the affiliated colleges.
The registrar informed the delegation that discussions are being held in the matter, but no decision has been taken yet. The delegation informed the registrar that they had submitted a request regarding new admissions to the acting vice chancellor on January 26, 2022, but no reply had been received in over two months.
The SPLA leaders pointed out that three months of the current academic year have already lapsed, but no steps have been taken by KU to announce a clear policy on admissions in its affiliated colleges. They told the registrar that thousands of students are trying to seek admissions in colleges, but they get no answer from them or KU. They demanded that KU take immediate steps to save education.
On this the KU registrar said: “We are convening an early meeting in this regard. We will also consult the SPLA on the matter. We will share and resolve this issue as soon as possible.”
The KU controller of examinations informed the SPLA delegation later that exams will be held after Ramazan with the approval of the university’s acting VC and registrar, but a date for the exams will be announced soon so that students can prepare for them.
