Over 2L pupils finally in FYJC, after 11 admission rounds
DESPITE FACING DIFFICULTIES, STUDENTS SAY PROCESS HAS BEEN STREAMLINED
Finally, over 2.32 lakh students have been admitted to First Year Junior College (FYJC) this year, at various institutions in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), bringing to an end the protracted admission process which began in July. Eleven rounds of admission were conducted to reach this milestone.
Despite new additions to the system, 11 admission rounds were conducted this year. These included two rounds for bifocal courses, four general merit, one special and four first come first served (FCFS) rounds. A senior officer of the state education department managing FYJC admissions said, “Due to the ruling of the Bombay High Court (HC), the entire FYJC admission process was online this year. Students faced issues in filling forms, but these were resolved.”
Students claim the admission process was streamlined this year, as the entire procedure was completely online. About 2.58 lakh students registered for the process and there were over three lakh seats available in 814 colleges of the MMR. This region comprises junior colleges in Mumbai, urban areas of Thane, Kalyan, Dombivli, Vashi and Navi Mumbai.
Also, the students were given the facility of ‘Proceed to Apply’ button, which helped them confirm their admissions to any college allotted through the system.
Nandini Sakpal, a student, said, “Last year, we faced confusion as colleges confirmed our admissions without our confirmation. We could not even withdraw our admission or change our college preferences. This year, we had the upper hand, to confirm our admission and take the final decision.”
Education department sources said there are over 18,000 students who have not been admitted through FYJC admission. A senior officer said, “These students may have opted for diploma, industrial training or polytechnic courses. Some students may have also opted to study in other cities or states so they have not been admitted through FYJC process.”