Prepare for common entrance for UG, PG seats from 2022-23: UGC

NTA UMBRELLA

Prepare for common entrance for UG, PG seats from 2022-23: UGC

Manash.Gohain@timesgroup.com

New Delhi:01.12.2021

The University Grants Commission (UGC) has written to central universities to “take appropriate measures” for conducting the Common Entrance Test (CET) for admission in undergraduate and postgraduate courses from the 2022-23 academic session onwards. It also stated that willing state and private universities too can adopt this computer-based test, which will be conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA) in 13 languages.

TOI was first to report that the education ministry was finalising the procedural details of CET to be conducted in 45 central universities from 2022 onwards and that the details would be announced in December.

The UGC has also said that for PhD admissions, NET scores shall be considered, wherever feasible.

The letter sent to the vice chancellors of the central universities stated, “After detailed deliberations, it was resolved that the CET for UG and PG courses may be conducted from the 2022-23 academic session through NTA.” The plan was put on hold this year due the ongoing Covid pandemic.

The exams, envisaged in the National Education Policy 2020, are likely to be conducted twice a year. According to the NEP 2020 document: “The NTA will facilitate a single entrance exam for admissions to universities across the country. It will offer a ‘high quality common aptitude test’ like the SAT (Scholastic Aptitude Test, conducted in US & Canada), as well as specialised common subject examinations, at least twice every year.”

The CET for admissions to central universities, which includes the likes of JNU, BHU and DU, would be a three-hour test, divided into two sections — common aptitude test (50 questions) and domain specific tests (30 questions each) — and will eliminate the individual exams that many of the universities conduct presently.The UGC in its letter said: “Accordingly, all central universities are advised to take appropriate measures for the Common Entrance Test from the academic session 2022-23.”