NMC introduces seat upgrade option in the third counselling round Candidates can enrol in the medical college of their choice if they are not satisfied with the ones allotted in earlier rounds

NMC introduces seat upgrade option in the third counselling round Candidates can enrol in the medical college of their choice if they are not satisfied with the ones allotted in earlier rounds

Sonal.Srivastava@timesofindia.com 16.09.2024 

The Medical Counselling Committee (MCC) recently released a list of 6,947 virtual vacancies for MBBS, BDS, and BSc Nursing admissions for the second round of counselling. Earlier, students were allowed to apply for a seat upgrade only in the first and second rounds. To increase flexibility and transparency, the National Medical Commission (NMC) will also allow candidates to opt for an upgrade in the third round of counselling.

A virtual seat is created in a medical college when the candidate who has been allotted that seat decides to opt for a seat upgrade in the next round of counselling. Once the candidates get the upgrade/seat of their choice, the seat allotted earlier becomes a clear vacancy and will be allotted to the next candidate on the rank list. This year several virtual seats have been added to medical colleges across various states and Union Ter ritories, including Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chandigarh, Chhattisgarh, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Delhi (NCT), Goa, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland, Odisha, Puducherry, Punjab, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, and West Bengal. 

“Virtual vacancies are not clear vacancies; they are not vacated yet. If somebody is holding a seat and wants to upgrade to a better college/seat, that seat will be marked as a virtual vacancy. Only when the candidate who has asked for an upgrade gets an upgraded seat will his/her seat become a clear vacancy. If the candidate does not get a seat, his seat will not be allocated to another candidate.

Virtual vacancies are those where the person holding the seat vacates it for a higher seat,” says Dr B Srinivas, secretary, NMC. Students had the upgrade option for the first and second counselling rounds for the last few years, but from this year onwards, candidates will be able to apply for the seat upgrade after the third round of counselling, too. 

“Choice filling is left to the students, and they can opt for as many seats as they want. The idea is that the seats should not remain vacant. If the candidates go for an upgrade, then vacant seats should be filled,” says Dr Srinivas. Govt seats fill up first He points out that seats in government colleges are the first to be taken. Most seats remain vacant in private colleges, or NRI seats might get fewer takers. “Allowing candidates to upgrade seats enhances student mobility. They can either choose a government college or a private one,” says Dr Srinivas. The reason for the introduction of the virtual vacancies was to prevent seats from being wasted.

“Virtual vacancy is a good option to prevent the seats from remaining vacant in prestigious colleges. It increases accessibility in the admission process, reduces the paperwork, and provides a clear picture to candidates. However, technical issues might cause unnecessary problems. It is essential that all candidates know about virtual vacancies; often, candidates in rural areas are not aware of these vacancies and lose the opportunity. Another challenge is that if the deemed or private colleges get to know about the candidate leaving the institute, they might force the candidate to apply for the next round, so they can use his seat for their stray vacancy round,” says Dr KM Abul Hasan, chairman, IMA Junior Doctor’s Network.