The Delhi University (DU) opened its gate for new admissions earlier this month.

As the admissions for the new four-year undergraduate course kicked off, thousands of students were spotted in the North Campus  area in the scorching heat, loitering around to complete the admission process. As some students were looking around for the ‘Payment’ window others were hovering to find out where their forms were to be signed.

The procedure which had always been hectic and confusing was no different this time. Although the University officials claimed to have made the formalities simpler this year, many students remained bemused in the chaotic atmosphere.

‘When I approach an officer he tells me to go to the other one. He, in turn, transfers me to the other. It’s so frustrating’, complains one young aspirant. ‘It becomes very aggravating when you are ordered to move around so much in this heat’, adds another.  Un-cooperative staffs add to the students’ woes. ‘The officers do not provide adequate information and when we ask questions they get annoyed’, says a student. Students did get a sense of relief compared to the previous years, however, because of volunteers who were there to help students.  

Delhi University has begun its admission at a time when it has faced flaks  from all angles for its Four Year Undergraduate Program (FYUP). DU has been criticized for implementing the new structure in a haste and without enough debate.  Although protests were observed before the admissions begun  the situation has remained relatively calmer thereafter. The students, nevertheless, remain perplexed. They are clueless on what to expect and how to prepare for the new program.

It would be unfair, however, to put all the blame on the University. In its bid to facilitate the students, it introduced the option of applying online from this year. But students complain that the new savvy University website hasn’t catered exactly to their needs as the University had promised. It  contains little information. There is therefore no option other than to go to the college physically and complete the process.  

Foreign students including Nepali aspirants are facing equal problem. ‘Since our admission process requires us to get in touch with the Nepalese embassy first and then the Foreign Students Office, the process becomes even more puzzling for us’ says one Nepali student who had come to Delhi. ‘I expected the embassy officials  to be co-operative but they were not’, he adds. Along with the tardy formalities, foreign students face the burden of securing a hostel seat for themselves or finding other means of accommodation.

With a new Four Year program and a slowly modernizing system, there is some hope that in the coming years the admission process in University will become easier and students will not have to endure all those old troubles.