15 students must for a course in Karnataka govt colleges

Despite being the first state to implement the National Education Policy (NEP) at the higher education level, the department of collegiate education has decided not to run courses at government and aided degree colleges, if the number of admissions is less than 15.

In a recent circular, the department has instructed principals of government and aided degree colleges to ensure at least 15 students for every course.

“In case there are less than 15 students, principals and faculties have to convince the students and parents to take up other courses,” reads the circular.

According to officials from the department, this circular has been issued following single digit admissions for some of the courses. “There are some courses which have four to five students and providing dedicated faculty for such courses is a waste of human resource and a financial burden on the government,” an official said.

For BSc, BCA and optional language subjects, if the admission is less than 15 for two consecutive years, such courses should be discontinued. However, giving a relaxation to optional Kannada subject, the department has fixed minimum admissions to five.

Interestingly, even for elective and open elective courses offered under NEP, the department has made it mandatory to have 15 students to offer the subjects.

“If the number of admission aspirants is less than specified, principals have to convince students to take up other courses available. If they don’t agree, such students should be shifted to nearby colleges which offer the courses,” the official said.