Delhi University’s 1-year PG rollout creates confusion as admissions lag

The registration window for the new one-year master’s courses remained open until July 31.

4 min readNew DelhiAug 2, 2026 04:44 PM IST

On July 1, Delhi University announced that classes for students in the first, third, fifth and seventh semesters of undergraduate and postgraduate programmes would begin on July 28.

The Delhi University’s decision to have third-semester postgraduate students attend classes alongside those enrolled in its newly introduced one-year master’s programme has created confusion as admissions to the new course remain incomplete and several departments have yet to begin teaching.

Speaking to The Indian Express, Registrar Vikas Gupta said the admission process for the one-year postgraduate programme had been expedited and that the list of selected candidates was expected within the next couple of days, allowing classes to begin soon after.

“There are significant similarities between the curriculum of the one-year programme and the third and fourth semesters of the two-year master’s degree,” Gupta said. “Some departments may have chosen to conduct classes jointly because of this overlap. We have never said that it is compulsory to combine the two classes and a few departments have already started holding classes.”

The delays stand in contrast to the university’s own academic calendar. On July 1, Delhi University announced that classes for students in the first, third, fifth and seventh semesters of undergraduate and postgraduate programmes would begin on July 28. At the same time, the registration window for the new one-year master’s courses remained open until July 31, creating a mismatch between the academic schedule and the admissions process.

The university also appears to be continuing to expand the new programme even as admissions are underway. Recently, the university administration circulated a message to college principals asking them to indicate whether they were willing to introduce the one-year postgraduate programme during the 2026-27 academic session.

In the communication, it read that the first cohort of students graduating under the four-year undergraduate framework had completed the statutory requirements for the award of their degrees and that the university had therefore launched the one-year master’s programme. He asked colleges to immediately submit proposals specifying the courses they wished to offer and their planned student intake.

‘Frivolous move’

Following the communication, several colleges convened meetings to discuss the proposal. According to a statement issued by the Democratic Teachers’ Front (DTF), departments at Shaheed Bhagat Singh College were asked during a Staff Council meeting to identify courses that could be offered under the one-year postgraduate programme. The teachers’ body also said that at least one college principal informed faculty members that any teaching under the new programme would be “over and above the existing load on teachers” and that “no guest faculty will be provided for the same.”

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The DTF criticised the move, calling it “an extremely frivolous move by the University” that “reflects the cavalier attitude of the University administration towards the students who will be admitted to the 1-year PG course.”

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The organisation also questioned why such decisions were being taken after recent meetings of the Academic Council and Executive Council, asking in its statement: “Has Delhi University become a WhatsApp University run in ‘Emergency Mode’ without thinking through the ramifications of such knee-jerk actions?”

The teachers’ body argued that while the university had increased seats in the one-year master’s programme following pressure from stakeholders, “no expansion in terms of infrastructure and human resources has taken place in University Departments to cope with the increased numbers.” It said departments were already grappling with shortages of classrooms and laboratories and that existing workload norms had significantly increased teaching and evaluation responsibilities.

The DTF further noted that the one-year postgraduate students are expected to join the second year of the existing two-year master’s programmes even though “classes for the same have started whereas the admission to 1-year PG courses has yet not started as results of many 4th year courses are yet not declared.”

Vidheesha Kuntamalla

Vidheesha Kuntamalla is a Senior Correspondent at The Indian Express, based in New Delhi. She is known for her investigative reporting on higher education policy, international student immigration, and academic freedom on university campuses. Her work consistently connects policy decisions with lived realities, foregrounding how administrative actions, political pressure, and global shifts affect students, faculty, and institutions. Professional Profile Core Beat: Vidheesha covers education in Delhi and nationally, reporting on major public institutions including the University of Delhi (DU), Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), Jamia Millia Islamia, the IITs, and the IIMs. She also reports extensively on private and government schools in the National Capital Region. Prior to joining The Indian Express, she worked as a freelance journalist in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh for over a year, covering politics, rural issues, women-centric issues, and social justice. Specialisation: She has developed a strong niche in reporting on the Indian student diaspora, particularly the challenges faced by Indian students and H-1B holders in the United States. Her work examines how geopolitical shifts, immigration policy changes, and campus politics impact global education mobility. She has also reported widely on: * Mental health crises and student suicides at IITs * Policy responses to campus mental health * Academic freedom and institutional clampdowns at JNU, South Asian University (SAU), and Delhi University * Curriculum and syllabus changes under the National Education Policy Her recent reporting has included deeply reported human stories on policy changes during the Trump administration and their consequences for Indian students and researchers in the US. Reporting Style Vidheesha is recognised for a human-centric approach to policy reporting, combining investigative depth with intimate storytelling. Her work often highlights the anxieties of students and faculty navigating bureaucratic uncertainty, legal precarity, and institutional pressure. She regularly works with court records, internal documents, official data, and disciplinary frameworks to expose structural challenges to academic freedom. Recent Notable Articles (Late 2024 & 2025) 1. Express Investigation Series JNU’s fault lines move from campus to court: University fights students and faculty (November 2025) An Indian Express investigation found that since 2011, JNU has appeared in over 600 cases before the Delhi High Court, filed by the administration, faculty, staff, students, and contractual workers across the tenures of three Vice-Chancellors. JNU’s legal wars with students and faculty pile up under 3 V-Cs | Rs 30-lakh fines chill campus dissent (November 2025) The report traced how steep monetary penalties — now codified in the Chief Proctor’s Office Manual — are reshaping dissent and disciplinary action on campus. 2. International Education & Immigration ‘Free for a day. Then came ICE’: Acquitted after 43 years, Indian-origin man faces deportation — to a country he has never known (October 2025) H-1B $100,000 entry fee explained: Who pays, who’s exempt, and what’s still unclear? (September 2025) Khammam to Dallas, Jhansi to Seattle — audacious journeys in pursuit of the American dream after H-1B visa fee hike (September 2025) What a proposed 15% cap on foreign admissions in the US could mean for Indian students (October 2025) Anxiety on campus after Trump says visas of pro-Palestinian protesters will be cancelled (January 2025) ‘I couldn’t believe it’: F-1 status of some Indian students restored after US reverses abrupt visa terminations (April 2025) 3. Academic Freedom & Policy Exclusive: South Asian University fires professor for ‘inciting students’ during stipend protests (September 2025) Exclusive: Ministry seeks explanation from JNU V-C for skipping Centre’s meet, views absence ‘seriously’ (July 2025) SAU rows after Noam Chomsky mentions PM Modi, Lankan scholar resigns, PhD student exits SAU A series of five stories examining shrinking academic freedom at South Asian University after global scholar Noam Chomsky referenced Prime Minister Narendra Modi during an academic interaction, triggering administrative unease and renewed debate over political speech, surveillance, and institutional autonomy on Indian campuses. 4. Mental Health on Campuses In post-pandemic years, counselling rooms at IITs are busier than ever; IIT-wise data shows why (August 2025) Campus suicides: IIT-Delhi panel flags toxic competition, caste bias, burnout (April 2025) 5. Delhi Schools These Delhi government school grads are now success stories. Here’s what worked — and what didn’t (February 2025) ‘Ma’am… may I share something?’ Growing up online and alone, why Delhi’s teens are reaching out (December 2025) ... Read More

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