3 min readPuneNov 3, 2022 09:26 AM IST
First published on: Nov 3, 2022 at 01:23 AM IST
It has been months since results of Class XII exams have been announced but the admission process for pharmacy colleges, usually completed by August every year, is still pending, raising the concerns of principals about incomplete syllabus and vacant seats. The state CET cell has given multiple extensions to the deadline to fill forms for Doctor of Pharmacy (six-year course), Bachelor of Pharmacy (four-year course) and two-year diploma of pharmacy courses.
The last date to fill forms was October 28 but yet another extension, till November 12, was recently announced. As of last year, there were approximately 35,000 DPharm and 15,000 BPharm seats in the state and over a 100 colleges, in Pune region alone, offering pharmacy courses.
The multiple deadline extensions are a cause of worry for principals, students and parents, who are worried about the delay in admissions affecting the academic calendar. “For two years during the Covid-19 period, admissions were delayed almost until December but that delay was inevitable… we had barely six months to complete the academic calendar. As a result, we had no holidays and teachers and students attended classes even on Sundays, which put a lot of pressure on the entire system. Even the second semester exams were delayed, which meant that next year’s academic calendar was hit as well,” said P D Chaudhari, principal of Modern College of Pharmacy.
According to pharmacy college principals, this year there has been a delay in the process for inspections and approval to seats of each college, which is conducted by the Pharmacy Council of India. Principals are also concerned about low enrollment or vacant seats, a likely possibility due to late admissions.
“Students took their Class XII exams almost eight months ago. Since then, they have been sitting at home. They are anxious and their parents are anxious. It is likely that due to the delay, even those who are serious about pharmacy courses may take admission in some other courses. Even if colleges want to hire new teachers, we can’t do it because we are not sure about how many admissions will take place. My question is why can’t the government plan ahead when they know that Class XII exams take place as per a fixed timetable every year for all boards, ” said Atmaram Pawar, principal of Poona College of Pharmacy.
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