70 per cent hike in number of applicants for BEd courses in Maharashtra

The demand for jobs is so high that English-medium schools are lining up to pick up students through campus placements. (Representational Image)

The State Directorate of Higher Education (DHE) has received over 40,400 applications for admission to Bachelor in Education (BEd) courses, almost 70 per cent higher than last year. After a five-day extension in application date, the DHE by Monday received 40,475 registrations for BEd admissions of which 39,133 had already confirmed their applications. Last year, the DHE had received 23,838 applications amid confusion over the admission process. The demand has risen after a lull of at least three years owing to lack of job opportunities.

Last year, the association of private and unaided BEd institutes had demanded that their admission process be exempt from the state-held common admission process, leading to a confusion over the admission process. The state had, however, stood its ground and conducted a central CAP. Several candidates, who had not applied for the Common Entrance Test, missed the chance last year.

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Ramesh Khanvilkar, president of Siddhivinayak Shikshan Prasarak Mandal, said, “Until last year, there was a dearth of jobs. But the situation is different this time as the government has now made it mandatory for teachers to have a BEd degree,” said Khanvilkar.

According to Khanvilkar, the demand is so high that English-medium schools are lining up to pick up students through campus placements. “However, there is hardly any demand for teachers in Marathi-medium schools,” he said.

Last year, around 25,000 of the over 37,000 seats available were left vacant. This year, too, the colleges are worried about a similar situation. “The BEd course requires a mandatory graduation. Graduates are usually already looking for jobs after their course. A two-year full-time BEd course doesn’t seem like a viable option for them,” said Khanvilkar.

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