In a significant shift for technical education, the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) has mandated a twice-a-year admission cycle for engineering programmes. Acting on this directive, Gujarat has released the schedule to fill nearly 21,000 vacant degree engineering seats across the state. The entire admission process must be concluded by January 19.
Dual Admission Rounds: A New Norm
This move aligns with recent changes by the Gujarat Secondary and Higher Secondary Education Board and central boards, establishing a bi-annual admission system. The state's admission committee decided to conduct this second round specifically for disciplines where more than 30% of seats remained unfilled after the initial admissions. This policy aims to reduce seat vacancies and offer students more opportunities.
Admission Process for Government Engineering Colleges
The process for the 326 vacant seats in government engineering colleges will involve in-person counselling. Students must apply with the required documents by January 10. Following a scrutiny process, the merit list will be published on January 16.
Based on this list, candidates will be called for face-to-face counselling with the admission committee, where the final seat allocation will occur. The detailed counselling schedule, including reporting times and the order of candidates, will also be announced on January 16.
Direct Admissions for Self-Financed Colleges
For the approximately 21,000 vacant seats in self-financed engineering colleges, the process is more direct. Students can secure admission by approaching their preferred colleges directly within the same deadline of January 19. No centralized counselling will be held for these seats, simplifying the process for applicants.
The introduction of biannual admissions is expected to provide greater flexibility for students and institutions, potentially optimizing the utilization of available resources in technical education across Gujarat.
