LAHORE: The managements of universities and colleges are figuring out a solution to give admissions to students who have secured unexpectedly full or high marks (1100) in matriculation and intermediate exams, thanks to the Promotion Examination Policy of 2021 of the boards of intermediate and secondary education (BISEs) in Punjab.

The students and parents are eager to how the universities and colleges would decide merit to give admission to high-acheivers.

Earlier, most of the colleges and universities would give admission on the basis of marks obtained in intermediate and matriculation.

According to the policy, candidates would have to take examinations of optional subjects and marks obtained in optional subjects would be counted as the marks for compulsory subjects.

Under the policy, candidates were required to sit in the examination of only optional subjects if they seek improvement in part one’s marks.

However, matriculation students would have to opt for mathematics exams along with optional subjects if they wanted to improve their marks. “If a student fails all optional subjects, they will have to appear in the examination again,” the notification reads. Candidates who passed optional subjects would be granted 50% marks in practical exams.

Punjab University Registrar Dr Khalid Khan told Dawn they were following an open merit policy for admission to different BS programmes on the basis of intermediate and matric marks.

He said the candidates would have different marks in matric which would make it easy for them to develop a merit list.

University of Engineering and Technology Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Mansoor Sarwar said all the candidates who wanted admission to engineering subjects would have to appear in the entrance test like past.

He said they would devise a merit list on the basis of 70 per cent intermediate marks and 30 per cent entrance test marks. “As the results have been delayed, we have extended the date of entrance test to Oct 25,” he said.

Government College University VC Prof Dr Asghar Zaidi told Dawn that an admission test and interview were compulsory for admission to BS programmes. “Only those candidates would be given admission who would pass the admission test and interview.”

Mr Zaidi said that candidates were feeling good for the right reasons after securing full marks, but such unexpected high marks would further erode the credibility of our education system in the world.

He said as the results were delayed they would extend time for admission and would announce the extended date in a day or two. “I have convened the meeting of the Syndicate on Monday (today) to get approval of the new admission policy,” he said.

Directorate of Public Instruction (Colleges) Director Dr Aashiq Baloch told Dawn public colleges would have capacity to give admission to all the students in the BS and intermediate programmes in the province.

He said the colleges would give admission to every student. “We will start afternoon and evening classes in colleges if the number of students increase in any college,” he said.

About infrastructure and faculty to accommodate the students, Mr Baloch said the colleges could increase seats and classes to address the basic issue of infrastructure and daily wagers and college teacher interns could also be recruited on an emergency basis to address the faculty issue.

He said the colleges already accommodated 900,000 students and could double their capacity.

Earlier on Sunday, the students and parents also protested at Liberty Chowk against the marking system of the BISE Lahore.

They said that their children had received 90 percent of marks in conventional examination of matriculation, but they were not given marks in intermediate.

They said the marking system of the BISE Lahore had put the future of their children at risk and demanded a review of the marking system and recheck the papers of their children.

Published in Dawn, October 18th, 2021