Higher Education
Colleges in South India
Educational News Today
Friday, April 23, 2010
Chennai: Only students whose grandparents were not graduates will be treated as first generation college goers for the purpose of granting the tuition fee waiver in professional degree courses announced by the Tamil Nadu government.
From the coming academic year, all first generation entrants into professional courses including medical, engineering, law, veterinary and agricultural degree programmes, will be entitled to tuition fee waiver in universities, government, aided and self-financing colleges, irrespective of caste or economic criteria.
The higher education ministry has issued a detailed order setting out the eligibility norms for beneficiaries. As per this, if either of the grandparents of the beneficiary-to-be was a graduate, the tuition fee waiver will not be extended even if the student’s parents were school dropouts or illiterates.
Essentially, a first generation college-goer will be identified on the basis of the educational qualifications of three generations of his/her family members i.e. grandparents, parents and siblings.
Students have to submit proof of their being first generation graduate learners at the time of applying for the professional courses admission for the coming academic year 2010-11. The proof includes a certificate from the respective headquarters deputy tahsildar certifying that the student is a first generation college-goer and a joint declaration form signed by the students and parents.
“If at any stage it comes to light that the student has wrongly claimed the fee waiver, criminal proceedings will be launched against him/her and a sum equivalent to three times the waived fee will be recovered from the student/parents,” the government order cautioned.
The order also made it clear that first generation graduate learners who are already in professional colleges will not be entitled for a fee waiver and only students enrolling from 2010-11 will be given the concession. The government has already instructed self-financing colleges not to collect the tuition fees from the eligible beneficiary-students. Instead, they should collect the money from the respective departments of the government.
“In the case of engineering colleges, they have to approach the directorate of technical education for collecting the tuition fee payable for the beneficiary-students. Likewise, medical colleges must collect the amount from the directorate of medical education and the law colleges from the directorate of legal studies,” an official explained.
As on date, the government has not undertaken a comprehensive survey to assess the number of first generation college-goers in the existing higher education system. “However, preliminary estimates based on admissions made last year indicate that at least 30 to 40% of the students who had enrolled in engineering colleges last year are going to a college for the first time in their family history,” the official added.
Stricter fee-waiver norms for first generation college-goers
Chennai: Only students whose grandparents were not graduates will be treated as first generation college goers for the purpose of granting the tuition fee waiver in professional degree courses announced by the Tamil Nadu government.
From the coming academic year, all first generation entrants into professional courses including medical, engineering, law, veterinary and agricultural degree programmes, will be entitled to tuition fee waiver in universities, government, aided and self-financing colleges, irrespective of caste or economic criteria.
Essentially, a first generation college-goer will be identified on the basis of the educational qualifications of three generations of his/her family members i.e. grandparents, parents and siblings.
Students have to submit proof of their being first generation graduate learners at the time of applying for the professional courses admission for the coming academic year 2010-11. The proof includes a certificate from the respective headquarters deputy tahsildar certifying that the student is a first generation college-goer and a joint declaration form signed by the students and parents.
“If at any stage it comes to light that the student has wrongly claimed the fee waiver, criminal proceedings will be launched against him/her and a sum equivalent to three times the waived fee will be recovered from the student/parents,” the government order cautioned.
The order also made it clear that first generation graduate learners who are already in professional colleges will not be entitled for a fee waiver and only students enrolling from 2010-11 will be given the concession. The government has already instructed self-financing colleges not to collect the tuition fees from the eligible beneficiary-students. Instead, they should collect the money from the respective departments of the government.
“In the case of engineering colleges, they have to approach the directorate of technical education for collecting the tuition fee payable for the beneficiary-students. Likewise, medical colleges must collect the amount from the directorate of medical education and the law colleges from the directorate of legal studies,” an official explained.
As on date, the government has not undertaken a comprehensive survey to assess the number of first generation college-goers in the existing higher education system. “However, preliminary estimates based on admissions made last year indicate that at least 30 to 40% of the students who had enrolled in engineering colleges last year are going to a college for the first time in their family history,” the official added.
Courtesy: Times of India
copyright © 2003 - 2012, adroit techno solutions. all rights reserved.