PG courses: UGC directs CU to conduct internal assessment of 2nd semester

Kolkata: The uncertainty over University Grants Commission's (UGC) recent guideline regarding internal assessment of Post Graduate (PG) second semester in Calcutta University affiliated colleges that offer PG courses was cleared on Monday with the varsity Board of Studies directing the colleges to conduct this assessment on their own.

There are 39 colleges under CU that offers PG in various subjects. The university in January this year had decided that the university teachers will evaluate the answer scripts of students undergoing post graduation in all the subjects that are taught in its affiliated colleges.

"The UGC in its guideline has asked for internal assessment of the second semester (not examination), so if the university teachers would have been involved in the assessment then there may be complexities. So, the Board of studies have made it clear that the internal assessment will be done by the respective colleges and while preparation of results 50 per cent of marks in the first semester and 50 per cent of the marks of the internal assessment will be tallied. This process should be in conformity to UGC guidelines," a senior CU official said.

CU Vice-Chancellor Sonali Chakravarti Banerjee said that the colleges have been asked to strictly adhere to the UGC guidelines regarding PG assessment. The university in 2018 had mandated that the same syllabus should be followed in PG subjects in the university and its affiliated colleges. The examinations should be held on the same day in the same question paper. However, even after that there were disparities in marks secured by a university student and a student of an affiliated college. In a number of cases it was found that a student pursuing a PG in a college affiliated to CU gets more marks than a student doing PG directly from the varsity.

The evaluators often awarded more marks to their own college student to register a better performance from another college. So the varsity in January had decided that the university teachers will evaluate the answer scripts of students undergoing PG in all the subjects that are taught in its affiliated colleges. As many as 26 PG courses and 39 self-financing courses are offered by various colleges affiliated to CU.