Presidency University Applications Double as Own Admissions Boost Demand

Kolkata: Presidency University has received more than 15,000 applications, nearly double the last year’s figure. Last year, the number of applications was 7,803. The surge came in a year when the university conducted the admission process on its own, shifting away from the West Bengal Joint Entrance Examination Board (WBJEEB) system that handled admissions till last year. English and Biotechnology emerged as the most sought-after subjects this year.WBJEE board has conducted the admission tests for Presidency University since 2015. After a decade, it is conducting its own admission. “Presidency received 15,486 applications this year. Last year, the figure was 7,803,” said registrar Debajyoti Konar, adding, “This year, the varsity is conducting admission on its own instead of through WBJEEB. The admission notification was published after publication of HS results. WBJEEB used to issue the notification in Feb before publication of HS results.”English received the highest applications at 2,800 among the arts and science subjects followed by biotechnology at 2,500. Among the other science subjects, life sciences and physics received nearly 1,500 applications each followed by maths with 1,100 applications and chemistry 800. After English, political science is the most sought after arts subject, receiving nearly 1,000 applications followed by history and sociology with nearly 500 applications each.Dean of arts Sumit Chakrabarti said, “WBJEE board was always busy with other exams and conducted the entrance exam of the Presidency University late. By that time, many would take admission elsewhere. After a very long time, the admission process started on time, so the enthusiasm is high. Since WBJEE board conducted group-wise exams for some subjects, the actual applications for those subjects were not clear. This time we are getting an idea of the subject demands based on individual applications and we will do a retrospection based on the demands.”Chakrabarti, also an English professor, added, “The English dept is one of the flagship departments of Presidency and I think people still retain that interest to come to Presidency University English dept.”Sources said that a few subjects like life sciences, political science, English, which stayed out of the cluster and had separate tests conducted by WBJEE board also recorded an increase in applications. Last year, applications in life sciences and political science were around 1,100 and 600, respectively.Dean of science Sankar Bose said, “The decision to conduct our own admission test was taken so that classes can start and the academic calendar is not hampered. Students and teachers get ample time for teaching and learning. The number of applications in science subjects have been better than we have expected. Biotechnology as a new-age subject has been most the sought-after course.”Admission Test Steering Committee chairman Arnab Halder said, “Out of 17 depts, six are conducting OMR-based entrance tests to admit students. The rest of will admit students based on a formula combining class 10 and 12 marks. The admission tests will be conducted following the protocols of any public exam. We will upload the answer keys and question booklet will be given to students.”