All government colleges have denied admission to students with less than 45pc marks in intermediate exam.— Dawn
There are over a dozen degree colleges in the capital, but all of them have closed their doors to the average student, denying them their fundamental right to education.
There are six model degree colleges and 10 FG degree colleges in Islamabad, all of which have denied admission to students who scored below 45pc in their intermediate examinations.
The passing mark for the Federal Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education’s (FBISE) intermediate examinations is 33pc, but for the last three years, government-run degree colleges have not entertained the applications of students who scored below 45pc. The model colleges director, Dr Tariq Masood, told Dawn: “According to our policy, students who scored 45pc are eligible to apply for admissions.”
He said all Federal Directorate of Education (FDE) colleges are affiliated with Quaid-i-Azam University (QAU), which registered students who have scored 45pc.
Dr Masood admitted that while the passing percentage for intermediate examinations is 33pc, because all Islamabad colleges are affiliated with QAU “we cannot offer admission to students who got below 45pc [based] on the varsity’s requirement”.
Each year, hundreds of students score below 45pc, and have to leave college. Islamabad-based colleges were previously affiliated with Punjab University, and did not operate under a bar on admitting students who scored below 45pc.
“There are several private colleges affiliated with Punjab University. After being refused by our colleges, hundreds of students are forced to either enrol themselves in private institutions or give up on their education,” Federal Government College Teachers Association President Sagheer Mirani said.
“The government can’t deny students the right to education; the ministry of CADD should take up the matter,” Mr Mirani said.
“Either the passing percentage for intermediate should be 45pc, or some of our colleges should offer admissions to average students as well.”
Mr Mirani added that each year, a significant number of students who score between 45pc and 33pc are denied admission to government institutions, and private colleges in Rawalpindi and Islamabad are exploiting the situation.
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