Higher education: ‘90,000 college applications made online’

The BISE matriculation data of students is loaded into the system, Saif said.

LAHORE: As many as 90,000 students have registered online for admission to colleges in two weeks, Punjab Information Technology Board (PITB) Chairman Umar Saif said on Thursday.

Addressing a meeting held at Arfa IT Tower, Saif said this year, 705 public colleges were accepting admission applications online compared to 650 colleges last year.

He said the number of public colleges moving to online application systems was increasing by the day.

“This shows that the system is efficient and cost-effective,” he said.

Saif said, “The client colleges offer the facility to the applicants to apply for admissions to FA, FSc, ICS or equivalent programmes online immediately after matriculation results are announced.”

“The system is based on a collaborative relationship between the Higher Education Department, 9 Boards of Intermediate and Secondary Education (BISEs), the Directorate of Public Instruction (DPI), the Bank of Punjab and the PITB. The BISE matriculation data of students is loaded into the system. It enables students to access the system by entering only their roll numbers, BISE year and session on the website www.ocas.punjab.gov.pk,” he said.

“Candidates can apply for a college or programme using a simple application form. They can then download and print their application fee slip through the system,” he said. “Applications get validated in the system only if the processing fee of Rs25 is paid at the Bank of Punjab,” he said.

Saif said earlier a student from Mianwali or Attock, seeking admission in Lahore had to travel hundreds of kilometres. “Now he is admitted without making a single visit to the desired college,” he said.  He said the system was introduced in 2011 and more than 750,000 applications had been processed online so far.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 6^th, 2016.