The Higher Education Commission has urged students not to take admissions in unauthorised two-year BA/BSc or MA/MSc programmes.
“One or two universities have announced admissions for these programmes. While it will earn money for the varsity, it will not be in the interest of students,” the commission said in a tweet.
“These discarded degrees will not enable students to apply for jobs or further education,” it added.
Last year, the HEC abolished the two-year bachelor’s degree programmes at universities across the country, according to which students will no longer be able to pursue two-year BCom or BSc degrees.
The notification issued by HEC read, “[The two-year bachelor’s] degrees shall not be recognised by the HEC for students enrolled in these programmes after December 31, 2018.”
It said that the programmes should be replaced with a single, composite BS degree. It was also decided that the last BA/BSc exam will be taken by December 31 2020, and admissions for the last batch of MS/MSc will be taken before the date as well.
Due to the coronavirus outbreak, the HEC has allowed some flexibilities for students, including that varsities have been given a “three-month grace period” until March 31 2021, to conduct exams that will be considered 2020 exams.
The deadline for the final batch of MS/MSc has also been extended to March 31. BA/BSc degree holders can apply for admission for their third year, which is the fifth semester, subject to the completion of the previous semester and the course requirements by the university.
Students who miss their deadline for MS/MSc can apply for their third-year in a BS programme. Moreover, students just applying for the bachelor’s degree can either opt for the four-year programme or for the AD programmes. The commission has warned that admissions in illegal and phased-out programmes will lead to a fine for students.
“The HEC cannot recognise the degrees of students enrolled in conventional BA/BSc programmes after December 31 2020, and the last date for admission in conventional MA/MSc programmes is March 31, 2021,” it said. DNA
COMMENTS
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ