'No compromise on academic rigour'; NMIMS VC responds to parent concerns

Mumbai: In an exclusive conversation with The Free Press Journal, Dr. Ramesh Bhat, the Vice Chancellor (VC) of Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies (NMIMS) has addressed the allegations against the assessment system of the institute.

Quashing the claims made by the crowd of protesting parents, the VC said, “We understand the concerns of parents, but diluting academic standards would be unjust to those students who worked hard to meet the requirements.

Our University is committed to academic excellence and supporting students in achieving their true potential. We will continue to take necessary steps to address the genuine concerns of students and help them overcome their difficulties and improve their performance.”

On April 24, 2023, a group of parents alleged that almost 50% of students at NMIMS face an uncertain future as the institute is making them repeat the year after failing a single exam instead of having recurring KT (keeping terms) exams, a policy followed by most colleges across Mumbai. These parents had also written a letter to Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, and Chief Minister of Maharashtra Eknath Shinde, as reported by The FPJ in a series of stories.

Following these claims, the institute officials stated that the students were already given a chance to appear for a regular end-semester examination and a re-examination, as per the academic calendar. “The students were also given the chance to apply for revaluation to review their performance. However, despite these opportunities, a few students failed to score the minimum required marks. We had also organised remedial classes for the students, but many did not take advantage of the opportunity,” added Dr. Bhat.

Explaining the stance of the varsity further, he added, “It is not justifiable for parents and students to state that the University failed the students. A student passes or fails based solely on his or her performance in the examinations conducted for them. Additionally, clearing the entrance test does not guarantee that students will pass the final examination of a program.”

According to the institute officials, the students were privy to the passing norms, promotion rules, and the 'No ATKT' policy during the orientation session held at the beginning of the programme, a policy followed by the other schools at NMIMS too, such as its Law, Economics, Branding, Liberal Arts, Science, and Mathematics departments.

“Our University's evaluation and assessment policy is designed to maintain high academic standards. Students are evaluated based on their performance and are given ample opportunities to improve through remedial classes and re-examinations. We expect students to achieve satisfactory levels of learning and not compromise on academic rigour,” stated Dr. Bhat.

The dissenting parents and students met with the VC and the Dean of the School of Commerce over the past week to clarify their issues. The parents will be assembling outside the institute again on Monday, May 2, 2023.

“We have a problem with the policy as nearly 40% of students are failing the course. This is a huge chunk and points toward the inefficiency of the faculty. If the number of students repeating the year is this large then the institute must start a recurring KT exam system,” said a protesting parent.