Mumbai: Students got ample chances to clear exams, says NMIMS

NMIMS has campuses at Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Indore and Chandigarh. File pic

A day after mid-day reported on the new "strict" assessment policy introduced by Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies (NMIMS) which allegedly led to several students failing their semester exams, the vice-chancellor has clarified that these students had availed of two attempts to clear the examination and also two revaluations. According to the management, the students were also informed about NMIMS having no ATKT policy at the beginning of the year.

Many of the affected students and their parents had complained to the governor and chief minister of Maharashtra about the new assessment policy of NMIMS's Anil Surendra Modi School of Commerce, which requires students to repeat a year if they fail an exam, instead of being allowed to keep terms and reappear for the subject in the following academic year. They had also protested outside the NMIMS Mumbai campus on May 2, following which they met the vice-chancellor and later, complained to the University Grants Commission (UGC) about the issue.

In an email reply to mid-day on Monday, NMIMS Vice-Chancellor Dr Ramesh Bhatt stated, "Our assessment policy is an important part of our commitment to academic excellence. We believe that by maintaining high standards of academics, we can help our students achieve their full potential and prepare them for success in their future careers. We encourage all students to join us in this pursuit of excellence and take advantage of our resources to support their academic success."

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According to Dr Bhatt's letter, the students are evaluated based on their performance in examinations and they are given ample opportunities to improve their performance through remedial classes and re-examinations. "Students are given a chance to apply for revaluation by independent subject experts. These students had availed of two examination chances and also two revaluation chances," the letter stated.

Dr Bhatt further stated that NMIMS has been granted deemed-to-be university status by the UGC and therefore the institute has the freedom to frame its own rules, regulations and processes. Regarding allegations of NMIMS's money-making motives, he said only 25 per cent of the course fee is charged if a student opts for readmission. "If a student decides to appear for re-examination the next year, a nominal fee of Rs500 per subject is charged. As per NMIMS School of Commerce, the students are given a chance to pass all papers within 5 years," the letter states.

Meanwhile, a student who is also one of the complainants in the case said every university offers an opportunity to retake the exam via the ATKT system, which is not the case with NMIMS. "Also, NMIMS has a policy whereby if a student receives an increase of more than 15-20% in revaluation then the overall marks won't change. The majority of students who applied for revaluation didn't get any increase in their marks. For instance, six out of the 18 students who failed a direct taxation paper and requested a reevaluation at the Hyderabad campus did not see a change in their grades despite receiving higher grades," the student alleged.

The student further alleged that due to online-based evaluation, most of the answer sheets were not checked properly and the marks were not allocated accordingly. "Besides, one of the faculties at the Hyderabad campus who taught direct taxation left midway, two months ahead of the exam, without completing the syllabus. For two months we had no one for that subject."

Dr Bhatt, however, said the students were intimated about the passing norms, promotion rules and the ‘no ATKT' policy during the orientation session held at the beginning of the programme - a policy also followed by the other schools at NMIMS.

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No. of re-exam/re-evaluation attempts allowed