DU admissions: Did I waste my efforts on a 'non-academic' subject?

I have heard so many similes about life being like a roller-coaster ride. But it was only a few days back that I understood what that truly meant.

My life had really been peaking after the declaration of the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) results. I had felt a great deal of relief after realising that my chances of getting into a college of my choice had improved.

But the announcement that came thereafter instantly brought my spirits down.

The Delhi University (DU) released a list of 31 subjects designated as "academic". Any student who includes a subject, considered as non-academic by the DU, in his/her "best of four" percentage would face a disadvantage of 2.5 per cent. This meant that I couldn't include media studies, the subject I had scored the best in.

All the hard work that had been invested by students like me in similar "non-academic" subjects, which include legal studies as well, had been for naught.

I know this reads as if the DU and CBSE are not on the same page. That actually seems to be the reality. Imagine the plight of hundreds of students who realise, in most cases after the results, that the precious time they devoted to the so called "non-academic" subjects meant little when it came to admissions. They could well have concentrated on other subjects, without the unfortunate disadvantage as a result of the avoidable confusion.

That is not the only problem with this rule. I see no logic in considering subjects like media studies or legal studies "non-academic" when others with less scope for application, such as Persian, are considered as electives. How can a student wanting to pursue a course like Bachelor of Arts (BA) in journalism be placed at a disadvantage for taking media studies in school, which seems to be the logical choice?

Moreover, if more subject choices are introduced but aren't given the same weightage as the existing electives, one isn't really giving an alternate option at all. It only ends up being a futile attempt at forcing students to take the beaten path. A classic case of "heads I win and tails you lose!" Wouldn't you say that?

The ideal way forward is to change the existing rules. But until that can be brought about, increasing awareness about the existing policy would be the next best course of action for the DU and CBSE. The setback as a result of the "best of four" fiasco, led me to explore other options offered by private colleges and universities as well.

The first page I landed on was that of Ashoka University.

It offers many facilities, great courses and a brilliant faculty. The university boasts of "education from Ivy League institutions, at a mere fraction of the cost", which is Rs 18 lakh for three years. While this is certainly a lower fee structure when compared to colleges abroad, yet, by Indian standards, this is not really within the reach of most parents.

This is a major reason why private colleges remain out of reach of a lot of students in India. Studying in such colleges would mean landing my parents in debt. So registering for a private college wouldn't be a very probable option for me. Unless I happened to win a lottery!