Mumbai: The aided colleges in the city are opting for self- financed courses to tackle the financial crunch due to lack of funds as the government or the University Grants Commission (UGC) does not provide financial aid for these courses and the students are supposed to bear the entire cost. College principals feel increasing the seats in these courses is the only way to manage the daily functioning of the colleges and salary of the professionals including the visiting and specialised faculty.
The University of Mumbai (MU) launched these self-financed courses in 2000 to meet the career needs of the students and bring more employment opportunities for them. These courses include Bachelor of Mass Media (BMM), Bachelor of Management Studies (BMS), Bachelor of Commerce (Accounting & Finance) (BAF), BSc — Computer Science and Information Technology), Bachelors in Banking and Insurance (BBI), which are most popular among the students these days comparatively to that of the regular courses.
“We are running out of funds as there is no money from the UGC even after requesting some for years. Let’s be practical; the yearly salary for self-financed courses starts from Rs 17,000-18,000 to that compared to the regular aided courses which is around Rs 3,000-5,000. Moreover, the demand for the former courses is more as it is professional and theory-based,” said a principal of a Bandra-based college. A principal of a Matunga-based college concurred and said, “We need to pay our teachers and this faculty doesn’t settle for mediocre pay as they are professionals.”
Students on the other side too go for the professional courses as the employment quotient is high here. Harshil Nanavati, a student from KJ Somaiya College, Vidyavihar, said, “I am more concerned about what my status in the market will be after completing my three-year degree course. If I need to go for a MBA or Master’s programme to set a status, what is the point of graduation?” Khushali Gera, from Dahanukar College, Vile Parle who completed her BMM last year said, “With my degree certificate, I managed to get a job in a renowned firm. Hence I suggest my juniors to go for these professional courses instead of the normal BCom.”
