Despite online admissions, Karnal colleges abuzz with aspirants

With the release of the first and second cut-off lists for undergraduate admissions for the 2025-26 session, college campuses across the district are buzzing with activity.

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Even though the entire admission process — from form filling to fee submission — is being conducted online by the Haryana Department of Higher Education, a large number of students have been visiting their preferred colleges to seek clarity on various matters, such as cut-offs, subject combinations, and documentation.

Having just completed school, many students — now gearing up for the next chapters of their lives — are also visiting campuses to get a feel of the environment.

As per the official admission schedule, the online registration process on the admission portal was conducted from May 19 to June 16, and the first cut-off list was released on June 26, followed by the fee submission period from June 27 to July 1.

The second merit list was released on Thursday, with the fee submission window open from July 4 to July 7.

The third phase — physical counselling for leftover seats — is scheduled to begin on July 9. As the admission process progresses, colleges are gearing up for the physical counselling rounds, which will be held from July 9 to July 24, including late-fee provisions to accommodate last-minute applicants.

As per data, the undergraduate admission process is underway in 18 colleges of the district, with a total of 12,054 seats available for various courses. Enquiries from different colleges indicate that around 40 per cent seats had already been filled before the release of the second cut-off list.

Dyal Singh College Principal Ashima Gakhar said, “Around 40 per cent seats have already been filled. In the first cut-off list, 1,218 seats were offered, out of which 481 were taken. We are seeing higher cut-offs this year, especially in the commerce and science streams. A counselling centre has been set up on the college premises, where parents and students are receiving proper guidance. The portal is functioning well, and our nodal officers are actively supporting students during document verification.”

PCLS Government PG College, Sector 14, Principal Rekha Tyagi said about 45 per cent seats had been filled before the second cut-off list.

“We have set up help-desks for students. Our teachers are guiding them and clearing their doubts,” she said.

Jarnail Singh, admission in-charge of the college, said, “The response has been overwhelming. Our help-desks are working efficiently, and students are turning up in good numbers to clear their doubts — even though the admission process is fully digitised.”

Khalsa College admission convener Devi Bhushan said, “Out of 860 total seats, 252 have been filled so far. The process to fill the remaining seats is underway. We are providing all possible facilities to students seeking admission.”

DAV PG College Principal RP Saini said about 30 per cent of the total sanctioned seats were filled before the release of the second cut-off list.

“We are hopeful that all seats will be filled in the coming days,” he added, stating that the first cut-off for the commerce stream was the highest so far.

Students visiting the colleges appeared full of enthusiasm as they geared up to take first steps into higher education.

“I am excited about my college life. I got admission in a BSc (non-medical) course. All my friends have also secured seats in the same stream,” said Shivani, who will soon join college.

Kiran, another applicant, said, “The online portal is smooth, but getting our doubts cleared by teachers has really helped.”

Gaurav, who visited a college to enquire about changing his first-choice college but learned that it was not possible at this stage, said, “The college staff guided me properly even though I will now have to wait and withdraw my current admission.”

Some students and faculty members expressed a preference for the previous offline admission system, saying it was more student-friendly.

“Earlier, students would fill out physical prospectuses, and their names would be displayed on the college notice board. Now, students have to check their details online, which can be confusing for some,” a faculty member said.