ADMISSION AND REGISTRATION
Foreigners who are in India at the time of the entrance test (in mid-May) and those who studied for a lower degree in India must sit for the entrance examination. Foreign students will thus compete with Indian students for selection. Nepalis and Srilankans (and after some time all SAARC nationals hopefully) are able to take the entrance test in their respective capitals: Kendriya Vidyalaya Kathmandu (c/o Embassy of India, PB NO. 1201, Lain Chor) and Bandaranaike Centre for International Studies (Bandaranaike Memorial, International Conference Hall, Bauddhaloka Mawatha, Colombo 07) If they are selected, they have to pay only the same fee as Indian students. The test for BA (only for foreign languages, multiple choice type) and MA is only written, for MPhil it consists of two parts: a written and an oral exam (presentation of a synopsis). You have to pass the written test to do the oral one. The number of seats and the order of the results determine the selection. Only for the languages it is possible to join directly the second year: the entrance test will only test the level of language knowledge. You can apply for more than one centre but you have to give your preference. The deadline for applications is 31 March. It is very difficult to start a DIRECT PhD in JNU for which an interview is conducted just like for M.Phil. Usually only those who already have done an M.Phil, have work experience and sufficient publications will be taken into consideration for a direct PhD.
An application in your absence ('absentia'), means that either you apply through ICCR (this means that you have also applied for a scholarship) application form or as a self-financing student through filling in the application form from the US $ 25 “Bulletin of Information” brochure or you have downloaded the application form from (http://www.jnu.ac.in/admission/foreign_form.pdf) and you will not participate in the entrance tests. South Asian students who wish to apply in absentia have to pay the same fees as other foreign students.
The admission of candidates in absentia is decided by a faculty committee in each Centre which deliberates in May. For every degree of each Centre there is a reservation quota of about 15 per cent for FNs. There is no separate processing of applications by the FSAdvisor; all (non-)Indian applications are processed by the Deputy-Registrar Admissions (Ground floor Admn. Bld., room 027). In the beginning of June the final list with newly admitted foreign students is ready to be sent to the concerned self-financed student or, for scholarshipholders, to the ICCR which forwards it to the Indian High Commission in your country which sends it to you. The self-financed student will be informed by mail if s/he is rejected. Actual admission is subject to fulfilling the REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS (see below). For scholarship holders JNU admissions are notified to the ICCR Senior Programme Directors, in reply to your application which the ICCR received through the Indian High Commission in your country. JNU does not contact the students; ICCR sends the acceptance letter.JNU informs the ICCR if a scholarship applicant has been rejected, but without stating the reason why. Hence, it may be that you did not get admitted in the university of your choice as ICCR sends your application to various universities until a university has replied positively.
The Equivalence Committee checks your degree’s equivalence to Indian degrees according to AIU guidelines regarding degrees all over the world. Then the Centre will decide on your admission. The Foreign Students' Advisor is not involved in this but can keep you informed. In the Admission Branch there is a list of all foreign students who are admitted to JNU with the equivalence of their degrees and the remarks about extra-courses they should take. In case of problems:
It is vital to find out whether any fellow countrywoman or man has ever been admitted at the same level: get name, School, year (e.g. from your embassy, ICCR or the Indian embassy in your country) and use this precedent for your case. The above procedure and the limited time schedule make it extremely difficult to appeal the decision taken and to be admitted before the deadline. In order to undertake any steps regarding admission, an early presence on the campus is required. Contacting old foreign students on campus and the Foreign Students' Advisor can clarify your position. In case of administrative problems, DO NOT HESITATE to make an appointment with the VC. Offices: Admn. Bld.: (see also TELEPHONE NUMBERS)
EQUIVALENCE OF A JNU COURSE FOR EUROPEAN STUDENTS: an MA course in JNU is more or less equivalent to 7.5 ECTS points and an M.Phil course to 15 ECTS points (to be negotiated with and accepted by the chairperson of your centre).
First go to the Admn. Bld., Admission Branch (West Wing, ground floor, right, end of the corridor room, right, room 028), they should have your original application. Room Nr 20 (Adm. Bld, groundfloor) will give you a slip for the cashier Next door (room 027) is the office of the Deputy-Registrar, where you may have to show your degrees, passport, student/research visa and give the photocopies (to make them, see “Photocopies”). Only from 930am-1230pm you can pay the tuition fee to the cashier in the Finance Section (room 013, on the left side in the entrance hall of the Adblock behind a glass counter): foreign students registered before 1995 pay the same tuition fee per semester as Indians (around Rs. 300) and since 1995 foreign students pay USD 600 for social science students/ USD 850 for science students / USD 100 for affiliated researchers / USD 600+400 Euro for SSP students (USD or their equivalent in INR depending on the exchange rate, which is updated regularly). Regular and casual students pay the same amounts. The slip also indicates whether you are self-supporting or ICCR sponsored scholar. In case you are under 9(B) clause, a copy of the 9(B) letter issued by the School may be asked for. The cashier will give you a fee receipt mentioning a number which has to be filled in on the folios. Keep the receipt because you will have to show it later. Self-financing students need sufficient money for all the fees for the duration of their studies. ICCR scholars just ask for the receipt (when the money has reached JNU, sometimes it’s delayed) in room 013 (Finance Section). If your money has not come from ICCR, check whether your name is on the list, if not, call ICCR using a phone from the Finance Section. It is possible to pay in instalments. Students from developing countries can request a discount on the tuition fee. Continuing students have to state the reasons why they cannot pay the whole amount, and indicate how many percent discount they require. The Fee Waiver Committee (Rector, DSW, Finance Officer, Co-ordinator, Deputy-Registrar, Foreign Students’ Advisor) decides on a case by case basis. Appeal is possible but fee waivers are never retro-active. Go back to the Admissions Branch with the Fee Receipt. Keep it and make a copy, you will need it later; the Admission Branch (room 028) then issues:
Fill in and deposit the last two (form+card) in the Admission Branch. Go to your AO and School administration, then to your Centre (learn the abbreviation of your Centre by heart, e.g. CSCSEASWPS!) to copy the exact name and number of the courses on the study cards. Get the chairperson/supervisor’s signature and give the folios to the places mentioned in the upper right corner: “Dean of Students”, “Dean’s”, “Centre’s”, “Evaluation Branch’s” and one is for you. You can take credit and non-credit courses; a minimum of credit courses is necessary, but you can choose to attend other classes without obligation of writing papers/exams - and no grading of course. Courses can be dropped until six weeks after the start of the semester but new ones only added till the end of the admission (thus you can put more courses than the minimum number, then check out the classes and if you don’t like them, drop them); the drop/add cards are in Admn. Bld., room 020. REGULAR students have to follow all the above rules as they will obtain full grades/degree to be able to continue their studies in the next year(s). RESEARCH students pay only $ 100/semester (humanities and sciences) and neither receive a degree nor a hostel room. They can apply and come throughout the year. Scholarship holders must ask for a JOINING REPORT form from ICCR and get it signed/stamped by the Dean of the School; this will be the basis (the duration of the course) on which they will receive their scholarship (see SCHOLARSHIP). Get your I-card in the School (have 2 photos attested i.e. stamped/signed by the AO). Your I-card number you get from the Library (entrance, to your right). Carry it always. If you lose it, you have to go to the Police Station (Nelson Mandela Marg, Vasant Vihar) for an FIR which you show in the school. ask for a brown card in your Centre to get your access log in name and pass word for all JNU computers and get it signed by the AO (with a stamp of course). Give it to room 03 in the Biotechnology building half way between the Admin. Bld and the library: check the dates and timings when you may give the card and then wait for 10 days before you can go and pick up your slip with your password (which you can change later - ask the people who give it to you how you can change it.) Proceed to the library (see LIBRARIES).
CASUAL students can choose different courses in different Schools and/or Centres. As a casual student you apply in absentia like all other students on the same application form which you can download from the JNU website. It does not matter much whether you apply for MA or M.Phil as long as you apply for the right centre and school. When you arrive in JNU as a casual student, you have to start the registration procedure in Room 20, Admin. Block:
You get your student card at your school. As a casual student you can get a hostel (unless there is a shortage of rooms) by following the same procedure as regular students. As a casual student, however, you cannot take books out of the library, but you will get a consultation card that allows you to read there and photocopy. Generally the rules for casual students are quite relax, so you will not be caught up in the 'big' rules. As a casual student you are registred in one centre and can choose any classes you want in any centre or school. If you want to take classes at other centres, you have to write a letter to the chairperson(s) of the other centre(s), which should be signed by the chairperson from your own centre. You can also just approach the teacher and ask for his/her permission to attend the class. The teachers will write you a letter for a credit that you passed the classes if you attend the classes regularly, take the exam and give in the term papers.
“Single Window Registration”
Are you 100% sure you lost your I-card? EACH SEMESTER i.e. EVERY SIX MONTHS BOTH REGULAR AND CASUAL STUDENTS HAVE TO REGISTER AGAIN If you are absent during the registration period for authorized field work, you must register within one week after return (check with your supervisor). |
