Mumbai University to offer full-time degree courses online

Apart from the Mumbai university, Chandigarh University (private) and Maharishi Markandeshwar (Deemed to be University) have received approval for online degree courses. File pic

The Mumbai University will soon be the state's first varsity to offer a full-time degree programme online. Following approval from the University Grants Commission (UGC), the university will begin an MA in sociology course through an online platform from the new academic year starting July 2022.

During the pandemic, the push for online education gained traction, prompting education regulators and the government to reconsider and restructure education modes and methods. It was then proposed under the National Education Policy 2020 to allow universities and higher education institutions to offer 20 per cent of the total regular courses online. The UGC has been encouraging institutions to offer full-fledged online courses.

On May 19, the UGC published a list of three universities and Higher Education Institutes (HEI) that are entitled to start offering full-time-degree courses on the online platform. Apart from the Mumbai university, Chandigarh University (private) in Punjab and Maharishi Markandeshwar (Deemed to be University) in Haryana have received approval for online degree courses.

Both the Chandigarh University and Maharishi Markandeshwar (Deemed to be University) have received approval to start online teaching mode for three courses each. The Mumbai University had sought UGC approval to launch a total of 12-degree courses online; one has been approved.

"It is not just about one course, we intend to launch a total of 12 online courses. While we have received approval for MA in sociology, approval for 11 other courses is in the works, and we have already submitted applications seeking approval from UGC. A meeting is scheduled for mid-June. Hopefully, we will then receive UGC approval for the remaining 11 courses. This is the new education policy, which will benefit everyone and attract an increasing number of international students," said Prakash Mahanwar, director of the Institute of Distance and Open Learning (IDOL), Mumbai University.