December 16 2007
Sikkim Manipal University (SMU) Recognized or not?
Tagged Under : AICTE, AIU, DEC, distance, education, job, Manipal, mba, MCA, recognised, recognized, Sikkim, SMU, UGC, University, valid
Ever since I joined SMU for MCA through distance I’ve seen more people than I cared to count ask whether SMU is recognized or if it somehow dampens there chance of getting a job. “But the course isn’t recognized by the AICTE” . Let me clear something before I discuss anything more about this topic. I am talking about the distance education modules and not the regular classes conducted at the University or other Manipal University campuses.
Let me first mention that I went on to collect information about this University as a result to a weird thread on the SMU forum on Orkut which you can find here . Considering that I also joined the course I didn’t want to waste my time on some course if it wasn’t recognized at all.
Before I begin may I state that most people go for Distance Education due to a certain set of reasons like shown below:
- Cost.
- Personal matters.
- Cannot attend class everyday due to whatever reason.
If however you have the option of going to a full time course conducted by a reputable University than hands down thats the best option for you to go for. However most people like me can’t choose that due to one of the above factors listed. Nonetheless, its more of a trade off at the end.
Now for this course to be certified it just needs recognition from basically two institutes.
UGC - Universal grants Commission
DEC - Distance Education Council
Yes thats right I didn’t included AICTE in the list and I will tell you why. AICTE basically conducts review of the institute that conducts regular classes and clarifies if they follow the norms and standards they lay down. Basically they check if the institute has the necessary infrastructure to conduct the course. Hence Distance Education courses do not require this, in fact this was the answer I got on calling the AICTE office in Bangalore. The person further went on explaining that it was not the job of AICTE to certify Distance Education courses but it was the job of DEC to verify the same. I would like to post an extract of a Supreme Court Verdict which Manipal University has going on its site.
(2001) 8 Supreme court cases 676
(2001)(Before S Rajendra Babu and Doraiswamy Raju, JJ)
BHARATHIDASAN UNIVERSITY and ANOTHER APPLICANTS VS ALL INDIA COUNCIL FOR TECHNICAL EDUCATION AND OTHERS RESPONDANTS
(2001)Civil Appeal no 2056 of 1999 decided on September 24, 2001.
All India Council for Technical Education act 1987-SS10(1)(k), 2(h), (i) & 23 – Act does not require a university to obtain prior approval of AICTE for starting a department or unit as an adjunct to the university itself to conduct technical education course of its choice. Regulations framed under the act requiring the university to obtain such approval, held, void and unenforceable. However University obliged to conform to standards and norms laid down by AICTE – All India Council for Technical Education (Grant of approval for starting new Technical institutions, Introduction of courses or programmer and Approval of Intake capacity of seats for the courses or programs) Regulations, 1994 Regns.4,12 – University grants Commission Act 1956, S2.(f).
Now I did put in the calls to UGC and DEC as well and both of them did confirm that it is recognized. I’ve added all the websites that I used and the numbers as well to this page. Just in case you need to give them a call.
Furthermore I would like to add that the course isn’t so bad when compared to other MCA courses near me. Example, take a look at the MG University MCA syllabus. The last i recalled it was so old and bad that practically my B.Sc CS course fromBharathiar University was better than it in my honest opinion. When it comes to the subjects Manipal University gives out with its syllabus there is no question that it would embarrass this university’s age old curriculum. The problem with SMU course though are the limited amount of material provided and the amount of coverage for each subject. If you were to take your own time and refer other books and study then you would do well int he course as well as for a job interview but if you just study the materials provided I think that would basically get you through the exams but not help much in real life applications.
Anyway I hope this information helps someone out there who’s aspiring to join some distance education course.
Manipal University Distance Education Login
AICTE - Contact the respective Regional Office
DEC - Phone : 011- 29533161; 29535934; 29533471; 29533340
UGC - Phone 23232701/23236735/ 23239437/ 23235733/23237721/23232317/ 23234116/23236351/23230813/ 23232485 . Just tell them that you have a question about a university or use extension 339
AIU
SMU is recognised by UGC, no doubt.
1) When I called up DEC on the above no. 011-29535934, they said that the recognition given by them is provisional for one year after which the University has to apply for permanent recognition.
Will SMU get permanent recognition?
2) Also when asked, the DEC people informed that for Technical Courses through Distance Education AICTE recognition is mandatory citing the example of IGNOU MCA Distance Education Course which has recognition from all the three bodies namely UGC,DEC & AICTE.
Has SMU applied to AICTE for recognition?
3) Further I have learnt that exam papers of SMU MCA are entirely objective ie. consisting of MCQ questions.
Is this as per UGC,DEC & AICTE norms?
Please answer my all three questions.
Thanx and regards.
[Reply]
Hi NIkhil,
.
Let me see if I can answer those for you
1. Yes it is provisional recognition . Or at least thats what DEC has up on their website. You can refer to it here. http://www.dec.ac.in/provisional_recognition.htm . Whether it gets permanent recognition is a question of judgment based on its guidelines which you may find http://www.dec.ac.in/inform_stu_inst.htm
2. If you noticed , you must have noticed that DEC explained with the example of IGNOU. Open up their website and you will notice that in the Middle you can see that IGNOU is emphasized very well. The irony in the whole thing is that DEC comes under IGNOU. Don’t believe me ? This was quoted “Distance Education Council (DEC) under IGNOU has the responsibility for coordination and maintenance of standards in open and distance education system in the country.” at this website
http://www.education.nic.in/higedu.asp . None the less IGNOU does have recognition from the three boards. In fact if you have a chance to for that then do so by all means. if you wish to further pursue MTech you can. however the job prospects for either MCAs are pretty much the same.
3. There are exam norms set. However I’m not sure if there are norms which specify the exam format. If you check DEC you can find that it does mention the segregation fo marks through assignments and Theory exams etc.
If you are looking for Distance Education which is recognized at the moment then definitely choose IGNOU due to the fact that AICTE does recognize it and you can further choose MTech if needed be through GATE exam. But if you have the option of going to a college which offers regular classes then no doubt this is the one you want to choose. Hope this helps you.
Biju
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Hi Biju,
Thanx very much for ur reply. I would like to trouble you a bit again.
I had the chance to visit one of the IGNOU study centre in Mumbai. They have evening classes for both theory and practicals. Mine being a shift duty it is almost impossible to meet their compulsory attendance requirements.
I had also visited SMU study centre in Mumbai where they told me that they didn’t conduct practicals for MCA and practical assessment is covered through questions in the theory paper.
1) Is such an assessment feasible?
I would have to opt for SMU MCA as there are few other options before me. I will have to take a big gamble with the hope that in future AICTE does recognise SMU Courses.
In this context I want some information from you.
2) What is the quality of SMU MCA study material? Is the coverage of all the topics done in a detailed and systematic manner? What is the standard of the assessment scheme?
3) Finally, does SMU live upto the standards mentioned in their website and prospectus (they claim to be prestigious)?
Please answer my queries.
Thanx and regards,
Nikhil.
[Reply]
Hello Nikhil,
Before you take SMU find out if you can convince the IGNOU folks to let you go easy on the attendance. I don’t think that you “need” to go to college at all for “distance mode”. However this is according to what I have learned at SMU. I do not go to the learning center at all. The only time I go there is to pay the University fees, get my books, submit my assignments and get my hall ticket. The assessment the teachers were referring to was the assignments I believe. Nikhil before you opt for SMU you can also check foreign universities for a distance course in MS Computer Science. However these cost an arm and leg in fees.
I’m not going to raise your hopes by saying that SMU is going to get permanent recognition from AICTE. However you do need to look at it this way. WOuld SMU disband its whole distance education program due to some norms AICTE requires to be satisfied? Id rather think that they would change their structure in such a way that it does become recognized by AICTE.
Now as far as the quality of study material. Here is how SMU works. They give you basic guides each compromising 1-300 pages at the most. If you choose to study only from the guides then you won’t do quite good for your job interviews. However if you don’t study the guides and use other books like retail versions of the same subject then you won’t pass the subject either. Every single question SMU asks will be based from that book they gave you. Although I do like the syllabi they provide I hate the study material they have to go with it. The funny thing is that pretty much every single topic you might need to know about when going for a higher job has already been referenced in the guide, but it wont have quite the depth required to be an expert at it.
As for your last question. Never believe people who advertise themselves. If you do your bound to be disappointed in it after investing. In my article as you see I have mentioned that I went for SMU because of no other options. I wouldn’t rate them bad though. There are students from our Learning Center who have gotten quite a good job.
Hope this helps.
[Reply]
I want to do MCA. SMU is safe for doing MCA and Certificaion by SMU is Valuable to me?
Plz Guide me.
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@Kiran: If you’re asking me if the course is going to get you a dream job then I definitely can’t guarantee you that. But if ti makes you feel any better I’m doing MCA from SMU also. I would however recommend IGNOU over SMU . But then if you do have the facilities and opportunities to do MCA as a full time course then that would be your best option.
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Please ,send a advice very ergenrly…………..thanks
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hai friends.I am doing bscit from smu distance education wing.and after completion of my degree i want to go for govt. job.but i am in a panic that whether graduation degree of smu de.will be accepted or not.plzzz..reply i am ina great panic..i donot want to loose my 3 years………
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The Void reply on June 27, 2008 12:24 pm:
@Smit: Well unfortunately I can;t guarantee anything when it comes ot a government job. I would assume they only accept universities which comes under the UGC list. Although SMU seems to have temporary recognition I’m not sure if it is valid when it comes to applying for a “Government ” Job. Nonetheless if it was in Keralal I hardly think anyone would go to the lengths of checking it for its authencity in the first place. So go ahead and apply for the job after all at this point you have nothing to lose.
[Reply]
ravi reply on July 1, 2008 4:05 pm:
Smit,for GOVT JOBS you have to have an AICTE approved degree.I am sorry to say that SMU won’t work over there
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Hi Friends,
I want to do MCA in distance learning.
Which university is better SMU OR Punjab technical University
Please let me clarify.
any advice welcome please
thanks
[Reply]
The Void reply on July 1, 2008 5:01 pm:
I would recommend any other ull time university but if you have decided on going for Distance Education then i would say IGNOU if possible. I don’t know how Punjab is so comparing the both isn’t exactly fair.
[Reply]
Hi Biju,
Could you tell me where does DOEACC B Level stands compared to the distance education MCA programme of IGNOU of SMU?
Thanks & Regards,
Nillambar
[Reply]
Hi,
i am planning to do MBA in correspondence at SMU doest it have scope or value!
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i am working at infosys BPO and planning to do MBA in correspondence,please advise whether its good to do it at SMU?
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I heard that SMU is not approved and the certification has no value please advise
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hi all!
please let me know that whether BCA and BSC IT courses from sikkim manipal univ. are recognized courses and whether one can sit for Govt exams after doing graduation in these fields from SMU?
thanks…..
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hi. i m computer teacher in reputed school with b.ed payscale i want to continue my studies but got stuck with 3 confution:
1 what would b better option an MBA in IT (if yes whats the job prospects in teaching field?)
or
an MCA (what would b the job prospect here)?
2 If i choose MCA from SMU will it b valid for increasing my payscale and career prospects in teaching field?
will i b eligible to teach in BE or IT colleges,
3 How far am i eligible to teach if the university is not recognised by AICTE?
[Reply]
Is Sikkim Manipal University and Manipal University are same? Explain.
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is sikkim manipal university is having ugc certificate
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I want to know if I can get a job in IT sector or corporate house after completing my BCA from SMU? Will they grant the certificate of SMU? After doing BCA can I do MCA from WBUT or not?
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SMU ihas only provisional recognition and DEC has clearly told that for conducting any course via distance mode needs DEC approval so its In between position neither fully recognised nor unrecognised but this delimma can spoil future of many students.
So if you are opting SMU for any course you are gambling with your future.
and one thing you cant go for NEt and Phd programme on the basisi of the courses offered by SMU till it gets regular recognition, yes may be you can get order by COURT but if you have Degree in your hand given by SMU.
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If you are planning to go for a Ph.D and decide to take your masters through distance education , then you should really be reconsidering what you are doing. I’ve always said to take IGNOU first if you have the option. Unfortunately not everyone has that option and sometimes is stuck with SMU.
In the end of the day if you asked me if SMU would get you a job I would have to ask you if any of your prospective employers have ever turned down a job based on the fact that you went to SMU.
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I am doing in private job, i join the MBA what i do and what is expended to Join the MBA plese………
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hi,i want to do MCA from sikkim manipal university,is this a recognized university,after completing 3 yerars in MCA i’ll get proper MCA degree
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i want to know that at present i m pusuing my mba under distance mode through SIKKIM MANIPAL UNIVERSITY. this degree will affilated under ugc or not & i also want to know that this degree may help me in getting government jobs or not…………..
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