Delhi University is one of the dream destinations for most students who pass class 12. However, most colleges of the university have sky high cutoffs that make them inaccessible to a majority of students.
However, a good percentage in academics is not the only path that leads you to DU. There is also an alternative entry route to the University. This route is the Delhi University ECA and sports quota admissions.
ECA ADMISSIONS
If you have represented your district or state in any kind of extra-curricular activity (ECA), then a low percentage in exams cannot end your DU dream. Few seats are reserved by the university who have extra-curricular experience during their school time. Candidates can thus expect a relaxation of up to 15% in merit lists (for unreserved candidates).
These are the list of activities that come under the purview of DU ECA admissions:-
1. Dance (Indian Classical/ Western/ Indian Folk/ Choreography)
2. NCC (National Cadet Corps)
3. Music Vocal (Indian Classical/ Western Classical/ Indian Light & Folk/ Western Light)
4. Quiz
5. Creative Writing (English & Hindi)
6. Digital Media (Still Photography/ Animation/ Film Making)
7. Music Instrumental (Indian/ Western)
8. Fine Arts (Sketching & Painting/ Sculpture)
9. Theatre
10. Debate (English & Hindi)
11. NSS (National Service Scheme)
12. Divinity for minority colleges (For Mata Sundri College, Sri Guru Gobind Singh College of Commerce, Sri Guru Nanak Dev Khalsa College and Sri Guru TeghBahadurKhalsa College).
To be eligible for these categories, the student must produce the related certificates for the category of extra curricular activities or sports that they wish to apply for. However, that’s not all. DU also conducts ECA trials. Here, you have to give a practical demonstration of your skill in the proposed extra-curricular activity, for eg, debating. Trials are conducted at the preliminary and the final level. Those who clear the preliminary levels go on to the final level. It is essential to secure at least 50 per cent marks in the final trials to qualify through the ECA quota admissions. DU gives 25 per cent weightage to certificates and 75 per cent weightage to trials. Merit list is then prepared by the authorities after adjusting for change in the class 12 percentage.
SPORTS ADMISSIONS
Talking about the sports quota, there are direct admissions to DU if an athlete has represented India in either of the following:-
Olympic Games by International Olympic Committee (IOC)
Asian Games by the Olympic Council of Asia
World Championship/ World Cup by International Sports Federations (ISF)
Asian Championships by International Sports Federations (ISF)
Commonwealth Games by Commonwealth Games Federations (CGF)
South Asian Games (SAG) by South Asian Sports Council (SASC)
Paralympic Games by International Paralympic Committee (IPC)
Students who have not participated in these events take part in the sports trials to secure their admission.The trials are conducted by Delhi University to ascertain the capability of the students in the sports that they have opted for. The selection process for the sports quota is quite similar to the selection process that is in place for the selections under the ECA quota.
DU gives 40% weightage to the sports certificate and 60% weightage to the sports trials of the game for which the candidate has received the certificate.The sports trial includes Sport Specific Fitness, Overall Playing Ability and Fundamental Skills. Marks for the sports trial will be awarded out of 60 and candidates will have to score at least 30 marks (i.e. 50%) in order to qualify for admission through sports quota. Those sports are given preference for which they are played across colleges for competitions. The age of candidates is also checked so that they can participate in inter-university competitions during the entire duration of their course of three years. Further, students may not work anywhere else full- or part-time, while studying in DU through sports quota.
Final merit list for students applying through sports quota is displayed by DU on its official website. Many athletes have had the honor of studying in DU and in turn have honored the University by performing tremendously well in their fields. Rishabh Pant, who was a student of Sri Venkateshwara College and is currently a cricketing sensation is one such example. Table tennis player Manika Batra and Asian Games medalist Pincky Balhara also hail from Delhi University. Delhi University in turn provides a tremendous platform to budding athletes so that they can prepare themselves for the big stage. Inter- and intra-university tournaments are common. The University further helps students by providing for attendance if they are engaged in practice for tournaments or participating in some competition.
In my opinion, the ECA initiative gives some credibility to DU to be a ‘university’ in the truest sense. The job of a university is not just to churn out professionals catered only to specific professions or having only bookish knowledge. Its job is to facilitate all-round development of the students. Thus, it needs to have diversity even among students with respect to their talents. This helps in creating a dynamic class room atmosphere because all students are not similar and everyone comes from a different location of mind. This leads to a healthy exchange of ideas where everyone learns to respect diverse opinions and also engage with people who are different. College societies in Delhi University also incubate talent as people who enter through ECA find a place in these societies to further polish their skills and give a kickstart to any sort of professional careers in their fields. College societies in Delhi University are not just restricted to Delhi but take part in competitions in India and abroad providing lot of valuable experience.
Thus, all is not over for you if you are not superb in studies. If you have any extra-curricular talent and are confident about it, the doors of DU may still be wide open for you. So don’t wait and join the ECA trials.
Disclaimer: The facts & opinions of this post are written by the author in his personal capacity. The facts and opinions appearing in the article do not reflect the views of Edukeeda and Edukeeda does not assume any responsibility or liability for the same.