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Cover Story

India’s top-ranked government autonomous colleges

It’s important to note that
among (state) government-
promoted colleges
countrywide, autonomous
institutions enjoy special
standing and privilege
by virtue of their UGC
conferred autonomous
status

ince 2018 when Education-
World introduced its inau-
gural EW India Arts, Science
S& Commerce (ASC) Colleges
Rankings, we focused on rating and
ranking private colleges. However
this year, on the advice of members
of our Board of Advisors and eminent Top-ranked Maharaja’s College, Ernakulam. Inset: Dr. K. Jayakumar
academics, we have divided the broad
category of ASC colleges into three status. Applicant colleges must be of industry placement record, infra-
sub-categories: private autonomous, more than ten years vintage and “ac- structure and quality of leadership/
government autonomous (as classi- credited by either NAAC (National governance. Low-profile institutions
fied by the University Grants Com- Assessment and Accreditation Coun- rated by less than 25 respondents are
mission) and Top 100 non-autono- cil) with minimum ‘A’ Grade or by not ranked.
mous colleges. NBA (National Board of Accredita- Though UGC’s criteria for grant
Until March 31, 2018, the Delhi- tion of the All India Council for Tech- of autonomy are uniformly appli-
based UGC has awarded 708 colleg- nical Education) for at least three cable to all applicant institutions, it’s
es countrywide autonomous status programme(s) or be awarded auton- widely acknowledged that private au-
i.e, academic autonomy. While over omy by a corresponding accreditation tonomous colleges are several notch-
38,000 non-autonomous colleges grade/score from a UGC empanelled es above government autonomous
are tied to the apron strings of their accreditation agency”. Of the 747 col- colleges, promoted and managed by
affiliating universities, autonomous leges conferred autonomous status by cash-strapped state governments
colleges are permitted to review exist- UGC, 643 are privately promoted and which nevertheless set tuition fees
ing courses/programmes and restruc- 104 in the (state) government sector. very low. The perceptual difference
ture, redesign and prescribe their own To compile the 2020-21 EW league between private and government au-
courses/programmes of study and tables of India’s best private and gov- tonomous colleges is evident from the
syllabi; introduce new courses/pro- ernment autonomous (as well as Top huge gap in the total scores awarded
grammes; evolve independent perfor- 100 non-autonomous) colleges, the by this year’s sample respondents to
mance evaluation systems, conduct well-known Delhi-based Centre for top-ranked colleges in the two catego-
examinations and notify results. They Forecasting & Research Pvt. Ltd (C ries.
are also allowed to issue mark sheets, fore) interviewed 4,813 sample re- While St. Xavier’s College, Mumbai
migration and other certificates sub- spondents comprising 1,946 college/ is ranked India’s #1 private autono-
ject to degrees being awarded by par- university faculty and 2,467 final year mous college with a total score of 630,
ent university with the name of the college students and persuaded them the top-ranked government autono-
college permitted to be inscribed on to rate India’s sufficiently well-known mous college — Maharaja’s College,
the degree certificate. colleges on five parameters of tertiary Ernakulam — has an aggregate score
Unsurprisingly, UGC has set strin- education excellence, viz, competence of 539, a difference of almost 100
gent conditions precedent for award- of faculty, faculty welfare and devel- points. Therefore, to avoid apples and
ing colleges much-prized autonomous opment, curriculum and pedagogy, oranges comparisons, privately pro-

54 EDUCATIONWORLD APRIL 2020