These lucrative courses have outpaced the traditional B Com and BSc programs at many top colleges.
The popularity of self-finance courses has grown exponentially since their launch by the Mumbai University in 2000. With 10-15% annual increase in the intake capacity, the varsity now has around 80,000 seats in various self-financing undergraduate programmes – one-third of the total 2.5 lakh seats up for grabs.
Popular self-financed courses include Bachelor of Management Studies, Bachelor of Mass Media, BCom (Accounts and Finance, Banking and Insurance, and Financial Markets) and BSc (Computer Science and Information Technology).
These lucrative courses have outpaced the traditional B Com and BSc programs at many top colleges. "While we get almost twice number of applications for self-financed programmes, many seats in basic courses remain vacant though they are equally good and give a comprehensive knowledge. They are considered equally good at job market and also better prepares the students for further studies," said a college principal.
However, the state government's recent blanket ban on increase in intake capacity, courses, or colleges has comes as a setback for many colleges which were hoping to expand to meet the demand.
The self-financing courses which are considered as job-oriented programmes not only provide better choices for students but also cater to the demands and needs of industries and business establishments. These assure good placements as they offer specialised training mainly with the help of industry experts.
Almost all colleges in Mumbai, Thane and Navi Mumbai are offering these courses now. Being self-financed', colleges do not get government grants for these courses. Therefore, fees for these courses are higher than other traditional courses.
Bachelors in Management Studies and Mass Media are the most popular courses among students seeking admissions to degree colleges. "A large number of aspirants apply for BMS and BMM than the available seats every year. Moreover, BAF is also emerging as popular program with 50,000 students applying for the course last year for over 8,000 seats," said a University official.
Nevertheless, students must inquire about the faculty and infrastructure of a college before finalising admission, advises a principal. "Many colleges especially those in city's outskirts employ unapproved and under-qualified teachers on temporary basis for want of funds. In such cases, quality of education may be compromised."
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