Students pursuing MTech at Jadavpur University must have at least 60 per cent attendance separately in theory and practical papers to be able to write the semester exams.
The university won’t issue an admit card if the minimum attendance is not registered.
During a meeting on Monday, the faculty council of engineering and technology took the decision, following complaints that students were skipping classes.
The dean said the attendance clause would be introduced from the semester beginning in March.
“We want students to attend classes. If they don’t attend classes in theory
and practical they won’t learn. So we want to be strict with attendance,” he told Metro.
The faculty council also decided that MTech students would be awarded up to 20 marks for their attendance in practical classes.
The faculty council decided that a student pursuing a four-year BTech programme has to attend an internship that spans a full semester (six months) so that the student gets adequate exposure to the industry before applying for a placement.
So far BTech students in the final year were required to complete a three-month
internship.
The dean of engineering and technology faculty said many companies are not coming to the campus for the placement drive as JU did not have this six-month internship mechanism, as mandated by the AICTE.
“In the absence of adequate exposure to the industry, many companies were staying away from JU. This is affecting placements,” said Dean Rajib Banerjee.
A committee is also working on the problem of attendance at the BTech level.
A JU official said it has come to their notice that many students skipped classes at the MTech level.
“Many working professionals attend the MTech programme. They hardly attend classes. They resort to copying or other unfair means to pass. We want to stop this. Else the standard of the studies will decline further,” the official said.
The All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) has also asked institutions to be strict with attendance.
The dean of engineering said if a student has 60 per cent attendance in practicals, he or she will get 12 marks out of 20.
“If someone registers 100 per cent, the student will get 20 marks,” he said.
At the MTech level, a two-year programme, one year is set aside for completing projects.
Pro-vice-chancellor Amitava Datta attended the meeting of the faculty council.
A JU official said a committee is working on a proposal to give marks to students for attendance in theory classes at the BTech level to solve the problem of poor attendance at the undergraduate level.
“The proposal is if someone has 50 to 59 per cent attendance, he will be awarded 2 marks. For an attendance between 60 to 69 per cent, 3 marks will be awarded. Four marks for attendance between 70 and 79 per cent and five for 80 per cent and above,” said the official.
It has also been proposed that 50 per cent attendance be made mandatory in the
theory classes at the BTech level.
The dean said the attendance issue will be sorted out before the start of the first-year BTech classes in September.