This year, the administration has decided to grant seats to candidates based on their scores in the common university entrance test (CUET) and college/course preferences filled during the registration.

The Delhi University (DU), on Monday, commenced the admission process for its undergraduate courses for the new session with the launch of a portal, Common Seat Allocation System (CSAS). This year, the administration has decided to grant seats to candidates based on their scores in the common university entrance test (CUET) and college/course preferences filled during the registration.

The candidates, who have appeared in the CUET for getting a seat in DU, need to register on the portal in the first phase – the one that began on Monday – of the three-phase CSAS admission process.

The CSAS portal will be used for the very first time by the varsity as it opted for CUET in line with the guidelines from the University Grants Commission (UGC), the country’s higher education regulator.

Till last year, admissions to the DU undergraduate courses were done on the basis of cutoff marks obtained by the candidates in Class 12 board exams. Applicants who met the cut-off criteria for different colleges announced by the varsity in a particular course were eligible for admission to that course.

However, from this academic year, applicants will gain admission only on the basis of CUET scores.

As part of the first phase of the CSAS, students will have to fill in their basic personal details, Class 12 scores in all subjects, and documents on the CSAS portal. They will also have to mention if they wish to apply for admission through the sports or ECA category. After choosing the category, the appropriate registration fee has to be filled.

The second phase of CSAS will commence after the declaration of CUET (UG) – 2022 results. In this, students will have to fill in combinations of their selected courses and colleges. Students can choose for any number of college/course combinations. However, no change will be made in the preference order at a later stage, officials said.

The third phase of CSAS will progress in order to get seat allotment and admission based on the college/course preferences as given by candidates.

The university will list a centralised merit list based on CUET scores on the basis of which students will be allotted their first possible preference according to candidate categories and seat availability. Separate merit lists will be announced for candidates wishing to get admission to other quotas.

Candidates will have to accept their allocated seats within a given time frame. If they do not do so, it will be regarded as non-acceptance of the allocated seat and will lead to the removal of the application from the allocation process and the candidate will not be able to participate in subsequent rounds of allocation.

Acceptance of a seat is also important if a candidate wants to be considered for an “upgrade” – to a college/course combo that is higher on their list of preferences – in following rounds.

After the first round of allocation, candidates will be given a choice to upgrade to a college/course preference that is higher on their list. If the higher preference is allocated to a candidate, he/she will have to accept the new allocation and their previous provisional admission will be automatically cancelled.

Candidates who get to have their first preference in the first round of allocation will not be eligible for the upgrade option. Candidates who are content with their first allocation can opt for the “freeze” option to secure their admission. They will not be allowed to upgrade in subsequent allocation rounds.