Uttaranchal University's Review and Verdict by CollegeDekho

Campus at a Glimpse

Were you aware that Uttaranchal University is the first university in Uttarakhand to get accredited by NAAC with an A+ grade in the first round itself? Established in 2013, Uttaranchal University has earned a lot of appreciation in terms of campus and infrastructural facilities. Covering a sprawling expanse of 80 acres, this private university has solidified its reputation as an excellent choice for pursuing studies in law and a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture. Undergoing construction, as per the university's avowal, it has a lot more to offer to its students. How it unfolds in the near future, will be known with time! 

Uttaranchal University presently provides a diverse range of courses, encompassing over 100 courses across 12 schools in different fields like engineering, law, management, agriculture, pharmacy, science, arts, and more. Admission procedures vary, with some courses requiring entrance exams while others rely on merit-based selection. According to student comments, simply presenting your academic records may secure you a seat, regardless of your entrance exam performance.

That's not all! The CollegeDekho team has investigated further to find out the real truth- What actually happens within the nice-looking campus? And, we did find out what the other face of the coin had to say! If you're considering choosing Uttaranchal University, you might want to go through this article to get a clear perspective. 

Uttaranchal University Ranking - NIRF & Others

• The Week placed Uttaranchal University at the 53rd position among the ‘Top Private Law Colleges in India 2023’
• Uttaranchal University bagged 1st position in Uttarakhand and 27th position in the country in India Today’s ‘Best University of India 2023’ ranking category.
• In the WURI (World Universities with Real Impact) Ranking, Uttaranchal University was ranked 2nd in India and was among the top 50 global universities under the category ‘Fourth Industrial Revolution’. 

Our Take

In 2023, the university’s ranking was not released publicly by the NIRF, however in 2022, it had secured a rank among the top 200 universities in India. Being among the top 200 is a sign of good repute and academic standards. Furthermore, Uttaranchal University has also secured good ranks in the rankings released by private agencies like India Today, The Week, and WURI. As per the assessments by these ranking agencies, the university is not the top one, but next to the top. 

Uttaranchal University Academia and Batch Size

Uttaranchal University follows the Flexible Choice Based Credit System allowing students to choose their favourite courses. The academic pedagogy at Uttaranchal University emphasizes on the outcome and project-based education along with experiential learning. UU administers its own entrance exam called UUEE for admissions and also takes into account scores from JEE Main, CUET, and GATE as per the course opted. 

Academic Composition

Uttaranchal University academia is a mix of classroom learning, assignments and practicals. The university follows an ‘immersive learning’ approach primarily focussing on ‘practical training, higher employability, higher engagement and effectiveness’.

Batch Size

Many university students complain of no capping on admissions which leads to a larger batch size every academic year. According to some engineering students of 2022, their batch size was 350 last year. However, as per the 2023 batch, they have a student strength of 600 in 2023. That brings us to a teacher-student ratio of 600:1, double than last year. 

Fees

According to the student comments, the Uttaranchal University fee is on the higher side. The B.Tech fees range between INR 1,30,000 and INR 2,29,300 per year. For MBA and LLM, the fee is INR 2,31,000 and INR 1,90,000, respectively. Other Uttaranchal University courses also fall close to the same fee range. There are limited scholarship options. Allowing concessions between 10-26% only to domicile state students and female students is not sufficient. There are no such facilities for poor/EWS students.

Our Take

As per the information retrieved from the university students, more focus should be given to practical training and placement outcomes by encouraging effective student-engagement activities.

Moreover, most students fail to major in the degree of their choice. They have opined that, at the time of admission, they were informed about the diverse specialization options available. Yet, at the time of subject selection, students are asked to choose from only a few specialization choices. MBA students also expressed that they were briefed concerning multiple specialization options at the time of admission, whereas, in reality, they had to choose only among- Marketing, Finance, and HR. This is a serious allegation against a university which claims to be one of the best in the North zone.

Uttaranchal University claims to provide eight hours of learning every day. However, students had different views. Live classes continue for a brief duration of only two months, consisting of four-hour-lectures each. The rest of the days, it is all recorded lectures in place of live classes. The question is, the opportunity of student-teacher interaction is curtailed with this. It’s a big NO if online classes interest you. Overall, we cannot say Uttaranchal University is the best in terms of academia and batch size!

Uttaranchal University Infrastructure 

Library: Of all the students we talked to, they were fond of the library. Operating under the banner ‘Knowledge Resource Centre (KRC)’, the library has 160718 books, 156514 e-books and 44148 e-journals. Also, the university claims to provide the following e-services: web OPAC, Delnet, NDL, WEL, SAS, and NPTEL.

Sports: A few students claim that they have enjoyed only the sports facilities and the campus so far. Considering it a partial good news, we can say that UU has provided the requisite sports facilities to its students. Furthermore, sports-related fests and events are organised on special occasions.

Hostels: UU has separate hostels for men and women. But none of the students we talked to had anything good to say about the hostels. We were told that proper hygiene is not maintained and the ignorant behaviour of the hostel staff is common. Regarding the hostel timings, there were some shocking revelations. Female students complain of discrimination between them and the male students who are free to roam in and out of the campus at any given time, while they are allowed only for two hours that too on Wednesdays and weekends from 9 AM to 6 PM. Students find some of the rules at UU not only absurd but also discriminatory!

Students have also voiced that the hostel fee is considerably high. Here is a glimpse of the same:

Our Take
Talking about the hostels, it should not be an ideal choice. If you have no other option, then only opt for it. You have to spend the next two to four years in the hostel, so think about your mental health first and then take a call. 

Mess: This part has its own share of issues too. The students get to relish good food only during the beginning of the academic session. As that time passes by, the food is not at all consumable, some students vented out their frustration.

Our Take
Getting quality food only during the new admission season puts UUs’ credibility at question. This is clear that no proper inspection is carried out in this area. Thus, the mess and the food part gets a negative rating from us. 

Fests - It’s rare to see fests at Uttaranchal University. Therefore, it’s a no-no if you are assuming a cultural extravaganza.  

Cafeteria - UU has an open-air joint ‘Nescafe’ for students. A perfect spot to fill in the tummy with snacks and beverages during leisure moments.

Uttaranchal University Placements

As per the UU placement records, the highest package received by an international student is INR 1.24 Cr. For domestic students, the highest salary package stands at INR 22.5 LPA. Check placements stats for Uttaranchal University from the NIRF Report 2023. 

Engineering and Architecture| Course Duration: Four Years

MBA| Course Duration: Two Years

Law| Course Duration: Five Years

Source: NIRF 2023 

Our Take

According to the NIRF report 2023, Uttaranchal University has a fairly good placement rate. However, if we look at the ROI generated, the UU fees charged do not justify the median salary offered to students. CollegeDekho has to highlight what the students' viewpoints were! According to many comments from UU students, the following points were highlighted: 

• The placements are decent but only for agriculture and BTech CSE students. 
• Law students expressed that even though it is known for being one of the best law universities in the region, on-campus placements are not up to the mark. The management would frequently contact them through calls and texts during the placement session for promotional purposes without any fair output. Even some students reported incidents of assembling students from other colleges purely for the purpose of creating a larger placement crowd! In actuality, the numbers boasted are fudged. 
• Students complained about the department staff being very rude. Thus, students refrain from visiting the department to get their placement-related queries solved. There are incidences of ‘freedom of speech’ suppression as well. The management even asks students to delete any ‘unfavourable’ reviews posted by them on any platform.

After analysing the NIRF report and the student comments it is evident that the placement department has not been successful in functioning effectively. Even though the placement rate is good, the placement rate distribution is not balanced across all programs.

Uttaranchal University Diversity and Demographics 

UU spends a lot on media and advertising, which is evident. Every year, a lot of students can be seen taking admission, whatever the reason- friends, location or a good-looking campus! When we asked these students about the university culture, we got to know that most of the students were from the nearby states. Some even claimed that a large number of students have displayed aggression on campus. Fights among students and cultural discrimination are often seen. Students from the northeast feel the university is uncooperative!

Let us glance through the gender ratio index and demographic representation of UU:

Uttaranchal University: Gender Ratio Index (as per NIRF Report 2023)

Our Take 
Overall, the male to female ratio is satisfactory. However, for UG 4-year programmes, female students comprise only 32% of the total.

Uttaranchal University: Demographic Representation (as per NIRF Report 2023)

Our Take
Most of the students studying in UU are from the neighbouring states. The total number of non-domicile students stands at 2012 and that of state-domicile at 1128, which is only 36% of the total. Even though steps have been taken by the university to better the domicile admission numbers (for example providing up to 26% concession to students from Uttarakhand), there must be a reason why the natives prefer other universities instead of Uttaranchal University.

Uttaranchal University Faculty and Administration/Management

Sub-Standard Teaching

Uttaranchal University has a total of 50 faculty members offering education to 6291 students.  Students have said that barring a few departments the faculty is not at all good. They also feel that the curriculum is outdated and does not adequately offer the required skills to students for the current job market. They have also expressed that the teaching methodology is not up to mark. Biasness prevails too! According to an ex-BTech student, they were taught by professional and highbrowed teachers only in the first year. The rest of the sessions seemed like a casual pastime.

Too much fee at the application level 

Regarding administration and management, the resentment is palpable. Starting with the application process, the application fee is INR 1,250. Along with that, the management charges a processing fee of INR 15,000 and both the fee components are non-refundable.

Our Take

Paying a considerably large sum at the application stage is quite stressful for students as it is difficult to confirm whether they are sure of pursuing the course from Uttaranchal University or not.

Constant phone calls and reminders from students are common in this aspect. Lack of proper communication between the management and students is another issue that came up in our investigation. Delays in receiving information like academic deadlines, exam schedules and refunds have caused a lot of stress among the students. In one of such cases, a student was refunded a meager amount of 1220 in four months. 

One subject that was common among all the students was the double-standard behaviour of the university staff. Students are welcomed with open arms at the time of admission however, it eventually transitions into inappropriate behaviour within a few months. Many shared their views that the university is ‘money-minded’. This is a serious allegation and the university should take the necessary steps to make its admission process transparent! The university should reflect on its administration and deal with these issues with sensitivity. 

Uttaranchal University Location

Located in Prem Nagar in Dehradun, Uttaranchal University definitely gets a percentage of its seats filled due to its location. Owing to its close proximity to several academies and educational institutions, one being the Indian Military Academy, the atmosphere in and out of the univeris good. Students expressed that they have not faced any such difficulty related to transportation during classes and exams. However, on the flipside, they are not happy with the parking space.

Uttaranchal University: Expectation vs Reality CLD Verdict

As a takeaway, the Uttaranchal University campus is great. The facilities offered are apt for students’ holistic development. The library is the best of all the facilities that the university offers. The dress code in the college is a minus. 75% attendance is a must however, in reality, the unofficial rule of attendance is 55%. The admission procedure is easy. Most of the students are granted admissions. No end cap on admissions is a cause of concern. One can hardly expect individual guidance. Incidences of false claims by the university is one big disadvantage. Students complain of fudged information by the staff at the time of the admission, like UU is an ICAR-affiliated institute. However, we don’t see Uttaranchal University on the official website of Indian Council of Agricultural Research or in its report.

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