Round third of FCFS will be held as last resort

Mumbai: While the first-come, first-serve (FCFS) second round is still underway, the state education department is already planning a third round. According to officials, students come looking for admissions either after the last date or after cancelling admissions, and a FCFS round three could be their final chance.

Rajendra Ahire, deputy director of education, Mumbai region, told this newspaper, “Students are still trying to get admissions in popular colleges even though these colleges don’t have vacant seats. This has been going on since all the previous rou-nds. Students should grab a seat in colleges which have vacant seats.”

Thus, there is a possibility of students being left out even after the second round of FCFS which is why a third round will be carried out, said Mr Ahire.

For the second round of FCFS, around 10,000 to 12,000 students were left without a seat. Adding to this, the round had ATKT students of Class 10 who cleared their Secondary School Certificate (SSC) supplementary exam in August and applied for FYJC admissions. Nearly 2,000 to 3,000 students applied from this slot in the second round of FCFS. According to officials, FCFS round three might have 4,000 to 5,000 students trying to secure a seat in a junior college.

The rider is that students who now apply cannot cancel their admission once confirmed as that will remove them from the process. Moreover, they should apply for admission only in colleges that have vacant seats, and as per the phases of the FCFS process within the given date.