Gone are the days when parents were only worried whether their children would crack the NEET or JEE exams, now they are anxious if their three-year-olds would get through the draw of lots, point system and a seat in the ‘most desired’ school. The four-month admission process for the pre-primary classes in the national capital kicked off on November 23, 2023, with the opening of the registration process of individual private unaided schools.
However, the registration process ended on December 15. There are more than 1.25 lakh seats available for nursery admission in around 1,700 private schools in Delhi. The schools reportedly started calling up parents for various enquiries, donations, booking a seat, among others.
Sumit Vohra, founder of the nurseryadmissions.com portal said, “Despite the fact that the Delhi government issued a notification saying that no deviation from the slated schedule shall be permitted and each school shall display the aforesaid admission schedule on its notice board and website, some schools are going ahead calling up parents and asking them to book the seats already and deposit the fees.”
He added, “Some schools are reportedly asking for donations. They are deliberately confusing the parents’ fraternity. We request the parents to wait for the first admission list to be out on January 12. We are trying to help parents and clarify their doubts.”As per the schedule, the list of children who have applied will be released by December 29 while the allotted points will be uploaded by January 5, 2024.The first list of selected students will be out on January 12, 2024. The list-related issues will be resolved between January 13 and 22 and the second list of selected students will be released on January 29.
Waiting game begins for parents
Once the application process is complete, the schools will review the applications and make their selections. Parents will be notified and those who are successful will be required to pay a deposit and complete other necessary paperwork.The names of those who did not get through will be placed on a waiting list. The length of the waiting list and the likelihood of getting a place will depend on the specific school and number of applicants.
However, if the parents are not happy with the outcome the application, they may be able to appeal the decision. This usually involves writing to the school and explaining why they believe that the decision was unfair. The school will then review the case and make a decision.
The competition this year remains the same and children will get admission on the point system basis. The private schools have set 100-point criteria for the admission to nursery class. It includes children within 8 kms, siblings/first born quota, siblings of children currently studying in a particular school, siblings of children passed out from this branch, among others. Meanwhile, the convent schools give preference to Christian students.
Going by the notification issued by the directorate of education, all private unaided schools concerned were directed to remove certain admission criteria’s and replace them fair, reasonable and transparent ones. At least 38 such admission points were black listed by the education department. However, some of the parents shared that almost all schools have asked for the education qualification of both the parents and whether they are working.
Faraz Ahmad, a parent who lives in Mayur Vihar Phase II said, “I managed to fill at least 25 admission forms and of those, 20 of them asked about our education and if we are working and if our ward is first born or a girl child etc. It will be difficult for the parents who may not be qualified enough to fill the forms.”“Despite the government notification saying that the parents do not need to submit the forms, the schools are calling parents asking to submit the forms in the schools,” he added
Kashaf, another parent said, “The nursery admissions are no less than a nightmare. It is not like the big exams of India where you fill the form, take the exam and the result is out. These nursery admissions go on for four months and till the time your ward’s name is not in the final list of the desired school, you don’t get the satisfaction. The nursery admissions should also be made centralised.”
Fee structure cause of concern
Amid the admission season, the parents discuss about the fee structures of schools which are charging Rs 17,000 per month. Parents can be seen complaining about the exorbitant fees being charged by some of the schools while some parents believe that the schools offer top class amenities which is why their fees are justified.Some top schools of the city as mentioned by the educational app- Uniapply.com/
Prenurseryschools.com such as Cambridge World School Janakpuri charge Rs 4,200 per month, Doon Public School in Paschim Vihar charge Rs 7,700 per month, Mother’s Pride in Punjabi Bagh charge around 11,000 per month.
Similarly, GD Goenka Public School in Patel Nagar charges Rs 9,200 per month; Queen Global International School charges 8,900 per month; Indian Heritage World School in Laxmi Nagar charges a monthly fee of Rs 6,200 and Shadley’s Buzz World Pre School in Rajouri Garden charges approximately 6600 per month.
Meanwhile, a photograph of a school’s fee structure for the upcoming academic year went viral, drawing attention to exorbitant charges levied on parents. The unidentified school, catering to nursery and junior KG students for the academic year 2024-25, led to a heated debate on social media owing to its unusual parent orientation charges of Rs 8,400.
Someone shared a picture on ‘X’ breaking down the comprehensive fee structure, revealing that parents are expected to pay a total of Rs 1, 51,656 at the time of admission. Among various charges such as admission fees, caution money, annual charges and development fees, the parent orientation charges stood out as one-time payment.The post had gathered over 500 responses from different categories of persons. One of them had even shared that he had paid a total of Rs 2 lakh at the time of her daughter’s nursery admission.
EWS admission process
All private unaided recognised schools admitting children in pre-school, pre-primary and/or Class-1 level shall reserve 25 per cent seats for Economically Weaker Section / Disadvantaged Group (EWS/DG) category under Education Act, and children with disability as defined in RPWD Act, 2016 at entry level classes, wherever fresh admission are made as directed by the High Court of Delhi vide order dated February 24, 2012.
Further, all school shall comply with the notification dated February 28, 2012 which directs that the number of seats at the entry level(s) shall not be less than the highest number of seats in entry level classes during three years i.e. 2021-22,2022-23 and 2023-2024 unless exempted/specified by the competent authority.
The details of all entry level asses (i.e. Nursery/KG/1st) along with the seats available for admission must be declared by all schools on in the module to this directorate’s website as well as on their notice board/website and hard school concerned shall be furnished to the DDE concerned Format-1 duly signed by head of the by December 8, 2023 positively. DDE (District) will compare the seats online.
New Education policy
India’s education system is witnessing a significant transformation with the implementation of the
New Education Policy (NEP) introduced in 2020, as per the government notification.Among the reforms is the revision of the age criterion for admission to class 1, which now states that children should be six years old when joining class 1. Till date, children were admitted to Grade 1 at the age of five or six, depending on their birth dates. Different states too had different cut-off dates for enrolment.
However, NEP now mandates that children must be six years old by a specific cut-off date to be eligible for admission into Class 1. This shift has been introduced to align with global standards and ensure a smoother academic journey for students.
Dates to remember
Uploading details of children who applied for admission under open seats: December 29, 2023
Uploading of marks: January 5, 2024
Date for displaying first list of selected children (Including waiting list, along with marks allotted under points system): January 12, 2024
Resolution of queries about allotment of points for the first list: January 13- January 22, 2024
Date for displaying second list of selected children (if any) (Including waiting list,along with
marks allotted under points system): January 29, 2024
Subsequent list of admission if any: February 21, 2024
Closure of admission process: March 8, 2024
Considerations blacklisted by Delhi education dept in 2016
Special ground (parents with proficiency in music, sports, national awardee etc)
Transferable jobs/ state transfers/IST
First Born- This criterion shall lead to discrimination for parents desirous to seek admission of his ward that is not first born.
Parents’ education
School transport
Parents working in sister-concern school
Both parents are working
Status of child
Mother’s qualification 12th passed
Non-smoker parent
Empirical achievements of the parent
First time admission seekers
First come-first get
Oral test
Interview
Admission criteria for nursery admission:
Neighbourhood or proximity to school: Some schools give priority to children who live close to school, as this is seen as a way of promoting diversity and creating a community atmosphere
Sibling: Children who have siblings already enrolled in the school are often given priority
Alumni: Children of alumni of the school are often given priority in thea dmission process
Income: Some schools consider the income of the parents as a factor in the admission process