BENGALURU: Mount Carmel College (MCC), one of Bengaluru’s historic educational institutions for women, has decided to go the co-ed way. The autonomous institution affiliated to Bengaluru City University (BCU) on Thursday said that all its programmes are now open to boys. Earlier in 2016, the college had allowed male students to apply for only postgraduate courses.
For 75 years, the institution has provided quality education to female students and secured reaccreditation of A+ Grade by NAAC. Several years ago, St Joseph’s College also opened its doors to girls, leaving only a few institutions such as Jyothi Nivas PU College, Maharani Cluster University and Bishop Cotton Women’s Christian College allowing enrolment for only one gender.
The co-ed decision for the academic year 2024-25 was made by the management and governing council at MCC. Dr George Lekha, Principal, MCC, told TNIE, “This decision has been taken by the management, as next year we want to attain university status. The council was of the opinion that we have to move past being a women’s college. I believe the move is progressive, and since we have completed 75 years of our establishment, this is the appropriate next step.”
The principal added that the college has also made several changes in its academic programmes and shifted its focus towards becoming a university. “We don’t want to be an all-women’s university. So it seemed viable that we start enrolling boys in all courses,” she explained.
Dr Lekha also emphasised that there would be no drastic changes for the college, as they have not decided on increasing the intake of students. She said there would be gradual changes and the administration would have to wait and see how many applications come in for the upcoming academic year.
‘Transition inevitable with changing times’
Speaking about a shared campus for Pre-University (PU) College and UG courses, Dr Lekha said, “I don’t think that should be a problem as the intake of students for UG or PG courses is not increasing. In future, we might reserve a small percentage of seats for male students, but as of now that category hasn’t been discussed.”
Currently, in MCC, 13 boys are enrolled in several PG courses. Dr Suma Singh, Dean of Humanities, said the transition was inevitable with changing times and the legacy institution has geared up to turn the page and start a new chapter.
75 YEARS OF SERVICE TO EDUCATION
Mount Carmel College (MCC) is one of the first women’s colleges established in 1948, in Bengaluru. It has been ranked as one of the top colleges in India for women. Mount Carmel College completed its Platinum Jubilee, 75 years of service in the field of education, in 2023. With six streams and 84 programmes, the college has a unique alumna group.