BHUBANESWAR: Aiming at implementing the National Education Policy (NEP)-2020 in a phased manner, the Higher Education department has planned to allow UG and PG students to earn credits from nearly 800 courses available on the Ministry of Education’s SWAYAM portal and Open Distance Learning (ODL) in the new academic session.
While at UG level, students can earn 24 credits, they can collect 12 credits in PG by pursuing courses from both SWAYAM and ODL in any subject that interests them. Under NEP, students can attend the SWAYAM courses and their university/degree college studies at the same time. While they will study the courses online, computer and laboratory facilities (required for any course) will be provided to the students by the parent institution. The credits earned by a student from the e-courses will be added to their degree programme.
“Through SWAYAM and ODL, a student will get the flexibility to pick up any online courses, irrespective of the stream he/she is studying in, and earn credits. This flexibility is one of the primary mandates of the NEP,” said a higher official of the department.
Currently, all the state public universities have started onboarding students to the Academic Bank of Credits, a national-level facility that will act as a repository of credits earned by a student. “The Odisha Higher Education Council has also drafted a four-year undergraduate programme (FYUP) under the NEP-2020 which is currently being reviewed by all the vice-chancellors of public universities. The detailed subject curriculum of FYGP is in the process and the department plans to implement it by 2023-24 or maximum by 2024-2025,” the official added.