IITs, IIMs, INIs now under ABC allowing students to pursue 50% of a course from other institutions

The government has brought the IITs, IIMs and other Institutions of National Importance (INIs) under the Academic Bank of Credit (ABC) framework, which allows students to pursue up to 50 per cent of a course from institutions other than the one with which they are enrolled, The Telegraph reported. The Ministry of Education approved key amendments to the UGC (Establishment and Operation of ABC in Higher Education) Regulations last month to bring the INIs under its ambit and also remove the ranking criterion for universities and colleges to register with the credit bank framework.

Students can earn credits, the equivalent of marks, with the bank acting as a digital storehouse, or database, of such academic points received from institutions under the ABC framework. Every student can have a digital account in the bank. The original regulation notified in July 2021 had stated that only those universities and autonomous colleges with Grade A accreditation scores or those in the top 100 of the National Institutional Ranking Framework can be registered with the ABC.

However, the December amendment has made it possible for any university or college, irrespective of ranking, to come under the ABC framework. The regulation says that the registered higher education institutions shall encourage and enable students to customise or design their own degrees. A student is required to pursue at least 50 per cent of the credits from the institution where he is enrolled. This half of the course makes up the core papers. For the other half — the non-core or elective subjects — a student can choose any other institution or a mix of institutions registered with the ABC framework. The entire elective section can be pursued from another institution, online or offline or a mix of both.