Gujarat govt warns colleges against misleading students with false promises of offline admissions

Following multiple complaints received on the GCAS helpline, where parents reported that some colleges were promising to confirm admissions during a supposed offline process later, the Higher Education Department stepped in with strong instructions.

The Commissioner of Higher Education has sent an official circular to the Vice Chancellors of all 15 government universities connected to the GCAS portal, directing them to ensure that no college conducts or promises offline admissions under any circumstances. The government emphasised that the 2025-26 admission cycle will be conducted exclusively through the GCAS portal, and no college is authorised to process admissions independently or outside of the system.

According to the circular, misleading claims such as "you don't need to apply now, we will confirm your admission once offline admissions begin" have surfaced from several institutions. This not only undermines the transparency of the centralised process but also confuses students and parents trying to navigate the new system.

The government has further instructed all universities to communicate these directives clearly to their affiliated colleges and departments. Officials stress that decentralisation of merit and allocation has been introduced to increase transparency, and students are now eligible for multiple college-course options based on their merit.

The Gujarat Centralised Admission System (GCAS) is a government-implemented digital platform designed to streamline and standardise the admission process for undergraduate (UG), postgraduate (PG), B.Ed, LLB, and other professional courses across 15 state-run universities and affiliated colleges in Gujarat.

Launched to reduce discrepancies and ensure transparency, GCAS allows students to register online, list their preferred courses and colleges, and receive seat allotments based on merit. The system eliminates the need for students to apply separately to multiple colleges and prevents irregularities in seat distribution.

One of the key features of GCAS is its merit-based, decentralised allocation system, where students can be offered multiple course-college combinations as per their rank, increasing their chances of securing a seat in a desired institution. It also ensures uniformity in admission timelines, reduces the scope for manipulation in offline processes, and simplifies the admission journey for both students and educational institutions.