The fresh batch of undergraduate students at Delhi University (DU) will not get any semester breaks this academic calendar.

According to the academic calendar released by DU on Wednesday, classes will start on November 2. The semester break, which is usually given around New Year for two to three weeks, has been shrunk to three days from March 16. The break at the end of the second semester is given around May-June for over a month and it has been reduced to just one day, which is July 29.

This is the first year DU and other central universities are admitting students on the basis of the Common University Entrance Test (Cuet). Cuet, which was supposed to be held in the first and second week of July, was completed on August 30.

“This is because of the mindless imposition of Cuet. We could have tried to finish admissions in August or mid-September after the announcement of Class XII results in July,” said Abha Dev Habib, a faculty member of Miranda House College.

Habib said students would have little time to assimilate what is taught in classes. They usually utilise the break for understanding the subjects taught.

Even though the classes are starting on November 2, the admission process will still continue. The DU conducts six to seven rounds of admission. The second round of admission will end on November 3.

Mid-entry window

DU is likely to open a mid-entry window in November for candidates who failed to apply for admission to undergraduate programmes within the stipulated time, an official said.

According to a schedule issued by the university, the mid-entry window will open during the third round of the Common Seat Allocation System (CSAS) from November 5 to 7.

The university began the admission process for undergraduate courses for the 2022-23 academic year last month.

The admissions are open for 79 undergraduate programme across 67 colleges, departments and centres.

Admission through the CSAS is being conducted in three phases — submission of the CSAS-2022 application form, selection of programmes and filling of preferences, and seat allocation and admission.

(Additional reporting from PTI)