New Delhi: College of Vocational Studies (CVS), a Delhi University college established to impart skill-based education, has discontinued six of its seven undergraduate vocational programmes and replaced them with regular multidisciplinary degree combinations from the 2026-27 academic session, a move that has triggered objections from a section of teachers and students.The college has retained only BA (vocational studies) in tourism management among its vocational offerings. According to the 2026-27 UG seat matrix circulated by it, the discontinued programmes include BA (vocational studies) in office management and secretarial practice, retail management and IT, materials management, insurance management, small and medium enterprises, and human resource management.In their place, the college has introduced combinations such as BA programme with economics and commerce, commerce and computer science, Hindi and commerce, economics and mathematics, and history and political science.The development comes amid DU’s ongoing exercise to rationalise low-enrolment courses across colleges. The move follows a similar proposal sent by the college to DU. TOI reported last month that the proposal was forwarded to the vice-chancellor. Principal Shiv Kumar Sahdev said the proposal had since been approved by the university’s executive council. An internal email sent to the faculty members has asked them to reorganise the workload accordingly.Opposing the decision, faculty members said the discontinuation undermined the college’s founding mandate to offer skill-based education. Teachers also disputed the college’s claim that the vocational programmes suffered from poor enrolment. In a representation to DU, they cited admission data to argue that several of these courses had consistently attracted applicants in excess of their sanctioned intake.The principal said the replaced courses had limited academic progression and significant overlap with the BCom curriculum. “The new programmes offer better employability and greater opportunities for higher education. Many of the subjects taught in the vocational courses are already covered under BCom,” Sahdev pointed out. “These programmes were introduced in the 1970s when BCom was not available. Continuing them separately today makes little academic sense and results in inefficient use of university resources,” he told TOI.
