PANAJI
In a move likely to spark debate over access to higher education for local students, Goa University has allocated more than double the number of seats to non-Goan applicants than to Goan students in its five-year integrated programmes for 2026-27, raising questions over priority in the sole State-run varsity.
As per the university’s admission notification issued on Tuesday, each integrated programme offers 15 seats for candidates who have passed Class XII from Goa, while 35 additional seats are reserved for students from other States.
The integrated programmes, spread across disciplines such as sciences, social sciences, management, media, and public policy are being offered under the framework of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020. Admissions will be based on merit derived from Class XII marks.
While the 15 seats allocated for Goan students are subject to the State’s reservation policy across categories such as SC, ST, OBC, EWS and PwD, the 35 seats for students from outside Goa are supernumerary, meaning they are over and above the base intake.
“The University may decide to revise the number of seats depending on demand and available infrastructure with the approval of the Vice-Chancellor,” the notification stated.
The development is likely to spark debate over access and priority for domiciled students in State-funded higher education institutions.
Online applications for the programmes are open from April 28 to May 10, with separate application processes for Goan and non-Goan candidates.
The five-year integrated programmes offered are as follows.
At the Shenoi Goembab School of Languages and Literature, the university is offering an Integrated MA in Media and Cultural Studies with a minor in languages.
The D D Kosambi School of Social Sciences and Behavioural Studies offers an Integrated MA in Social Sciences with a minor in AI, while the Manohar Parrikar School of Law, Governance and Public Policy has an Integrated MA in Public Policy and Governance.
In the sciences stream, the School of Physical and Applied Sciences is offering an Integrated MSc in Physics with a minor in AI, the School of Chemical Sciences has an Integrated Master’s in Chemical Sciences, and the School of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology offers an Integrated MSc in Life Sciences with options in AI, Wildlife Biology and Computational Biology.
The School of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences is offering an Integrated Master’s in Earth System Sciences with a minor in AI.
In addition, the School of Sanskrit, Philosophy and Indic Studies has an Integrated Master’s in Sanskrit Studies and Philosophy. From the commerce and management stream, the Goa Business School is offering an Integrated MBA in Financial Services.
These programmes are open to students from arts, science and commerce streams depending on course-specific eligibility, with admissions based on Class XII performance.
