Dharwad: In a significant move to strengthen govt higher education and make professional education more accessible, the Karnataka govt is set to introduce Common Entrance Test (CET) coaching in govt pre-university colleges. The initiative is expected to benefit thousands of students from rural and economically weaker backgrounds who have long depended on expensive private coaching institutes to prepare for engineering, medical and other professional entrance examinations.The programme will be launched in 200 govt PU colleges across the state in the first phase, with plans to expand it to more institutions based on student response and performance. Officials believe the move will help narrow the gap between students studying in govt and private colleges.Unlike conventional coaching centres, the CET classes will be integrated with regular college education. Students pursuing the physics, chemistry, mathematics and biology (PCMB) combination will receive 90 minutes of coaching every day after college hours, enabling them to prepare for competitive examinations without any additional financial burden.Dharwad deputy director of pre-university education Tejesvini Narayankar said the academic groundwork for the programme has already begun. Around 1,500 science lecturers have completed specialised training to provide CET coaching, and 200 colleges have been identified for offline classes. Students in the remaining 574 govt colleges will have access to the programme through online classes.Officials said the coaching will extend beyond CET preparation. Students will also receive guidance for other competitive examinations, improving their prospects for higher education and govt employment.For years, the lack of structured coaching in rural govt colleges has forced many talented students either to join private institutions or to spend heavily on coaching centres in cities. The new initiative seeks to eliminate this disadvantage by bringing quality coaching directly to govt campuses.The CET coaching programme is part of a broader effort to modernise govt colleges. Libraries, computer laboratories, hi-tech science laboratories and other academic infrastructure are being upgraded to improve the overall learning environment.The impact of these reforms is already visible. According to officials, govt colleges have recorded nearly 45,000 fresh admissions this academic year, reflecting growing confidence among students and parents in public higher education.By introducing CET coaching in govt colleges, the state hopes to ensure that talent, rather than geography or family income, determines a student’s chances of securing admission to a professional course.
