UP sees 4L drop in enrolment for traditional higher edu courses, girls still lead the pack

Prayagraj: Uttar Pradesh has seen a significant drop in enrolment for traditional higher education courses, with around 4 lakh fewer students taking admission this academic year. Despite the drop, girl students continue to outnumber boys in colleges across the state, according to a report presented in the state assembly by the Directorate of Higher Education, Uttar Pradesh.The report states that in the current academic session, 48,95,468 students enrolled in traditional undergraduate courses such as BA, BSc and BCom across 8,072 govt, aided and self-financed colleges in the state. Girls led the way in UP's higher education, with 24,98,560 enrolments compared to 23,96,908 male students.However, the overall number of admissions declined significantly compared to the 2024–25 academic session, when 53,28,969 students were enrolled in similar courses. In that session, 28,75,211 were female students and 24,53,758 were male students, highlighting a drop of around 4 lakh students this year.Data from recent years shows fluctuating enrolment trends in traditional higher education courses. In the 2023–24 session, the total number of registered students stood at 54,76,441, while 44,18,809 students were enrolled in the 2022–23 academic year. In the 2022-23 session, boys outnumbered girls with 22,35,114 male students versus 21,83,695 female students.The broader data trend also reveals that 45,40,605 students were enrolled in 2021–22, 50,21,277 in 2020–21, 41,83,992 in 2019–20, and 43,82,527 in 2018–19.The decline in enrolment comes at a time when the state govt set a target to expand access to higher education. Under its policy goals, UP aims to achieve a Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) of 40% by 2030, in line with national higher education expansion plans.Education experts say the fall in admissions to traditional degree programmes could be linked to increasing preference for professional, technical and skill-based courses. Despite this shift, the continued rise in the number of female students enrolling in higher education remains a significant positive trend for the state's education sector.