To make the campus more inclusive for third gender aspirants,Delhi University (DU) organised special counselling sessions and set-up personal help desks for them during the admission session.The move is significant as not even a single student from the third gender had enrolled ever since the category was added in admission forms in 2015.
There were only a handful of transgender’s who make it through the High Cut off’s at DU’s Girls College, but even then their identity remains in Question? Every Year, Delhi University receives a number of application’s from the third gender but none of them join the Regular College.Most of them prefer to join the School Of Open Learning (SOL)
What is the Reason for them to not join Regular College?
Lack of Sensitivity among Students and College Staff is one of the Prime reason’s , as to why they opt for distance learning and avoid regular College. Acceptance is the main issue. Fear of being humiliated and not accepted by the regular students makes them opt for Open School of Learning
This Year, according to the data provided there are around 29 aspirants from the “Other” Category, But their Admission still remains in Question, weather they should be admitted in Girls college or not ,The college’s are still consulting the University for Cases like these . They say these are modern problems, and will wait for the Government of India direction.
Aarav Singh, now 21, quit studies in 2014 after sitting for his first year BA (Pass) exam at the School of Learning because of the students and faculty at the study centre,a girls’ college, could not get past the female-to-male transgender appearance. The teachers used to tell me to go to a boys college because I didn’t look like a girl and the girl students made rude comments about my features,” said Singh. “I couldn’t take this, so decided not to apply for admission in the second year.”
A lot of third gender students often don’t reveal their identity in order to avoid the humiliation that would come along with it.
Wrongly clicked on the “other” category
Three years ago, DU allowed those seeking admission to identify themselves as of the male, female or “other” gender. Not many third-gender students had applied, and no one gained admission. Explaining last year’s figure of 83, the admissions committee explained that many students clicked wrongly on the “other” category or made a mistake while selecting their gender and came later for correction. Thus in the Past 3 years None of the Transgender Students Came in for Admission in Regular College .
Change of Name : Another Hurdle
The College Authority say, that the students have to get their names changed in the official documents in order to get Admission. Some Students Claim that they got aware of their personality only after school got over and now if they ask the school authority to change their name, it causes them a lot of time and trouble.
What We Can Do :
Create More Awareness and Understanding for the Transgender Community,make them feel accepted.
Sensitise people at school, college’s and educational institutions to bring transgenders to mainstream
Create Special cell for Transgender
Improve Content in NCERT curriculum