GetMyUni's Verdict on CUHP

Pratiki Patra

“Despite its 14 years of existence, CUHP still has a good amount of space to be improved in terms of placements and infrastructure.”

CUHP has been established relatively new compared to other state universities. Within 14 years of its establishment, it has managed to achieve a few significant milestones. Such as, the number of courses offered has increased, and many professional courses have also been introduced. Students are content with the professors’ depth of knowledge and their teaching pedagogy. 

While many of the factors are appreciable, many unresolved issues remain. Most certainly, even after a decade of being established, the Central University of Himachal Pradesh does not have its own campus. It is working from the rented campus. As a result, many of the facilities that could have been extended still need to be made available to the students.

Furthermore, its infrastructure needs to be improved. Students have been regularly facing troubles with the same. In addition to its infrastructural lackings, its placement scenario is one for a toss. Many departments do not have any recruitment opportunities, while the ones that do do not fetch industry-standard results.

CUHP has a long way to go before becoming a prominent university. Still, for those who are looking forward to a good education at nominal course fees, the Central University of Himachal Pradesh is a good option.

Table of Contents

• Good Academics
• Knowledgeable & Helpful Faculties
• Lacking Infrastructure
• Unsatisfactory Placement Record
• Uneventful Campus Life
• Is CUHP Worth it?

Good Academics

CUHP offers a variety of courses, including undergraduate, postgraduate, doctoral, diploma, and certificate degrees. The courses are provided in various fields such as Arts, Sciences, Commerce, etc. Admission to the Central University of Himachal Pradesh happens either directly through the last qualifying exam or through the scores obtained in the CUET exam. While the admission process can be a bit challenging, the semester exams are otherwise. The semester exams are relatively easy, and a large number of students can pass the exam. 

The course curriculum is made as per the guidelines set by the UGC and other guiding committees. It includes mainly the latest topics. While such efforts are notable, it still does not include many new or additional courses or issues. Thus, it might create a gap between theoretical and practical knowledge. This might also be a hindrance when it comes to job purposes.

For departments like Sciences, theory and practical classes are equally important. The classes are also conducted regularly and on time. While the academics are decent enough, there is not much collaboration with other organisations for students or research projects, which would give students a vital insight into the industry. These students also do not have any frequent industrial visits planned in the academic year.

Inexpensive Course Fees

CUHP has set nominal course fees for most of its subjects. Therefore, students from a larger pool of communities can afford to study here. For instance, the B.Voc course fee is INR 2,860 yearly, while for M.Sc, it is INR 6,600 yearly. The other course fees are similar. More scholarships are needed by the government to help students ease the stress of course fees.

Knowledgeable & Helpful Faculties

Students have conveyed that the best feature of studying at CUPH is its faculty members. All the professors are highly qualified, and many hold PhD. degree. They are very supportive towards their students in their academic journey. The faculty members make sure to resolve any doubts that might have arisen and are very approachable in nature.

While some faculty members use innovative methods to teach and make the lectures interesting, others do not follow suit. This makes many lectures monotonous. However, all the faculties ensure that they teach, in addition to the course materials, some new topics or subjects.

Lacking Infrastructure

While talking about CUHP’s infrastructure capabilities, it must be said that the university is operating out of a rented campus. As mentioned earlier, in over a decade of being established, the university has not been able to move to a new campus. This is a considerable drawback considering that the students could enjoy many new equipment and extra spaces on the new campus. 

The current campus’ classrooms are moderately spacious, and the students can comfortably sit. The classrooms largely still follow the traditional equipment and may lack projectors, smart boards, etc. The central library hosts a plethora of books, journals, periodicals, etc. Though the library lacks modern facilities, it still does the main job of providing academic and other genres of books. The students can access the library catalogue online as well.

The laboratories are present as per the department’s necessities. However, the labs are not highly equipped with modern technology or instruments. It needs better quality of instruments. Although they are maintained well. Apart from this, the campus also has conference halls and auditoriums. There is a lack of sports facilities on the campus.

Hence, students often have to struggle to play any sort of sport in their leisure time. The campus has a decent security system that makes everyone safe and sound. No unwanted activities have been reported so far since its existence.

Overall, the rented campus needs a lot of improvement to cater to the student’s needs adequately. In addition, the new campus must be completed immediately to provide students with proper facilities. In terms of residence, students will find few options for paying guests at reasonable prices to stay near the campus. 

Unsatisfactory Placement Record

The one area that CUHP needs to improve is its placement record. Only a handful of companies visit the campus for placement purposes for a few departments. Students have often complained about sparse placement opportunities. Some even have said that their departments do not have any placement opportunities. In addition to this, no significant training is imparted to students to help them excel in the recruitment process. Hence, no additional skill set is learnt. The highest package offered so far has been INR 4 LPA.

Uneventful Campus Life

Campus life at Central University of Himachal Pradesh can be monotonous. Not many events, be it cultural or sports, are celebrated. Hence, students have limited opportunities to enjoy their student lives. Even though CUHP is a central university, students mainly from the state are admitted to the college. Although, students from various communities within the state can be seen.

A fair male-to-female ratio of students can be observed. The management has established several cells, such as the anti-ragging cell, equality cell, etc., to help maintain a good balance among the students and campus.

Rules & Dress Code

CUHP does not follow any strict dress code or uniform. Students can wear them as they wish. There are also no stringent rules that students need to adhere to. Students do have to maintain a 75% attendance criteria. However, management is lenient.

Is CUHP Worth it?

For students who have financial constraints and need help to afford to study in a different city, CUHP provides a decent education in various subjects. Moreover, its faculty members are knowledgeable and dedicated to their profession. However, if one is looking forward to a more holistic campus and education life, then there might be better universities than the Central University of Himachal Pradesh. The only good part about the university is its decent academics and faculties.

The lack of infrastructure and recruitment opportunities severely impacts the students on several fronts. Which also generates a knowledge gap. Hence, before choosing CUHP, students must thoroughly compare the universities before zeroing in on one.

Here are the pros and cons of CUHP at a glance:

*Source: cuhimachal.ac.in