NIOS

What is NIOS?

NIOS is “Open School” to cater to the needs of a heterogeneous group of learners up to pre-degree level. It was started as a project with in-built flexibilities by the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) in 1979. In 1986, the National Policy on Education suggested strengthening of Open School System for extending open learning facilities in a phased manner at secondary level all over the country as an independent system with its own curriculum and examination leading to certification.

Consequently, the Ministry of Education (MOE) , Government of India set up the National Open School (NOS) in November 1989. The pilot project of CBSE on Open School was amalgamated with NOS. Through a Resolution (No. F.5-24/90 Sch.3 dated 14 September 1990 published in the Gazette of India on 20 October 1990), the National Open School (NOS) was vested with the authority to register, examine and certify students registered with it up to pre-degree level courses. In July 2002, the Ministry of Education (MOE) amended the nomenclature of the organisation from the National Open School (NOS) to the National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS) with a mission to provide relevant continuing education at school stage, up to pre-degree level through Open Learning system to prioritized client groups as an alternative to formal system, in pursuance of the normative national policy documents and in response to the need assessments of the people, and through it to make its share of contribution:

Reasons to Choose National Institute of Open Schooling

1. Freedom to Learn

The main aim of NIOS is to ‘reach the unreached’. The NIOS follows the principle of freedom to learn i.e., what to learn, when to learn, how to learn and when to appear for the examination are decided by the Learner. There is no restriction of time, place and pace of learning.

2. Flexibility

The NIOS provides flexibility with respect to :

❖ Choice of Subjects: The learner has the option to choose subjects of his/her choice from the given list keeping in view the passing criteria.
❖ Admission: The learner has the option to take admission Online under various streams or through Study Centre, Facilitation Centre, Regional Centre for the Secondary and the Senior Secondary Education Courses.
❖ Examination: The Public Examinations are held twice in an year. Nine examination chances are offered to the learner in five years. A learner can appear in examination during this period as and when he/she is well prepared and can avail the facility of credit accumulation.
❖ On Demand Examination: The learner has also the option to appear under the On-Demand Examination System (ODES) of NIOS at the Secondary and the Senior Secondary levels at the NIOS Headquarters, NOIDA, at the Regional Centers of NIOS, and at designated Kendriya Vidyalayas across India. A learner is eligible for On Demand Examination after the first public examination.

3. Relevance

The NIOS courses and programs are functional, useful in daily life and also set pathways for further studies. Successful alumni of NIOS are pursuing higher studies in institutions of international and national repute like IITs, the Delhi University, the Jamia Hamdard, the Jamia Millia Islamia, the Aligarh Muslim University, the Punjab University, the Allahabad University and many other reputed institutions of higher learning and in professional institutions.

4. Transfer of Credits

The NIOS acknowledges previous knowledge by allowing transfer of credits of up to two subjects passed from International, National and State Boards of Examination / State Open Schools with whom NIOS has entered into agreements.

5. Recognized Quality Education

The NIOS takes conscious steps to provide quality education. The Govt. of India has vested in NIOS the authority to conduct Public Examinations and provide the Secondary and the Senior Secondary level certificates, which are equivalent to the certificates provided by any other Board of School Education. This is because all the Boards, whether National or State, are following the National Curriculum Framework brought out by the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT). The NIOS is one of the three National Boards; the other two Boards are (i) the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) and (ii) the Council for Indian School Certificate Examination (CISCE).

PROCEDURE FOR TAKING ADMISSION IN NIOS

The NIOS has 100% Online admission at the Secondary and the Senior Secondary Education levels in order to facilitate learners to register. Under this scheme, the learner has three options: (i) Learner can register online directly by visiting the website of NIOS i.e., www.nios.ac.in and sdmis.nios.ac.in. (ii) Learner may visit his/her nearest AI (Study Centre)/Facilitation Centre and take help for online registration. (iii) Learner may visit the concerned Regional Centre of NIOS and take help for online registration. (iv) Learner can use the services of the Common Services Centres of the Govt. of India for Online registration throughout the country.

ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA FOR ADMISSION TO THE SECONDARY COURSE

➤ A learner who has passed class VIII and has a valid proof that Learner has attained 14 years of age can apply for registration to the Secondary Course.
➤ The learner who gives a self certificate stating that “I have studied and able to pursue the secondary course” is also eligible for admission to the Secondary Course.
➤ The learner who had studied at the Secondary level can also seek admission in NIOS either to complete his course or to improve his performance.
➤ Residential proof of the learner.

FEES CONCESSION

The fee concession is provided to females, SC/ST/Ex-Servicemen and differently abled/Divyang learners as per NIOS norms.

MEDIUMS OF STUDIES AVAILABLE IN NIOS

The NIOS offers the Secondary course in English, Hindi, Urdu, Marathi, Odia, Telugu, Gujarati, Tamil, Malayalam, Punjabi, Assammese, Sanskrit and Kannada mediums; and the Senior Secondary course in English, Hindi, Odia, Bengali, Gujarati, Sanskrit and Urdu mediums.

LEARNER CAN TAKE ADMISSION IN THE SECONDARY/SENIOR SECONDARY COURSE OF NIOS AFTER PASSING THE SECONDARY/ SENIOR SECONDARY COURSE FROM A FORMAL BOARD OF SCHOOL EDUCATION

Yes. In case the learner has completed the Secondary/Senior Secondary Course from any National/State Board of School Education and wish to seek admission in NIOS for the same course, he/she will be allowed to take admission in NIOS in upto four subjects. On successful completion, the learner will get only the Marksheet. No Certificate is issued under the Dual/Part Admission Scheme.