TEXT VIEW

A primer for parents to beat nursery grind

By Ritika Chopra in New Delhi

THE countdown to the nursery admission frenzy has begun. In two days, thousands of parents will embark on an anxiety-ridden mission to secure a seat for their tiny tot in a private school.

A bit of preparation goes a long way in easing the jitters as well as increasing the chances of success. Here’s how you can get a headstart:

NUMBER GAME

There isn’t any formula to ensure that your child gets admission in a school of your choice. But parents who have already been through the grind suggest that one should apply to at least 10 to 15 schools.

“It makes more sense to shortlist as many as 15 schools. As most of them will have different admission criteria, as allowed by the Delhi government this year, there can be some confusion on how good one’s chances are of getting through. You should apply to not less than 10 schools, even if you are sure of securing admission in one,” Sumit Vohra, author of Nursery School Admissions — Tips and Suggestions, said. Vohra had applied to 11 schools for his daughter in 2008 NO ROOM FOR ERROR

Filling up of the application form, according to school principals, has no room for errors.

“ The form is the first interface between the parents and the school. So, it’s important that specific instructions mentioned by schools should be followed while filling application forms. A careless error or wrong information in the form works against parents,” Sujata Maleyvar, headmistress of Springdales School- Dhaula Kuan, said.

Online registration has gained popularity with many schools over the past few years. Some institutions have, in fact, entirely switched over to this mode. “ It is parent- friendly as they can apply from anywhere and at any time,” L. V. Sehgal, principal of Bal Bharati School, said.

Online registration, however, has its own share of problems.“ It turns into a nightmare when the server is down,” Vohra, who also runs a web portal called admissionsnursery. com, said.To avoid this, one should fill online forms at non- peak hours.

“ Don’t wait for the last day to apply. A large number of parents do this, which causes server overload and leads to delays and problems,” Sehgal said.

“ Parents should note down the registration number provided after online registration. This is a proof of application and could be useful during admission. It’s even better to take a printout of the web page displaying your registration number,” Vohra said.The online form should not be submitted twice since it could be rejected because of duplication.

CHECK YOUR PAPERS

Keep the original documents asked for by the schools handy since every school calls in parents to verify them.

Document requirements are school- specific and it’s best if parents check with the schools individually. For instance, Springdales prefers the passport or voter ID- card as proof of residence while Ahlcon International School in Mayur Vihar accepts the MTNL bill or electricity bill.

Parents are also advised to keep attested copies of the original documents. “ We do not keep original documents. Parents will have to submit c
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