Bar Council rejects calls to delay in-person exams for law degree students
Committee members questioned why the council could not amend its regulations to exempt students who had already commenced their studies.
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The Bar Council of the Maldives has said it cannot further delay the implementation of regulations requiring law degree students to sit examinations in person, despite complaints from students who enrolled in online programmes before the requirement was introduced.
Appearing before Parliament's Judiciary Committee on Sunday, Bar Council President Yoosuf Siraj said universities and colleges had confirmed that they had not entered into agreements guaranteeing students the right to complete all examinations online.
The council's position follows a petition submitted to Parliament by law students who objected to changes in examination arrangements during their degree programmes.
The students said they had enrolled in courses on the understanding that both classes and examinations would be conducted online. However, they were subsequently informed that they would be required to attend examinations in person.
They have requested that the requirement be deferred for students already enrolled in law degree programmes and applied only to new intakes.
Members of the Bar Council's Executive Committee appeared before the Judiciary Committee to respond to the petition and questions from MPs.
During the meeting, committee members questioned why the regulations could not be amended to exempt students who had already begun their courses.
Responding, Siraj said the Bar Council would not take any action that undermined students' rights. However, he maintained that students could only claim a contractual entitlement to fully online examinations if their institutions had expressly agreed to provide them.
"Before drafting the regulations, we consulted the law schools and law faculties of all universities and colleges offering law programmes. We asked whether they had entered into agreements with any students guaranteeing that all examinations would be conducted online. They confirmed that no such agreements existed," Siraj said.
He also argued that conducting all examinations online would conflict with standards established by the Maldives Qualifications Authority (MQA) to maintain the integrity of academic assessments.
According to Siraj, MQA requirements stipulate that 50 per cent of assessments must be conducted in a controlled environment where students complete their work independently, without assistance from others.
He explained that group work, assignments, presentations and other coursework could account for 50 per cent of a student's final grade, while the remaining 50 per cent must be assessed through examinations conducted under supervision.
Bar Council Vice-President Ibrahim Shameel acknowledged concerns about the financial burden on students who would have to travel to Malé to sit examinations.
However, he said the regulations did not require students to travel to the capital or prevent institutions from holding examinations on other islands.
Shameel said arrangements could be made in coordination with the Bar Council to conduct examinations at university campuses and government offices across the atolls.
He noted that similar arrangements were already used in the Maldives for examinations conducted by some universities, as well as international A-Level and O-Level examinations.
Parliament has yet to reach a decision on the students' petition. Several committee members continued to question Bar Council representatives about the difficulties faced by students and the implications of applying the regulations to degree programmes already under way.
The issue has also arisen while several MPs from the ruling People's National Congress (PNC), which holds a parliamentary majority, are pursuing legal studies. They include Speaker of Parliament Abdul Raheem Abdulla and PNC Parliamentary Group Leader Ibrahim Falah.
