National Institute for the Empowerment of Persons with Visual Disabilities, Dehradun: Admission, Courses, Fees, Placements

The National Institute for the Empowerment of Persons with Visual Disabilities is the first of its kind, working purely towards empowering persons with visual impairments. Institute was founded in 1943 and hence has been at the forefront in the fields of special education for over eight decades. Located in the beautiful city of Dehradun, Uttarakhand, NIEPVD occupies a sprawling 43-acre campus that provides a conducive atmosphere for learning and development. It is an affiliated college of Sri Dev Suman Uttarakhand University, Tehri, it offers a variety of professional programs to enable the students to equip them with the required skill and adequate knowledge for the support and empowerment of the visually impaired.

The NIEPVD has a facilities with special needs taken into consideration for the benefit of its students.The National Institute for the Empowerment of Persons with Visual Disabilities institute has a library, state-of-the-art laboratories, IT infrastructure and a separate hostel facilities for boys and girls to foster a spirit of community living and independence. For all-round development, NIEPVD has sports facilities and an auditorium for cultural and academic functions. A health centre with first-aid facilities is available to meet immediate medical needs and thus ensure the safety of all students and staff.

NIEPVD offers a rich variety in its choice of five specialised courses, crafted to suit different facets of special education and rehabilitation. The full-time courses are the B.Ed Special Education, M.Ed Special Education, D.Ed Special Education, PGDRP or Post Graduate Diploma in Rehabilitation Psychology, and M.Phil Rehabilitation Psychology. The B.Ed in Special Education is another core offered program with an approved intake of 30 students, and the MPhil Rehabilitation Psychology Program admits 10 students each year. All these programs differ in duration, from one to two years, hence making options available to the students in view of their academic and career choices.

The admission procedure in NIEPVD is structured in a way to choose candidates who have a zeal to be of service to the visually impaired. For many programs, admissions are done in accordance with the norms of the university. However, in the case of the M.Phil Rehabilitation Psychology course, there is a more stringent selection process wherein an entrance examination is taken in which one has to prepare for a written test and, if shortlisted, an interview.