The University Grants Commission (UGC) has released a notification mentioning the Draft UGC (Minimum Standards of Instructions in the Award of UG and PG Degrees) Regulations 2024. The university body has developed the draft regulations, 2024 to implement the transformative reforms of the National Education Policy 2020.
The draft regulations have been placed in public domain for suggestions/feedback from stakeholders for implementing the same. Stakeholders are required to submit their feedback on the draft regulations on or before December 23, 2024 in the Google form link.
The regulations will come into force on the date of their publication in the official gazette. After implementation, these regulations would apply to every university established or incorporated by or under a Central Act, a Provincial Act, or a State Act, all institutions and colleges recognised by or affiliated to such universities, and all institutions deemed to be universities under Section 3 of the UGC Act 1956.
Minimum Standards of Instruction for the award of UG and PG degrees are set by UGC regulations notified in 2003.
General requirements for the HEIs as stated in the draft regulations:
Biannual admission
Biannual admission has been facilitated for HEIs prepared to handle biannual admissions and may admit students twice a year, in July/August and January/February.
Provision of multiple entry and exit
Provisions for multiple entry and exit, continuous formative assessment, recognition of prior learning, pursuing two UG/PG programmes have been made in the draft regulations.
Flexibility for students
Irrespective of the disciplines taken by a student in class 12 or in UG, a student is eligible for admission in any discipline of UG programme or PG programme. The admission will be based on a condition that the student qualifies the national level or university level entrance examination in the discipline of UG/PG programme.
Minimum attendance requirement
Considering the diverse learning modes and holistic and multidisciplinary learning opportunities suggested by NEP 2020, HEIs shall decide on the minimum attendance requirement of students in different programmes with the approval of their statutory bodies.
Credits in undergraduate degree
A student has to earn a minimum of 50 per cent of total credits in a discipline to earn an undergraduate degree with a major in that discipline. For the remaining 50 per cent credits, the students may choose skill courses, apprenticeships and multidisciplinary subjects.
The duration of an undergraduate degree shall be either three or four years, and a postgraduate degree shall normally be either one year or two years. However, the duration of an undergraduate degree can be shorter or longer.
Key provisions of the Accelerated Degree Programme (ADP) and Extended Degree Programme (EDP) are as follows:
- ADP and EDP are applicable at the undergraduate level only.
- HEIs can earmark up to 10 per cent of sanctioned intake for ADP with no cap for EDP.
- The Committee constituted by the HEI will evaluate the credit-completing potential of a student based on their performance in the first or the second semester and give its recommendations.
- Students shall have the option to choose ADP/EDP either at the end of the first semester or the second semester and not beyond that.
- In the ADP/EDP, students will follow the same curriculum content and total credits prescribed for the programme for a standard duration. The only change will be in the duration of the programme. The number of courses to be completed in each semester will be more or less according to the duration opted by the students.
- The degrees of ADP and EDP will contain a self-contained note stating that the academic requirements required in a standard duration have been completed in a shortened or extended duration.
- Students completing a four year undergraduate degree (Hons./Hons. with Research) in relevant subjects (level 6, e.g. BSc. Hons. in Physics, BSc. Hons. in Biology, BSc. Hons. in Mathematics) and students completing a 4-year undergraduate degree (level 6, e.g. BE., B.Tech., etc.) shall be eligible for the 2-year/4 semester postgraduate programme (level 7, e.g. ME, MTech. etc.).