UGC Regulations, 2016: What We Know So Far
New Delhi:
The much-in-news UGC Regulations, 2016 has hit the headlines again. As per a report carried by The Indian Express, University Grants Commission (UGC) has decided to implement the UGC Regulations 2016 but foregoing 100% weightage for interview in M.Phil, Ph.D admission. The Commission has decided to bring in written test as one of the selection criteria. UGC's decision to implement interview or oral test as the sole criterion for M.Phil, Ph.D admission had received strong criticism last year from students and teachers.
'The higher education regulator has amended the UGC (Minimum Standards and Procedure for Award of M.Phil/ Ph.D Degree) Regulations 2016 to give 70 per cent weightage to performance in the written entrance test and 30 per cent to the oral interview for the final selection of a candidate,' reads The Indian Express report. 50% is the qualifying mark to be eligible for interview, as per the amended UGC Regulations 2016 (it is 45% for candidates belonging to the reserved category).
Another major clause of the UGC Regulations 2016 that received severe flak from students nationwide, strongest from the JNU, was capping the supervisor-student ratio. Consequent to this the JNU admission 2017 prospectus saw a sharp dip in PhD seats. As per the daily, this criterion stands the same. Last year, University of Madras notified the students about implementing the regulations. The Senate at its meeting held on October 28, 2017 approved the adoption of University Grants Commission (Minimum Standards and Procedure for Award of M.Phil. / Ph.D. Degrees) Regulations, 2016.
In another related development on Thursday, Union HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar announced the UGC's decision to approve UGC (Online Courses) Regulations. 'Today's decision will help top rated institutions to offer Certificate, Diploma & Degree Programmes in full-fledged online mode in only those disciplines in which it has already been offering the same or similar Programmes /Courses at graduation level in regular mode Or in Open and Distance Learning mode and from which at least one batch has been graduated and approved by the statutory councils, as applicable,' he tweeted. 'Even students outside India can learn from Indian universities in online mode and best Indian institutions can reach out to students anywhere in the country and outside,' he further added.
Click here for more Education News
'The higher education regulator has amended the UGC (Minimum Standards and Procedure for Award of M.Phil/ Ph.D Degree) Regulations 2016 to give 70 per cent weightage to performance in the written entrance test and 30 per cent to the oral interview for the final selection of a candidate,' reads The Indian Express report. 50% is the qualifying mark to be eligible for interview, as per the amended UGC Regulations 2016 (it is 45% for candidates belonging to the reserved category).
Another major clause of the UGC Regulations 2016 that received severe flak from students nationwide, strongest from the JNU, was capping the supervisor-student ratio. Consequent to this the JNU admission 2017 prospectus saw a sharp dip in PhD seats. As per the daily, this criterion stands the same. Last year, University of Madras notified the students about implementing the regulations. The Senate at its meeting held on October 28, 2017 approved the adoption of University Grants Commission (Minimum Standards and Procedure for Award of M.Phil. / Ph.D. Degrees) Regulations, 2016.
In another related development on Thursday, Union HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar announced the UGC's decision to approve UGC (Online Courses) Regulations. 'Today's decision will help top rated institutions to offer Certificate, Diploma & Degree Programmes in full-fledged online mode in only those disciplines in which it has already been offering the same or similar Programmes /Courses at graduation level in regular mode Or in Open and Distance Learning mode and from which at least one batch has been graduated and approved by the statutory councils, as applicable,' he tweeted. 'Even students outside India can learn from Indian universities in online mode and best Indian institutions can reach out to students anywhere in the country and outside,' he further added.
Click here for more Education News
