The chairperson of the University Grants Commission (UGC), M. Jagadesh Kumar, stated that a Ph.D. is not necessary for hiring assistant professors in central universities. Speaking at the UGC-HRDC building’s dedication on the Osmania University (OU) campus, Kumar said that passing the Commission’s National Eligibility Test (NET) will be adequate for the position. Telangana Today reported this.
The decision was taken to enable individuals without PhDs to be hired as assistant professors at Indian universities. The initiative also intends to give possibilities to professionals who wish to teach in universities but are unable to do so because they lack a Ph.D.
According to M. Jagadesh Kumar, a one-nation, one-data site is being created that will provide candidates with access to all UGC guidelines and other crucial information. Kumar added that starting in the following academic year, the National Digital University will offer quality instruction directly to students.
Earlier, the Central government changed the Commission’s rules so that a Ph.D. was now the minimal requirement for employing assistant professors. The Covid-19 epidemic delayed the new regulations from going into effect in 2021 to 2022. Media sources say that it later been extended through July 2023. Nonetheless, recruiting proceeded based on UGC NET (University Grants Commission National Eligibility Test) scores in the meantime.
Meanwhile, the National Testing Agency (NTA) has begun the registration process for the Joint CSIR-UGC NET Examination in December-2022 and June-2023. Candidates can apply on the official website at csirnet.nta.nic.in. As per the schedule, the application process will remain active till April 10 up to 5 pm. While the last date to fill application form with a late fee is April 10 up to 11:50 pm. The exam for the same will be held on June 6, 7, and 8.
The exam is conducted to determine the eligibility of Indian nationals for Junior Research Fellowship (JRF), lectureship (LS), and assistant professor across universities in India.
The exam is conducted for papers that include chemical sciences, earth, atmospheric, ocean, and planetary sciences, life sciences, mathematical sciences, and physical sciences. The medium of the exam will be English and Hindi.
