NET mandatory for fellowship decision by UGC faces opposition
27-Dec-2018 | Post By: Ph.D.online
The UGC recently decided to mandatory the NET examination for the scholarship under Maulana Azad National Fellowship (MANF) for minority students for the academic session of 2018-19.
The last date to apply for the fellowship is Dec 31 which is heavily criticized by the students as they were not given any initial notice.
This move is as expected a big move and blow to the students especially the female students as they mostly pursue research studies through fellowship which aids them in being financially independent.
The NET exam which generally takes a year to prepare is a major hurdle as the economically weaker sections that are entirely dependent on the scholarships for their education may not be able to pursue the degree this year.
The former general secretary of the Association of University Teachers (AUT) C Pichandy said: ”It is definitely going to be a setback for the students from the marginalized section. It is not the appropriate time to mandate NET as the ministry of human resources and development (MHRD) has made Ph.D. compulsory for the teaching faculties from 2021”.Govt exempts IIMs from the regular Ph.D. entry norms
The premium b schools were reconsidered by the UGC for the admission s in the Ph.D. course. For the larger part, the decision came for the b.tech students seeking admission into the research program.
December 27 the Human resource development ministry said that a cumulative grade point average (CGPA) of 6.5 would be enough for students who had cleared the four-year BTech or similar courses to seek direct admission to their Ph.D. programmes.
Earlier the minimum requirement was 8 pointers to get admission into the course.
As per the rules now for the entry to a Ph.D. program the qualifications can now be summarized to:
• A master’s
• A chartered accountancy qualification with BCom honors
• A four-year BTech or similar degree with a CGPA of 6.5 or equivalent points
• A postgraduate diploma (two-year course).
The University Grants Commission’s norms require a candidate to have a master’s degree in order to pursue a Ph.D. course.
Furqan Qamar, secretary-general of the Association of Indian Universities said that “My suggestion is that the UGC reconsider the teacher recruitment rules and entry norms for the Ph.D.”.
The teachers at the IIM’s were delighted with this news and said that “Each IIM has its own rules. The institutes consider BTech holders with certain CGPA scores, which could be 6.5 or 7 or 8 depending on the subject of research, as eligible for admission to the Fellow programme. A requirement for a CGPA of 8 (for direct admission to Ph.D. courses) was unnecessary”. They further added that “We select students on the basis of several criteria. The requirement of a CGPA of 8 was not found suitable”.
Source: The Internet