UGC Draft Regulation 2025: What PhD holders need to know

UGC Draft Regulation 2025: What PhD holders need to know

Assistant professor roles require a postgraduate degree with 55 per cent marks and NET/SET/SLET, except in Engineering and Technology

Jan 15, 2025

Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan announced the UGC (Minimum Qualifications for Appointment & Promotion of Teachers and Academic Staff in Universities and Colleges and Measures for the Maintenance of Standards in Higher Education) Regulations, 2025 on January 6, setting forth the minimum qualifications required for appointing and promoting academic staff in universities and colleges. While addressing discipline-specific criteria for faculty eligibility, these guidelines aim to uphold and enhance standards in higher education.

Qualification criteria

Candidates must hold a postgraduate degree with at least 55 per cent marks (or equivalent) and clear the National Eligibility Test (NET), State Eligibility Test (SET), or State-Level Eligibility Test (SLET), to qualify for an assistant professor role in disciplines such as Arts, Commerce, Humanities, Law, Social Sciences, Sciences, Languages, Journalism, and Management.

However, for positions in Engineering and Technology, a postgraduate degree (e.g., ME or MTech) with at least 55 per cent marks suffices, with no NET requirement, as per AICTE standards. Candidates holding a PhD in any discipline are exempt from the NET criterion, making them eligible for assistant professor roles.

Additional provisions for PhD holders If a candidate's PhD discipline differs from their undergraduate or postgraduate discipline (aligned with NCrF levels), the PhD discipline will determine their eligibility for academic appointments.

PhD holders who earned their postgraduate degrees before September 19, 1991, are eligible for a 5 per cent relaxation in marks.

A PhD is mandatory for promotions to Assistant Professor (Academic Level 12), Associate Professor (Academic Level 13A), and Professor (Academic Level 14).

For PhD candidates registered before July 11, 2009, the prevailing regulations of their awarding institution will apply, exempting them from NET/SLET/SET requirements for roles such as Assistant Professor, Assistant Librarian, or Assistant Director of Physical Education and Sports.