Award of MPhil, PhD degrees under UGC scanner
Aspiring to have an MPhil or PhD degree? No shortcuts anymore! Just be prepared to work for it. Upholding the aspirational value of these qualifications requires certain standards to be in place. Gearing up to keep a check on universities awarding these degrees in a reckless way, University Grants Commission (UGC) UGC has devised a way to crack down on such universities.
While all universities have been ordered to follow the recommendations of the UGC Regulation, 2009 (Minimum Standards for Award of MPhil/PhD Degree), the universities, including central, state, private varsities and deemed-to-be universities, have also been asked to submit information regarding the number of PhDs and MPhils given and the manner in which they are awarded.
To ensure an ethical way of degree awarding, over 430 universities have been given four weeks to respond to questions on whether research scholars are allowed to take up authentic research work after completion of the course work, and whether the institution has made it compulsory to publish at least one research paper in a refereed journal before submission of thesis.
Although these regulations have been around for a few years, the enforcement had been left to the universities, which have conveniently revised the regulations to fit their bill. Hence, UGC has asked for a report seeking answers to whether the evaluation of the thesis is done by at least two experts, one from outside the state or country.
Information has also been sought on whether the candidate is required to undergo viva voce examination and an open defence of the thesis and the number of publications in refereed journals by PhD scholars before the submission of the thesis.
