Ph.D not mandatory for Assistant Professor jobs, opening new opportunities for candidates: UGC

The University Grants Commission, UGC, has revised its previous decision and made a change regarding the mandatory requirement of a PhD for the appointment of assistant professors. The UGC has now specified that exams such as NET (National Eligibility Test) and SET/SLET (State Eligibility Test/State Level Eligibility Test) will serve as the minimum criteria for direct recruitment to the assistant professor position. UGC has officially been notified of the amended rules which came into effect from July 1, 2023.

"PhD qualification for appointment as an assistant professor would continue to be optional. The National



Eligibility Test (NET), State Eligibility Test (SET) and State Level Eligibility Test (SLET) will be the minimum criteria for direct recruitment to the post of assistant professor for all higher education institutions," UGC Chairperson M Jagadesh Kumar tweeted.

In 2018, the Commission introduced the PhD criteria for recruiting candidates to entry-level teaching positions in universities and colleges. Candidates were given a three-year timeframe to complete their PhD requirements. Furthermore, all universities and colleges were instructed to implement this criterion for recruitment starting from the academic session of 2021-22.