New Guidelines for Granting Deemed University Status

What’s in today’s article?

• Why in news?
• What is the University Grants Commission (UGC)?
• What are Deemed Universities?
• News Summary: New guidelines for granting deemed university status
• Background:
• New Guidelines

 

Why in news?

• Union Education Minister has released the UGC (Institutions Deemed to be Universities) Regulations, 2023, which will replace the 2019 guidelines.
• The revised guidelines have simplified the eligibility criteria in order to establish more quality-focused deemed universities.

 

What is the University Grants Commission (UGC)?

• Genesis:

• The UGC was established as a statutory body in November 1956 by the UGC Act 1956.
• It is set up by the Ministry of Education's Department of Higher Education.  
• A proposal to replace it with another new regulatory body called the Higher Education Commission of India (HECI) is under consideration by the Government of India. 

• Mandate:

• The UGC has the unique distinction of being the only grant-giving agency in the country which has been vested with two responsibilities of: 
  • Providing funds 
  • Coordination, determination and maintenance of standards in institutions of higher education.
• The UGC`s mandate includes:
  • Promoting and coordinating university education.
  • Determining and maintaining standards of teaching, examination and research in universities.
  • Framing regulations on minimum standards of education.
  • Advising the Central and State governments on the measures necessary for improvement of university education, etc.

 

What are Deemed Universities?

• The term deemed university refers to institutions of higher education that have been granted the status of a university by the Department of Higher Education, Ministry of Education.
• Deemed universities are autonomous institutions that have the authority to award degrees and diplomas in their own name. 
  • There are around 170 deemed institutions in the country currently.
• They enjoy certain privileges and have the freedom to design their own curriculum, conduct admissions, and set their own academic standards.
• The status of a deemed university is granted to an institution based on its overall academic excellence, research contributions, and infrastructure. 
  • Typically, these institutions focus on specific areas of study such as engineering, medicine, management, arts, and sciences.
• These universities are subject to periodic reviews by the University Grants Commission (UGC) to ensure compliance with regulations.

 

News Summary: New guidelines for granting deemed university status

Background:

• The UGC Act provides for the central government to declare any institution other than a university the status of institution deemed to be university. 
• The first set of regulations in this regard was notified in 2010 and these were subsequently revised in 2016 and 2019.

 

New Guidelines

• Framed on the principle of a "light but tight"
  • The new rules are built on the principle of a "light but tight" regulatory framework envisioned in the National Education Policy 2020.
• Changed criteria
  • Under the 2019 guidelines, the higher education institutions having existence for not less than 20 years were eligible for applying for the status.
  • In the revised guidelines, it has been replaced with:
    • multi-disciplinarity, 
    • NAAC grading, 
    • NIRF ranking and 
    • NBA grading.
  • It means any multi-disciplinary institution will be able to apply for the deemed status if they have: 
    • valid accreditation by NAAC with at least 3.01 cumulative grade point average (CGPA) for three consecutive cycles, 
    • NBA accreditation for two-thirds of eligible programmes for three consecutive cycles or 
    • in the top 50 of any specific categories of NIRF for the last three years continuously.
  • Hence, higher education institutions which are less than 20 years old will now be eligible to apply for deemed university status, provided they fulfil the above criteria.
  • A cluster of institutions managed by more than one sponsoring body or a society can also apply for deemed to be university status.
• Deemed status under the Distinct Institution category
  • The new regulation also introduces the "Distinct Institution" category. 
  • However, to get recognition under this category, the applicants must establish (to the satisfaction of the Expert Committee of Commission) that the institution is engaged in:
    • teaching and research in unique disciplines and/or 
    • addressing the strategic needs of the country or 
    • the preservation of Indian cultural heritage or preservation of the environment or 
    • skill development or dedicated to sports or languages or any other discipline.
• Criteria to set up off-campus centres
  • Deemed universities with minimum ‘A’ grade and above or ranked from 1 to 100 in the universities category of NIRF rankings of the relevant year are eligible to set up off-campus centres.
  • Institutions declared as deemed to be university under a distinct category can apply for off-campus after five years of their declaration if they are accredited with an A grade or figured in the top 100 in the 'universities' category of NIRF.
• Other criteria
  • Among other criteria that have been changed are: 
    • the faculty strength has been increased from 100 to 150, 
    • corpus fund for private institutions has been increased from Rs 10 crore to Rs 25 crore, and 
    • creation of an executive councils like central universities in these universities as well.
  • Deemed universities must register on Academic Bank of Credits (ABC).
    • ABC is a virtual/digital storehouse that contains the information of the credits earned by individual students throughout their learning journey.

 

---

Q1) What is Academic Bank of Credits (ABC)?

Academic Bank of Credits (ABC) is a virtual/digital storehouse that contains the information of the credits earned by individual students throughout their learning journey. It will enable students to open their accounts and give multiple options for entering and leaving colleges or universities.

 

Q2) What is NIRF ranking?

The NIRF (National Institutional Ranking Framework) ranking is an annual exercise conducted by the Government of India to rank higher education institutions in the country. It evaluates institutions based on various parameters like teaching, learning, research, graduation outcomes, and perception. The NIRF ranking provides valuable insights and helps students, parents, and policymakers make informed decisions regarding the choice of educational institutions.

 

---

Source: Centre announces new guidelines for granting deemed university status | UGC | Indian Express