Students with 4-year UG degree can now directly appear for NET and pursue PhD

Digital Desk: If you hold a 4-year undergraduate degree, you can now directly appear for the National Eligibility Test (NET) and pursue a PhD, as informed by University Grants Commission (UGC) Chairman Jagadesh Kumar. To pursue a PhD, with or without a Junior Research Fellowship (JRF), you'll need to have achieved a minimum aggregate of 75 percent marks or an equivalent grade.

UGC Chairman Jagadesh Kumar stated, "The candidates with four-year undergraduate degrees can now directly pursue PhD and appear for NET. Such candidates are allowed to appear in a subject in which they want to pursue a PhD irrespective of the discipline in which they have obtained the four-year bachelor's degree."

He added, "The candidates having passed a four-year or eight-semester bachelor's degree programme should have a minimum of 75% marks in aggregate or its equivalent grade on a point scale wherever the grading system is followed."

Additionally, he mentioned that quota students may receive a relaxation of 5 percent marks or its equivalent grade accordingly.

NET, conducted twice a year in June and December, currently serves as the basis for awarding Junior Research Fellowship (JRF) and eligibility for assistant professor positions for those holding a Master's degree.

Earlier this year, UGC announced that NET scores will be utilised for PhD admissions from 2024–25 to eliminate the need for separate entrance tests. Jagadesh Kumar emphasised, "Starting from the academic session 2024-2025, universities nationwide will have the opportunity to utilise NET scores for admissions to PhD programmes, replacing the need for separate entrance tests conducted by individual universities and higher education institutions (HEIs)."