New Delhi. : 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 in all universities and colleges, University Grants Commission (UGC) has announced.
The announcement of the revised regulations, made on June 30, on the minimum qualifications for the appointment of teachers and academic staff has come into effect from July 1, 2023.
UGC’s notice reads: “NET/SET/SLET shall be the minimum criteria for the direct recruitment to the post of Assistant Professor for all Higher Education Institutions.” The amendment replaces the previous sub-regulation of UGC. This amendment aims to maintain and enhance the standards of education in higher education institutions by ensuring that candidates have cleared the necessary eligibility tests for the role of assistant professor.
In 2018, the then HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar announced a PhD is a must for assistant teachers’ posts at universities and colleges. It gave a three-year window to candidates to complete their PhDs and asked all universities and colleges to start applying the criteria for recruitment from the 2021-22 academic session. However, the UGC in 2021 extended the date of applicability of PhD as the minimum qualification for recruitment of assistant professors in universities from July 2021 to July 2023.

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