3 min readMumbaiUpdated: Feb 11, 2026 10:40 PM IST
Teaching experience gained as a clock-hour basis teacher, as well as through ad hoc or contractual appointments, will now be considered valid. (Source: Express Archives)
The faculty recruitment process in Maharashtra’s public universities will now include a separate component for assessing candidates on teaching skills, marking a shift from the earlier selection process that relied primarily on academic and research credentials along with teaching experience. Teaching experience gained as a clock-hour basis teacher, as well as through ad hoc or contractual appointments, will now be considered valid.
The state government has announced a revised set of parameters for faculty recruitment in public non-agricultural universities, four months after it first introduced a new framework in October 2025 to enhance transparency. The changes are expected to revive the stalled recruitment process for around 650 faculty posts in public universities.
The Higher and Technical Education Department issued a Government Resolution on Wednesday detailing the revised methodology. While the merit-based selection process introduced in October 2025 will continue, the bifurcation of weightage assigned to different parameters has been revised once again. The clause prescribing a minimum merit score for candidates to be shortlisted for interviews has been removed, and universities have been given the freedom to decide the number of eligible candidates to be called for the interview round.
Under the earlier revised framework notified through a Government Resolution dated October 6, 2026, academic teaching and research credentials carried 75 percent weightage, while interview performance accounted for the remaining 25 percent. Candidates scoring more than 50 marks in academic teaching and research credentials were eligible to be shortlisted for interviews.
Following the latest revision, academic and research credentials will now carry 60 percent weightage. The remaining 40 percent will be equally divided between assessment of teaching skills and interview performance. Universities are now allowed to decide the number of candidates to be called for interviews, a move expected to ensure a larger pool of shortlisted candidates for final selection.
The weightage assigned to the interview component continues to remain relatively low, a key demand raised by teaching candidates who had expressed concerns that a higher interview weightage could result in unfair preferential treatment. In addition, interviews will be video recorded to ensure transparency.
According to officials, the introduction of a separate 20 percent weightage for assessing teaching skills is expected to help identify candidates better suited to the teaching profession. The revised framework also alters the criteria for acceptable research publication platforms, making them more inclusive, particularly for candidates from humanities.
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Maharashtra’s Higher and Technical Education Minister Chandrakant Patil said, “To ensure that the entire faculty recruitment process in public universities is transparent, the list of marks awarded to candidates, along with their individual scores, will be published on the respective university websites.”
Some teachers have questioned the removal of the fixed merit clause for interview shortlisting, arguing that it ensured uniformity in the process. Responding to these concerns, Director of Higher Education Dr Shailendra Deolankar said the revised framework makes the professor recruitment process more transparent. “The 60 20 20 formula will provide balanced importance to research, academic quality, teaching skills and performance in the interview,” he said.
Pallavi Smart is a Principal Correspondent with The Indian Express, Mumbai Bureau. Her reporting is singularly focused on the education sector, demonstrating exceptional Expertise and Authority across the entire spectrum of learning, from foundational schooling to advanced higher education. She is a highly Trustworthy source for policy, institutional developments, and systemic issues affecting students, teachers, and parents in Maharashtra.
Expertise
Senior Role: As a Principal Correspondent at The Indian Express, her designation reflects her seniority, specialized knowledge, and the editorial rigor applied to her reporting.
Core Authority & Specialization: Pallavi Smart is the definitive voice for Education news in the region. Her coverage scope is comprehensive:
Policy and Regulatory Changes: Reports on major shifts in educational policy, including the restructuring of entrance exams (e.g., MHT-CET adopting the JEE Main model), the draft regulatory framework for coaching classes, and revised teacher recruitment processes.
Higher Education Institutions (HEIs): Provides in-depth reporting on prestigious institutes like IIT Bombay and TISS (Tata Institute of Social Sciences), covering institutional initiatives, administrative debates (e.g., renaming IIT Bombay), and student welfare programs (e.g., mandatory mental health courses).
Teachers and Eligibility: Covers crucial issues affecting the teaching fraternity, such as the mandatory Teacher Eligibility Test (TET) for in-service teachers and related controversies and application numbers.
Student Welfare & Rights: Focuses on issues concerning students, including the rollout of government scholarships, the financial strain on schools due to midday meal reimbursement delays, and instances of child rights violations (e.g., the Powai studio hostage crisis).
Admissions and Vacancy: Tracks the outcome of centralized admission processes (e.g., MBBS, BPharm) and analyzes vacancy concerns, providing essential data-driven insights for parents and students.
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Dedicated Beat: Her consistent focus on the "KG to PG" education beat allows her to develop unparalleled subject matter knowledge, ensuring her reports are accurate, detailed, and contextualized.
Proactive Reporting: Her articles frequently break news on policy and institutional planning, providing the public with timely, essential information about a sector that directly impacts millions of families.
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