JNU mulls returning to in-house entrance test for PhD admission

Only a few months ago, the university had decided to take NET scores for admissions, aligning with the National Education Policy 2020, instead of the NTA entrance test for selecting PhD candidates. However, the abrupt cancellation of the June 2024 NET has prompted a reevaluation of this approach.

On July 3, Santishree D Pandit initiated discussions about reviving the university’s own entrance examination system. The move has been welcomed by the JNU Teachers’ Association (JNUTA) as a vindication of their long-standing position on admission processes.

For the past three years, the National Testing Agency had been conducting computer-based tests for PhD admissions, a practice that has faced increasing criticism from the university community.

This year, JNU announced a change in its selection process for admission to its Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) programmes. From the current academic year, JNU said it accepts the National Eligibility Test (NET) score instead of conducting its own entrance test, in line with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.

On June 19, the Central Government cancelled the examination crucial for entry-level teaching jobs and PhD admissions in universities, following inputs from the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) that “the integrity of the examination may have been compromised”.

The JNU Teachers Association, in a statement, said, “We welcome the decisions taken in the meeting of the Vice Chancellor and Deans of Schools on 3 July 2024, as well as to refer the matter to the faculty of Schools/Centres for their opinions.”

“JNUTA considers this to be a vindication of its long-standing position on the matter of entrance examinations, as well as a positive response to the specific demand raised by it after the cancellation of the June 2024 UGC-NET Examination.”