PhD admission in Delhi

Which Delhi universities admit PhD scholars on NET scores alone?

Three do: DU, JNU and AUD. The table covers the nine institutions that run a regular PhD call.

Read the third column carefully. At DU, JNU and AUD the NET score is itself the test and carries 70% of your mark. At Jamia, DTU and Jamia Hamdard, NET only saves you the written paper. GGSIPU does both, depending on your NET category. We could not find a current PhD brochure on the NSUT website, so check nsut.ac.in yourself if it is on your list.

How does Delhi University’s two-phase NET admission work?

The revised Ordinance VI of August 2026 puts it in the rules: clause B.1 describes a two-stage process of a national test and then an interview, and clause B.2 allows two rounds a year, timed with the NET results. The 2025–26 Bulletin of Information shows how that works. Its Annexure III, a Registrar’s notification of 19 August 2025, sets three rules:

• Seats are split 60:40. Phase I offers 60% of each department’s seats and Phase II the other 40%, plus anything left from Phase I.
• JRF holders come first. Seats go to JRF qualifiers (Block A) before candidates who qualified for Assistant Professor or PhD admission only (Block B).
• Block B scores last one year. Phase I of 2025–26 took NET from December 2024 and June 2025; Phase II moved on to June and December 2025.

Departments add their own conditions, and those decide more than people expect. English wanted a proposal of 1,500 to 2,000 words at registration and would not call applicants without one. Sociology warned that proposals showing heavy dependence on AI tools would be disqualified. Every interview is in person at the department, with no travel allowance.

Two smaller routes sit alongside. DU’s own teachers and staff go straight to interview on supernumerary seats, capped by the 2026 Ordinance at 10% of a department’s seats. And for 2026–27 DU ran a separate call (27 August to 16 September 2026) for its own four-year undergraduates with a CGPA of 7.5 (7.0 for reserved categories), who sit a department test instead of offering NET. Clause B.6(iii) also asks them for a Scopus-indexed paper, which the public notice doesn’t mention, so ask your department. The thesis rules are in our Delhi University thesis format guide.

What do JNU and Ambedkar University ask for in 2026–27?

JNU is the strictest. Its 2026–27 e-prospectus says a candidate with the right master’s but no NET, JRF or GATE in the relevant subject is not eligible. There are three ways in:

• NET category (all three NET categories): 70% NET percentile, 30% viva. Only June 2025 and later results count.
• JRF category: a separate form for JRF of UGC, CSIR, ICMR, DBT or NBHM, decided on the viva alone. Lectureship-only NET, fellowships such as NFSC or NFOBC awarded on a lectureship, and DST INSPIRE do not qualify.
• GATE: only for the School of Engineering’s computer science, electronics and mechanical PhDs.

You may list up to three fields in order of preference, and selection for a higher one ends your claim on the lower ones. A JRF holder can apply in both the JRF and NET categories, and should.

Ambedkar University Delhi is run by the Government of NCT of Delhi from campuses at Kashmere Gate, Lodhi Road, Karampura and the Qutub Institutional Area. Its 2026 PhD bulletin listed 187 seats across 12 schools, from 27 in vocational education to 2 each in sociology and performance studies. You submit a research proposal and a statement of purpose with the form and present the proposal at interview; merit is 70% NET/JRF or equivalent score and 30% interview. Part-time applicants need an employer NOC. Applications ran from June to an extended 31 July 2026. The first-semester fee is ₹28,600 (₹51,000 in management), and the university notes that its PhD fee waiver scheme ended from 2026–27.

Which Delhi universities still hold their own PhD entrance test?

Four of them, and for an applicant without NET they are most of what the city offers.

Jamia Millia Islamia. The 2026–27 notification of 7 May 2026 ran forms from 11 May to 8 June, the test on 20 and 21 June, interviews from 27 July and coursework from 11 August, for a ₹2,000 fee. Its Ph.D. Ordinance 9 (IX) sets two papers: 100 methodology questions in two hours, and a three-hour subject paper, half objective and half written. The test only qualifies you (50% aggregate); you then need 40% in the interview. NET, JRF and GATE holders in a relevant area, and QIP teacher-fellows, are exempt.

GGSIPU. The 2026–27 brochure runs its PET under 22 test codes, from IT and law to history (with no sociology intake that year). The paper has 100 four-mark questions in two hours, half methodology and half subject, with no negative marking and 50% to qualify; merit is 70% PET and 30% interview. NET Category 2 and 3 candidates are ranked on NET marks instead, provided the score is still valid on interview day. Fellowship holders through NET, GATE or CEED are ranked on interview alone, scaled to 100.

DTU. For the August 2026 session the brochure first put the test in mid-June, but DTU’s revised schedule extended registration to 14 June and its Exam Cell held the computer-based test on 2 and 3 July 2026. The paper had 60 questions in 90 minutes, half methodology, with 70% weight; the interview and a 7-to-8-slide presentation carry 30%. NET Category 2 and 3 scores are used in place of the test.

Jamia Hamdard. This deemed university in Hamdard Nagar admits in two cycles. Its Cycle-II test for 2025–26 was on 1 May 2026, and the exemptions only counted if the certificate was uploaded with the form. Cycle-I of 2026–27 opened on 3 September 2026.

How do IIT Delhi and IIIT-Delhi choose their PhD scholars?

At IIT Delhi, the Semester I 2026–27 brochure says selection is normally by interview through the department’s research committee, which may add a written test. The minimums are 60% for a master’s and 70% for a B.Tech., plus GATE, NET, JEST, CEED, INSPIRE or a similar qualification unless you hold an M.Tech., M.E., M.D. or an MBA through CAT. Calls go out in March and October, with interviews in May and December.

IIT Delhi also suits people in jobs. Part-time applicants from PSUs, government departments, R&D organisations or approved companies are excused the national test. If you work in the NCR or within 50 km of the Hauz Khas campus, there is no minimum residency; those further away must spend at least six months on campus.

IIIT-Delhi offers PhDs in computational biology, computer science, electronics, human-centred design, mathematics, and social sciences and humanities. It calls a limited number of applicants for a test or interview on their record and statement of purpose, and runs a second cycle from September to November. Regular scholars get an institute fellowship of ₹60,000 a month (from January 2025) but must resign any job first; employed applicants use its sponsored route.

What can a Delhi applicant without a NET score do?

Be honest about the arithmetic. With no NET, DU’s regular call, JNU and AUD are closed to you this year. That leaves Jamia, GGSIPU, DTU and Jamia Hamdard, plus IIT Delhi if you hold an M.Tech. Their tests fell between late April and early July in 2026, so one season can cover all four.

Our advice is to sit NET in June and December anyway while you apply to the test-based universities. A Category 3 result (PhD admission only) is enough to apply to DU and JNU. The fellowship that comes with JRF is a separate matter; see our PhD fellowships guide.

These dates are from the latest notices we could read. Missing a Delhi window can mean waiting six months or a full year.

• March and April: IIT Delhi’s first-semester window (21 March to 11 April in 2026), IIIT-Delhi’s monsoon call, DU’s Phase II (10 to 24 March 2026) and GGSIPU’s 31 March deadline.
• Late April to June: the GGSIPU PET (from 25 April 2026), Jamia Hamdard’s Cycle-II test (1 May), DTU’s registration (18 May to an extended 14 June) and the JMI entrance (20 and 21 June).
• July to September: the DTU test (2 and 3 July 2026), AUD’s extended deadline (31 July) and interviews (16 to 23 September), and Jamia Hamdard’s Cycle-I forms from 3 September.
• October and November: DU’s Phase I (registration ran 18 to 26 October in 2025) and IIT Delhi’s second-semester portal, which the institute said would open on 9 October 2026.

Whatever the route, have a proposal ready before you apply. DU departments, AUD and Jamia all ask for one before the interview; our research proposal guide will help.