PhD rules in India: what changed, and when

What has changed in PhD rules in India, and when?

Latest entries come first. For the date we took what is printed on the notification or notice, so it can be a few days before newspapers wrote about it.

Cite this data: PhD Desk, “PhD rules in India: what changed, and when”, last reviewed 1 November 2026, https://phddesk.in/guides/phd-rules-updates

Any national rule comes to you only through your university. Each university has to bring a UGC regulation into its own ordinances, and mostly that takes some time. The 2022 text has a transition rule too. As per clause 16, if you registered before it, your degree may be governed by the new rules or by the 2016 rules. If one of these entries affects you, check with research section which version your university is applying for your batch.

What changed with the UGC PhD Regulations, 2022?

The 2022 regulations were gazetted on 7 November 2022, and they came into force on that same day. The 2016 regulations and their amendments were replaced by them. The changes scholars feel most are listed here.

• Eligibility: if you did a four-year degree programme, you can now apply straight away with 75%. The usual route of a master’s with 55% also continues (clause 3).
• No more M.Phil.: as per clause 14, institutions can no longer run the M.Phil. as a programme.
• Admission: NET/JRF holders come in by interview, and/or there is a university entrance test. Half the test syllabus is research methodology and half is the subject. You need 50% in the test, only then you go to the interview. Final merit is 70% test and 30% interview (clause 5).
• Duration: the PhD takes three to six years, and re-registration can give up to two years more. Women and persons with more than 40% disability get two more years of relaxation, but the overall ceiling is ten years. Maternity or child-care leave up to 240 days is allowed (clause 4).
• Coursework and reviews: coursework is minimum 12 credits, and research methodology and RPE must be part of it. Every semester the Research Advisory Committee will review you also (clauses 9 and 10).
• Evaluation: your supervisor and at least two external examiners evaluate the thesis. The viva can be held online. Evaluation and the viva result have to be completed within six months of submission (clause 11).
• Part-time allowed, online not: for part-time study you need a NOC from your employer. Distance and online PhDs are fully ruled out by clause 13.
• Transition: scholars who were already registered can get the degree under the 2022 text or under the 2016 text, as clause 16 allows.

For the eligibility and admission clauses in detail, read our PhD admission in India guide. Clause 13 is explained in the part-time PhD guide.

Is publishing a paper still compulsory for a PhD in India?

As a national rule, no. It stopped on 7 November 2022. Earlier, under clause 9.4 of the 2016 regulations, every scholar had to publish in a refereed journal. Two presentations at conferences or seminars before submission were also needed. In the 2022 draft, publication was kept as “desirable”, and then in the final 2022 regulations even that word was dropped, there is no mention of it.

In practice the requirement is still there in many places. Universities can make their own rule, and many of them have done so, mostly at the synopsis stage. Our guide on the publication requirement for a PhD lists what several universities are asking for now, and how to find your own university’s rule.

What happened to the UGC-CARE journal list?

Three dates are important here. UGC-CARE was set up by UGC through a public notice of 28 November 2018. Going by an expert committee’s advice, the Commission decided on 3 October 2024 to stop listing journals. This came out in the public notice of February 2025, which also asked for feedback on draft “suggestive parameters” till 25 February 2025. Then came one more notice, dated 16 July 2025, approving the final parameters, and along with it UGC put the final list online (1,474 titles, frozen at 10 February 2025), only as a reference resource. As per UGC, whether a journal is there in the list or not do not mean UGC is endorsing it.

The parameters look at the journal’s basic details, editorial board, editorial policy, content quality, publishing standards and research ethics, among other things. Higher education institutions are expected to apply them for their own disciplines. So in practice it is your university’s list or rule that decides which journals will count. Many ordinances are still saying “UGC-CARE”, and for those you should get it clarified from your research section. To check a journal now, see our UGC-CARE list guide.

What changed for assistant professor eligibility in 2023?

As per the 2018 teacher-qualification regulations, a PhD was to become necessary for university assistant professor posts from July 2021. In June 2023 this was changed. The amendment came into effect from the first of July that year. It replaced that clause with a NET, SET or SLET minimum for every higher education institution. If your PhD was awarded under the 2009 or 2016 PhD regulations, you are still exempted from NET.

The draft of January 2025 would change the recruitment rules once more. We looked at UGC’s regulations page on 27 September 2026 and there was still no final version there, so in the log it stays marked as a draft. If and when the final regulation gets notified, we will add it with its date. A PhD still gives you points in some places, and that part is covered in our assistant professor guide.

Which other national changes affect PhD scholars?

Plagiarism levels for theses (July 2018)

The UGC (Promotion of Academic Integrity and Prevention of Plagiarism in Higher Educational Institutions) Regulations, 2018 fixed four levels of similarity for theses. Level 0 is up to 10%, with no penalty. Level 1 is above 10% to 40%, and you have to submit a revised thesis within six months. In Level 2, above 40% to 60%, you are debarred from resubmitting for one year. Above 60% is Level 3, and the registration gets cancelled. Each university applies these levels with its own software and its own exclusions. How different universities apply them is compared in our plagiarism limits guide.

Research and Publication Ethics (2019)

UGC notified the RPE course in 2019. Under clause 9(1) of the 2022 regulations, it is now a compulsory part of the 12-credit coursework. More on this is in our coursework and RPE guide.

NET for PhD admission (March 2024)

Starting with the June 2024 NET, results come in three categories. The first category is eligible for PhD admission with JRF and for assistant professor posts. The second category is eligible for PhD admission without JRF, and for assistant professor posts. The third category can take PhD admission only. In the second and third categories, admission is done on 70% NET marks and 30% interview. Your NET marks remain valid for PhD admission for one year, and many universities are still holding their own entrance test alongside.

One Nation One Subscription (from 2025)

On 25 November 2024 the Cabinet approved this scheme. Through it, government higher education institutions and central government R&D institutions get access to about 13,000 e-journals from 30 publishers. INFLIBNET gives this access for the calendar years 2025 to 2027. If you are studying in private university, the scheme does not cover you. How to get access is explained in our research databases guide.