Fake universities alert! UGC warns students of unrecognised institutions awarding degrees

NEW DELHI: The University Grants Commission (UGC) has issued a public notice warning students, parents, and the general public about institutions offering invalid degrees. However, the commission has not specified the number of such fake universities.

As per the UGC statement, degrees can only be awarded by universities or institutions established under a state act, central act, or provincial act, or those empowered to confer degrees as per the UGC Act, 1956. Any degrees issued by unrecognised institutions will not be considered valid for higher education or employment.

“It has come to the notice of UGC that a number of institutions are offering degrees in contrary to the provision of the UGC Act. Degrees awarded by such universities/institutions shall neither be recognized nor valid for higher education and employment purposes,” the official notice said.

Also readUGC asks universities to apply for approval of ODL, online courses for academic year 2025-26

To help students make informed decisions, the UGC has advised them to verify the recognition status of universities and institutions before applying for admission. The commission also urged them to visit the UGC website at ugc.ac.in to check the list of recognised and fake institutions before enrolling in any higher education programme.

The commission has also urged the public to report any institution offering unapproved academic programmes by emailing ugcampc@gmail.com so that necessary action can be taken.

“Further, if any university/institution is offering academic programmes in contravention of the UGC Act, the same may also be brought to the notice of UGC via email to ugcampc@gmail.com so that appropriate action can be taken against such institutions,” the official notice said.