UGC to award ‘PhD Excellence Citation’ annually to honour top 10 doctoral research

NEW DELHI: The University Grants Commission (UGC) has announced the launch of the “PhD Excellence Citation” to honour exceptional doctoral research annually across various disciplines. The decision was taken in line with the National Education Policy (NEP 2020) to foster innovation in the education sector.

The statutory body plans to award ten citations each year to top PhD scholars in various fields such as sciences, engineering, social sciences, and Indian languages. The selection process to award scholars for exemplary research will include two-levels.

“First, a screening committee at the university level will review submissions, followed by a final selection committee at the UGC level. Factors such as originality, research impact, methodology, and clarity will be taken into account to assess the quality of the theses,” as per reports.

“This initiative is set to recognize outstanding doctoral research across a range of disciplines. In alignment with the National Education Policy 2020, which emphasizes the creation and exploration of new knowledge as vital to India’s future, the Ph.D. Excellence Citation is an effort to identify and commend exemplary research work in Indian universities,” UGC chairman Mamidala Jagadesh Kumar told the ANI.

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Indian universities including central, state, private, and deemed, will be allowed to nominate up to five theses annually, one from each of the five disciplines. Only those universities accredited by the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) and recognized under Section 2(f) of the UGC Act are eligible to participate, the reports read.

In March this year, the UGC allowed universities to offer PhD admission through the National Eligibility Test (UGC NET) score. The UGC NET results 2024 of June session is awaited.