Several students getting the master’s degree this year will miss out on the opportunity to apply for PhD courses in Jawaharlal Nehru University as the institution has failed to align its admission schedule with the National Eligibility Test timetable.
Since last year, the university has started admitting PhD students based on NET scores, following instructions from the government-controlled University Grants Commission (UGC). The NET is the eligibility examination to determine suitable candidates for assistant professors.
According to the JNU admission schedule, aspiring candidates can submit their applications till July 9. However, the results of the recently conducted NET are expected to be announced around the end of July. Final-year master’s students appear for the NET after the annual examination. Such students will not be able to apply for PhD courses in JNU since they will not know the NET results by then.
The JNU Teachers’ Association (JNUTA) on Tuesday blamed the university for the hassle. If the university wanted to conduct admissions in July, it could have informed the students’ community in advance so that the final-year master’s degree students could have applied for the NET in January.
“This means the exclusion of those who only appeared for the NET after completing their master’s degrees in 2025,” said a statement issued by JNUTA president Surajit Mazumdar and secretary Meenakshi Sundriyal.
JNU Students’ Union (JNUSU) president Nitish Kumar said students from
different universities were complaining about the difficulty in applying for PhD in
JNU. He said the NET was meant to select faculty members and was not the right test for admitting PhD candidates. “JNU must revert to JNU Entrance Examination (JNUEE).... Last year, our vice-chancellor had assured us that the JNUEE would
be held from 2025-26. But nothing happened.”