Four-year bachelor’s degree holders will be able to do PhD directly

The new credit and curriculum framework for undergraduate courses was announced earlier this week and defines honors degree courses as four-year programmes.

Kumar, however, clarified that universities can choose between three- and four-year programmes. He said it was left to the universities. He was asked whether it is mandatory for universities to move towards a four-year structure for honors degrees. The UGC chairman said that candidates with a four-year bachelor’s degree can directly pursue PhD and will not need a master’s degree.

Talking about the advantages of the Four Year Undergraduate Program (FYUP), Kumar said the first advantage is that they do not need to have a postgraduate degree to join the PhD course. They can also take more than one subject for deep knowledge in any subject. He said that since multi-disciplinary courses, capability enhancement courses, skill enhancement courses, value added courses and apprenticeships are included in FYUP, it will enhance opportunities for students to take up employment or pursue higher studies.

The UGC on Monday notified the syllabus and credit structure for undergraduate programs which will provide multiple options for entry and exit to the students. The format has been developed by modifying the existing ‘Choice Based Credit System’. As per the program, students will be able to pursue only a four-year honors degree instead of the three-year course as at present. Honors degrees will also be awarded in two categories – Honors and ‘Research Honors’.

Admission in MBBS of All India Institute of Medical Sciences will be done through NEET only.

Admission to the MBBS course in all All India Institutes of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) and other institutions of national importance will continue to be through the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET). In the recently held meeting of the Board of Governors of AIIMS, the proposal to conduct a separate entrance test for admission to such institutions has been rejected.

This decision was taken in the meeting of the Board of Governors of AIIMS held on December 6 under the chairmanship of Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya. In the meeting, the proposal of an entrance test separate from NEET for admission to undergraduate level courses in AIIMS and various institutes of national importance was rejected after discussion. As per the details of the discussion held in the meeting, after deliberations, it was felt that the present practice of Common Entrance Test for all Medical Colleges would continue.

The All India Institute of Medical Sciences was established as an Institute of National Importance (INI) in 1956 by virtue of an Act of Parliament. This was followed by the establishment of other institutions… PGIMER-Chandigarh, JIPMER-Puducherry (2008) and 21 new AIIMS for education of undergraduate and postgraduate courses.

40% questions in 10th and 30% in 12th will be merit based

In the year 2023 of the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE), at least 40 percent of the questions in the 10th examination and 30 percent in the 12th examination will be merit-based. Union Minister of State for Education Annapurna Devi gave this information in response to a written question in the Lok Sabha. Various types of questions will be asked in the CBSE class 10th and 12th board exams.

The board exam will consist of objective type questions based on construction of a response, assertion and argument and real situation. Annapurna Devi said that in the National Education Policy 2020, in the academic session 2022-23, about 40 percent questions in class X board examinations and about 30 percent questions in class XII will be merit-based. The minister further said that after the introduction of the new National Education Policy 2020, CBSE had advised the affiliated schools to follow the recommendations regarding the format of education. The practical examinations will start from January 1.