PVLF 2025

UGC to Eliminate the Requirement for Ph.D. Candidates to Publish Research Papers

on Nov 11, 2022

The University Grants Commission's (UGC) decision to eliminate the need that Ph.D. applicants to produce research articles drew criticism, with many claiming that it would lower the bar for earning a Ph.D.

"This is another move to undermine India's higher education system's quality. India will have the most physicians in a few years but no place to put them to work, according to the Earth, Climate and Research Foundation.

Working on a Ph.D. implies that you are working on something new, according to Dr. Jayant Murthy, a retired senior professor at the Indian Institute of Astrophysics, who spoke to TNIE.

The scientific community endorses it once it is published in a peer-reviewed publication. The requirement was dropped because academics were purportedly paying to get their work published in bogus journals.

"While the other regulations appear to be made with good intentions, this was done without addressing the ethical failure. The problem with fake journals started when UGC guidelines changed ten years ago and made publishing research in journals a requirement to become a professor. As a result, pay-to-publish journals started to appear, according to Dr. Murthy.