UGC approves flexible degree completion norms for undergraduate students

New Delhi: The University Grants Commission has approved guidelines for Accelerated as well as Extended Degree programs under which students can pursue degrees in durations shorter than the standard three years as well as extended periods of up to five years.

A set of Standard Operating Procedures were approved by the higher education body in a meeting on November 13. The provision will be available in undergraduate courses only for the time being. 

In the accelerated programme students will have the option to choose the provision either at the end of the first semester or the second semester, but not later than that. They can earn additional credits per semester starting from the second or third semester, depending on when they choose the provision. If a student opts for the system in a three-year undergraduate programme, they can shorten the duration by a maximum of one semester. This means that students can earn the total credits needed for a 3-year undergraduate programme in five semesters. 

In the case of a 4-year undergraduate programme, students can shorten the duration by one semester or a maximum of two semesters, meaning they can earn the total credits in six or seven semesters. 

For Extended programmes, students will have the option to choose the provision only at the end of the first semester or the second semester and not beyond that. Students who opt for the provision will earn fewer credits every semester than those required in a programme with a standard duration. If they opt for the Extended programme, the duration may be extended up to a maximum of two semesters. 

UGC chairperson M Jagadesh Kumar said that students can use this option to shorten or extend their study durations based on their learning abilities. “ADP allows students to complete a 3-year or 4-year degree in reduced time by earning additional credits per semester, while EDP enables an extended timeline with fewer credits per semester. These degrees will be equivalent to standard duration degrees for all employment and academic purposes,” Kumar said.

As per the UGC’s SOP for higher education institutions, they may earmark up to 10% of sanctioned intake for the advanced programme and they may constitute a committee to scrutinise applications received at the end of the first or the second semester under either of the provisions. 

The Committee will evaluate the credit-completing potential of a student based on their performance in the first or the second semester and give its recommendations, and thereby recommend a reduction or an increase in the number of courses and total credits per semester, as per the duration opted by the students.  

In both cases of Advanced or Extended degrees, based on the credit structure in the “Curriculum and Credit Framework for Undergraduate Programmes”, the Committee shall decide the minimum number of credits a student must earn in a semester.