The National Council for Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has been formally declared a deemed-to-be university, empowering it to award its own degrees.
As per an official notification, the Ministry of Education, on the advice of the University Grants Commission (UGC), has declared NCERT, along with its six constituent units, as a Deemed-to-be University under a distinct category.
These constituent units include regional institutes of education in Ajmer, Bhopal, Bhubaneswar, Mysuru, and Shillong, along with the Pandit Sunderlal Sharma Central Institute of Vocational Education in Bhopal.
The NCERT undertakes various activities and programmes, including educational research and innovation, curriculum development, and development of textual and teaching-learning materials.
Three years ago, the Centre had approved the grant of Deemed-to-be-University status to NCERT under the ‘De Novo’ category.
A De-Novo deemed university is an institution that can apply to the UGC for setting up a new institution as deemed-to-be-university, which will undertake study and research in unique and emerging areas of knowledge that are not offered by any existing institution.
What is the NCERT Deemed University Status and Why Does It Matter?
- For over six decades, NCERT has been the silent architect of India’s school education.
- It wrote the textbooks.
- It designed the curriculum frameworks.
- It trained the teachers.
- But there was always one thing it could not do — award a degree.
- NCERT is best known for shaping school curricula and producing textbooks, but it is not a degree-awarding body and does not operate as a higher education institution.
- This upgrade will allow NCERT to award its own undergraduate, postgraduate, and doctoral degrees, moving beyond its traditional role of school-level curriculum and textbooks.
What is a ‘Deemed-to-Be University’?
- Under Indian law, the University Grants Commission (UGC) recognises universities using powers given by the UGC Act, 1956, and a deemed-to-be-university tag is offered only to institutions that show strong performance in a specialised field, following UGC recommendations and final approval from the Central Government.
- The deemed university status enables an institution to use its full academic autonomy , freedom to design courses, develop curriculum, determine admission policies, criteria, and also fix course fees.
- According to UGC data, there are about 145 deemed universities across India at present, with the Indian Institute of Science becoming the first institution to receive this label in 1958.
- While Tamil Nadu now has the highest count of such institutions.
What Is the De Novo Category and Why Was NCERT Put in It?
- According to UGC guidelines, a De Novo institution is one that focuses on teaching and research in unique and “emerging areas of knowledge”, as determined by the commission after due process.
- NCERT was not placed in the general deemed university category , it was put in a special track that signals its mandate is unlike any existing institution.
- No university in India currently combines national curriculum design authority with degree-awarding powers in education research.
NCERT: Overview
- Founded: 1961
- Headquarters: Sri Aurobindo Marg, New Delhi
- Governing Body: Ministry of Education, Government of India
- Legal Status: Autonomous organization registered under the Societies Registration Act (1860)
What Degrees Will NCERT Offer?
- NCERT can now offer B.Ed, M.Ed, and PhD programmes and advanced diplomas in areas like curriculum design, educational technology, and inclusive education, attracting top talent to teaching careers.
- Specialisations in areas such as STEM pedagogy, multilingual education, foundational literacy research, and AI in classrooms are also on the horizon.
What This Means for Students and Teachers:
- For aspiring teachers and education researchers, this opens an entirely new pathway.
- NCERT degrees in education, curriculum studies, and pedagogy will carry the weight of the country’s most authoritative education institution — one whose books every student in India has studied.
- For in-service teachers, NCERT-certified upskilling and advanced programmes will now carry formal degree recognition, not just certificates.
- For students, NCERT’s research directly feeding into school policy will become more systematic, evidence-based, and internationally benchmarked.
Conclusion:
- The transition for an organisation that has, through its publications, influenced the education of students for years , from indirectly impacting education to formally awarding degrees and producing research, is quite significant.
- NCERT stepping into the university space does not dilute its identity.
- The body that once only shaped what India’s children learned in school will now also shape the researchers, policymakers, and teachers who determine what the next generation learns , through formally accredited, degree-backed programmes.
- India’s education architecture just got its most important structural upgrade in a generation.
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