Bengaluru: In a big relief to lakhs of aspiring professors and researchers who take the University Grants Commission-National Eligibility Test (UGC-NET), the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has notified changes in the exam pattern. While the candidates earlier had to appear for three papers and spend an entire day at exam centres, the revised pattern requires them to appear for only two papers. The age limit for Junior Research Fellowship (JRF) too has been revised from 28 to 30.
Rashmi P.K., who had taken the test on November 5 and is currently preparing for the next attempt, believed that she can attend the questions more confidently now. “Though we spend months on preparation, it all boils down to circumstances that day. Earlier, we were completely drained after the second paper and could not concentrate on the third paper, which was important as it dealt with our respective domains,” she said.
With the short notification from the CBSE mentioning the date for the next exam as July 8, candidates like Srimathi Perumal also hope that the test will be made available twice a year. “It will be convenient for candidates like us. Otherwise, we will have to wait an entire year for the next exam,” she said. But she is unhappy that the question papers will have only multiple choice questions (MCQs). “The test is expected to analyse the scholarship of a candidate and that is possible only with descriptive answers and not multiple choice questions,” she said.
Dr Richard Rego, Director, St Joseph’s Research Centre, said that combining papers 2 and 3 into one is logical. “The existing system fails to serve the purpose it is intended for. The candidates’ eligibility to teach and their knowledge levels should be tested instead of testing their fortunes. I have come across candidates who have cleared the Junior Research Fellowship (JRF) cut-off at NET but failed miserably in Ph.D entrance exams. This shows the inability of JRF test to judge the required skillsets. This will affect the quality of professors, who may neither be informative nor resourceful in the longer run.”
The CBSE is expected to make an official announcement of the revised pattern and exam schedule online in February first week. UGC-NET is the only gateway for aspiring candidates to become assistant professor at all varsities. Last year, around 9.30 lakh candidates registered for UGC-NET, which was conducted across 1,700 centres in 91 cities across the country.
