Delhi University To Extend Two MPhil Courses Till 2025-26

The Delhi University is expected to submit a proposal before the Executive Council to partially relax the UGC”s notification to discontinuing MPhil courses following NEP 2020″s recommendations. It intends to extend the validity of two of its MPhil programs in clinical psychology and psychiatric social work until the 2025–2026 academic year.

In a resolution in 2021, the Academic Council and the Executive Council of the University decided to discontinue MPhil programs from the academic year 2022-24 following the National Education Policy 2020.

The agenda of the upcoming meeting is to showcase the concerns made by the Dean, Faculty of Medical Science, vide its two letters dated 11.08.2023 and 06.10.2023 addressed to the Secretary, UGC, which ask for the resumption of M.Phil.(Clinical Psychology) Course at IHBAS.

The university has earlier written the UGC to request the reinstatement of the MPhil program at the Institute of Human Behaviour and Allied Sciences (IHBAS) as a stopgap measure for the benefit of students and patient care until the Rehabilitation Council of India (RCI) made a final decision.

Notably, on the request made by the university, the UGC decided to extend the validity of the MPhil. in Clinical Psychology and MPhil in Psychiatric Social Work till 2025-26 in a public notice dated January 30. The decision was made only in partial modification to UGC (Minimum Standards and Procedure for Award of Ph.D. Degree) Regulations, 2022 notified in December 2022. As per the UGC’s 2022 regulations, higher education institutes can no longer offer MPhil programs.

As per the notification, the decision was taken due to the vital role played by clinical psychologists and psychiatric social workers in delivering mental health services. Furthermore, students can be admitted to an M.Phil in Clinical Psychology and M.Phil in Psychiatric Social Work programs by HEIs till 2025-26 academic session only.

UGC has also alerted students to be cautious of Institutions providing MPhil (Master of Philosophy) Programs. However, the West Bengal Government has declared to continue the MPhil degree, diverging from the UGC regulations. Reportedly, the West Bengal Education Minister had stated earlier not to follow any directions from UGC and to follow its independent education policy suggested by their experts.