First batch of FYUP Honours students graduate this year. Are they ready for Ph.D.?

For the first time, Delhi University (DU) opened registrations for students who have done the Four-Year Undergraduate Programme (FYUP) to apply directly for Ph.D. programmes without a Master’s degree for the 2026-27 academic session.

Registrations that opened in late August 2026 closed on September 6, 2026. As per the eligibility criteria, a minimum 7.5 CGPA is mandatory for UR, OBC, and EWS candidates, and a minimum 7.0 CGPA is a must for SC, ST, and PwBD candidates.

This direct Ph.D. entry route is currently launched as a special one-time measure exclusively for the first batch of FYUP students. DU is considering relaxing the publication-related criteria for the 2022-2026 FYUP batch to enter the Ph.D.

programme, and is also planning an entrance exam. “The provision is consistent with the direction of National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, where a four-year degree with a research orientation is designed to build part of the foundation a doctorate demands, and the 75% threshold (7.5 CGPA) keeps entry academically selective.

The useful shift here is from counting degrees to assessing readiness. What ultimately matters is solid demonstrated research aptitudes in the FYUP, verified through rigorous screening,” Vice-Chancellor of RV University Ram Kumar Kakani said.

He added that the university still carries the ownership and responsibility of choosing competent students. NEP 2020 created the policy framework for FYUP education with a stronger research orientation, while subsequent University Grants Commission (UGC) regulations provided for eligible four-year Bachelor’s degree holders to enter Ph.D.

programmes without a Master’s degree. The UGC (Minimum Standards and Procedure for Award of Ph.D. Degree) Regulations, 2022 mandate that candidates who have completed a 4-year/8-semester Bachelor’s degree can seek admission to a Ph.D.

programme, provided they meet the prescribed academic requirements. The regulation specifies a minimum of 75% marks in aggregate or an equivalent grade for someone seeking admission after a four-year Bachelor’s degree, with the applicable relaxation for specified categories.

The ambitious FYUP, despite some of its desirable provisions, has had its share of sore points for students like Maria Sheikh (name changed on request) who completed her FYUP Zoology Honours with Research at a government degree college in Kashmir.

She feels the idea of the programme is good, but the fault lies in the execution. “How can students go for a direct Ph.D. with a basic level of information,” she asked. Ms. Sheikh pointed out the mismanagement in her fourth year when students were asked to write a dissertation in a span of 6 months amid the flurry of semester courses, exams and research classes.

In the absence of proper guidelines, it was “a disaster” from the start. “We had professors from other departments with no idea about the subject asking us questions on our research presentation. You need a particular research environment to go from a bachelor’s to a direct Ph.D., an environment that was clearly missing in our FYUP programme,” she added.

Ms. Sheikh said that she is scared to go directly for a Ph.D. and has opted to enrol for a Master’s instead. Daksha Shrestha Singh, who is in the fourth year of her B.A. English Honours at Miranda House, DU, agrees that a student who has an FYUP degree would be somewhat unprepared for a Ph.D.

Moreover, with the one-year Master’s also being an option, it is evident that even the university admits more research experience could be required before beginning a Ph.D. programme. “The fourth year feels different from the first three years, mostly because we can concentrate on our honours subject rather than the overwhelming number of elective courses.

With all courses being electives, it also feels like we have more freedom academically. While I do appreciate this change, the fourth year comes with its own challenges, namely, the announcements regarding paper credits, dissertation credits, the structure of the dissertation itself, among other things, that are always changing at the last moment.

Our course structure is already very different compared to the previous FYUP batches, as we have one less paper and more credits for research,” she said. Grateful for the research methodology (RM) elective in the third year, which has made her more confident, Ms.

Singh admits that a lot also depends on the professor and whether students find this paper helpful. “Either way, thanks to the RM elective, I don’t feel completely blindsided going into the fourth year,” she said. Ms. Singh also plans to pursue a Master’s first, even if the direct Ph.D.

entry option is still available by the time her batch graduates. “I cannot say for sure that it is a good idea to bypass a Master’s degree; at the very least, it creates uneven ground for those who followed the 3+2 route as opposed to those who only have an undergraduate degree, which doesn’t seem fair.

The academic structure exists as it does for a reason, and an undergraduate dissertation followed directly by a Ph.D. feels like severing a crucial link between the two,” she added. Her experience shows that there isn’t much reason to complain about teachers’ competency at the UG level.

“The FYUP is as new to them as it is to us, and at least in my experience, they seem to be doing their best to clear our doubts. It would, however, help if the university could remain consistent with the information it releases.

The professors I have interacted with have given us relevant information as soon as possible and have tried their best to accommodate our research interests and specific concerns. This may not be the case with some others,” she said.

On whether such flexible measures could lead to dilution of academic standards, Professor Kakani says that the quality of Ph.D. scholars depends on screening and supervision, not on the entry pathway. “A wider door does not lower standards unless evaluation is allowed to weaken.

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