No UGC nod for ODL courses by varsities if fail to get NAAC score

Hyderabad: Universities and other higher educational institutions fail to attain National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) score cannot offer courses through Open and Distance Learning (ODL) mode from June 2020 onwards.

It may be mentioned here that the NAAC carries out assessment and accreditation process for the higher educational institutions offering courses in regular or ODL mode.

Attaining a NAAC score of 3.26 on a 4-point scale is necessary for the accreditation of the courses offered in the regular mode.

Extending the same process, the NAAC asked the Central, State, private and deemed to be universities to submit applications for assessment of the courses offered through ODL mode.

In a circular sent to the universities in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, the NAAC said higher educational institutions offering courses through regular and ODL mode are known as Dual Mode Universities (DMUs).

Following the UGC's ODL regulations, all the higher educational institutions offering ODL courses have to comply with the UGC (Mandatory Assessment and Accreditation of Higher Educational Institutions) Regulations, 2012.

Citing the said regulations, the NAAC asked the higher educational institutions to submit their applications for assessment and accreditation of the programmes offered by it in ODL mode.

For the same, the NAAC has already initiated the process to formulate a framework for Assessment and Accreditation (A&A) of open universities on a priority basis.

Besides, a National Task Force (NTF) for the ODL courses was constituted.

Besides, every higher educational institution offering ODL courses has to give an undertaking stating that it will attain a NAAC score of 3.26 on a 4-point scale before the end of academic session July 2019-June 2020.

The higher educational institutions failing to attain the score will not be accorded approval by the UGC to run the ODL courses, it cautioned.