UGC amends distance learning guidelines to attract more foreign students

The University Grants Commission (UGC) has amended its open and distance learning guidelines to encourage more foreign students to enroll in UGC recognised online programmes through Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) driven projects.

The UGC (Open and Distance Learning Programmes and Online Programmes) Second Amendment Regulations, 2022 have been notified in the gazette on July 18.

UGC chairperson M Jagadesh Kumar said that under the 2020 regulations, ‘Passport’ was the only identifier for the International students. “MEA observed that many applications were being rejected due to either submission of expired passports or non-submission of passports. Accordingly, MEA requested UGC to consider ‘any national Identity with photograph’ and be exempted from the mandatory requirement of Passport in order to secure admission in the Indian University under the e- VidyaBharati (tele-education) project,” Kumar said.

The amended regulations will now enables the foreign students, who take admissions through MEA, to submit “any national identity with photograph of their country of residence” for authentication.

The MEA offers scholarships to the African students under the Center’s e-VidyaBharati (tele-education) project. The project aims to offer at least 15,000 scholarships to African students over a period of 5 years. The UGC recognized/entitled Online Programmes are offered on e-VidyaBharati Portal and the students are admitted through MEA.

Kumar said that the amendment will only be applicable for students enrolling on UGC platforms through MEA. “This Amendment is expected to improve the number of enrolments of the International learners in online programmes,” he added.