Delhi University opens direct PhD route for first FYUP batch as one-time measure
Delhi University has announced a one-time direct admission route to PhD programmes for students who completed the university’s four-year undergraduate programme (FYUP) in 2026, Times of India reported, in a special measure aimed at addressing challenges faced by the inaugural batch.Under the new provision, students who have secured a CGPA of 7.5 or above in the FYUP will be eligible to apply directly for PhD programmes, while the cut-off for SC/ST students will be 7. The relaxation will apply only to the 2026-27 academic session.
“In the interest of the first batch of students who have completed the FYUP in 2026, the university will admit students who have 7.5 CGPA (7 CGPA for SC/ST) and above in the FYUP directly to the PhD programme, only for the academic session 2026-27, as a special measure as per rules of the university,” DU said in a press release issued on Friday.
DU Registrar Vikas Gupta told TOI that eligible students will still have to take an entrance examination, with the dates to be announced later. However, they will not be required to appear for an interview.
Gupta said the decision was restricted to the first FYUP batch because of the difficulties encountered during the rollout of the new undergraduate structure. “This will not be applicable for upcoming batches. The modalities will be decided later if the same has to be rolled out for other batches later,” he said.
The university has also amended its PhD ordinance to allow FYUP graduates meeting the prescribed academic criteria to apply directly for doctoral programmes.
The decision was taken at a meeting of the university’s Executive Council on July 30. According to Gupta, the move followed reports of confusion and difficulties surrounding the implementation of the FYUP for its first batch.
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However, some Executive Council members opposed the proposal, arguing that it had not been worked out comprehensively and could create complications for students later.
One concern was that students pursuing a PhD directly after FYUP could face difficulties in certain career pathways. For instance, a master’s degree is required for teaching positions, meaning students who take the direct PhD route could still have to pursue a master’s degree later. Members also pointed out that such students would not be eligible to appear for the National Eligibility Test (NET), for which a postgraduate degree is an eligibility requirement.
The absence of an interview was another concern raised by members, who argued that it would leave no credible mechanism to assess whether a student’s proposed research was academically viable and met PhD standards.
The move comes a day after TOI reported that FYUP graduates at universities including DU were facing an academic vacuum, with a limited number of one-year postgraduate programmes pushing many students towards conventional two-year master’s courses. At the time, the proposal to allow direct admission to PhD programmes had not yet been implemented.
According to DU, 75,948 students enrolled in the FYUP in 2022-23, its first year of implementation. Of these, 40,005 students exited after completing three years in 2025.
The university has said the FYUP was designed to introduce research and entrepreneurship into undergraduate education while aligning Indian degrees with global academic standards.
