DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY (Ph.D.) REGULATIONS,
GODAVARI GLOBAL UNIVERSITY (GGU), 2024
Rajamahendravaram, 01st July, 2024
These regulations shall be designated as the “Godavari Global University, Doctor of Philosophy Regulations, 2024.” These shall be referred to as “GGU Ph.D. Regulations, 2024” or, in abbreviated form, “GGU PHD-24”.
1. TITLE OF THE PROGRAMME
The GGU-PHD-24 regulations shall apply to all Ph.D. programs across various disciplines, effective from the academic year 2024-25.
2.Definitions
- “Programme” means a higher education programme pursued for a degree specified by the Commission under sub-section (3) of section 22 of the Act;
- “University” means a Higher Educational Institution established or incorporated by or under a Central Act, a Provincial Act, or a State Act, and shall include any institution for higher education deemed to be a University under Section 3 of the Act;
- “Act” means the University Grants Commission Act,1956;
- “Adjunct Faculty” means a part-time or contingent instructor;
- “Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA)” means a measure of the overall cumulative performance of a student over all the semesters. The CGPA is the ratio of total credit points secured by a student in various courses in all the semesters and the sum of the total credits of all courses in all the semesters. It is expressed up to two decimal places;
- “Credit” means the number of hours of instruction required per week over the duration of a semester. A three-credit course in a semester means three one-hour lectures per week, with each one-hour lecture counted as one credit;
- “Commission” means the University Grants Commission established under Section 4 of the UGC Act 1956;
- “Course” means one of the specified units that make up a programme of study;
- “Course Work” means compulsory courses of study prescribed by the School/Department/Centre/HoD/Research Supervisor to be undertaken by a student registered for the Ph.D. Degree;
- “Guide/Research Supervisor” means an academician/research Scientist / Industry Practitioner duly recognized by GGU to supervise the Ph.D. scholar for his/her research work;
- “Degree” means a Ph.D. degree awarded by a University in accordance with the provisions of section 22 (3) of the Act;
- “External examiner” means an academician/research scientist with published research work who is not a part of the GGU where the Ph.D. scholar has registered for his/her Ph.D. programme;
- “Grade Point” means a numerical weight allotted to each letter grade on a 10-point scale;
- “Interdisciplinary Research” means research conducted by a Ph.D. scholar in two or more academic disciplines;
- “Open and Distance Learning Mode” shall have the same meaning as defined under the UGC (Open and Distance Learning Programmes and Online Programmes) Regulations 2020;
- “Online Mode” shall have the same meaning as defined under the UGC (Open and Distance Learning Programmes and Online Programmes) Regulations 2020;
- “Plagiarism” means the practice of taking someone else’s work or idea and claiming it to be as his/her own;
- “Prospectus” means any document, whether in print or otherwise, issued by GGU for providing fair and transparent information relating to GGU and programmes and to the general public;
3. Eligibility criteria for admission to the Ph.D. Programme
- The following candidates are eligible to seek admission to the Ph.D. programme of GGU:
- A 2-year/4-semester master’s degree (M.Tech. or equivalent) programme after a 4-year/8-semester bachelor’s degree (B.Tech. or equivalent) programme; Or a 2-year/4-semester master’s degree (M.Sc. or equivalent) programme after a 3-year bachelor’s degree (B.Sc. or equivalent) programme; Or qualifications declared equivalent to the master’s degree by the corresponding statutory regulatory body, with at least 55% marks in aggregate or its equivalent grade in a 10-point scale wherever grading system is followed; Or a 4-year/8-semester bachelor’s degree programme from institutions of national eminence with greater than 75% marks in aggregate or its equivalent grade on a 10- point scale wherever the grading system is followed; Or equivalent qualification from a foreign educational institution accredited by an assessment and accreditation agency which is approved, recognized or authorized by an authority, established or incorporated under a law in its home country or any other statutory authority in that country to assess, accredit or assure quality and standards of the educational institution.
- A relaxation of 5% marks or its equivalent grade may be allowed for those belonging to SC/ST/OBC (non-creamy layer)/Differently-Abled, Economically Weaker Section (EWS) and other categories of candidates as per the decision of the Commission from time to time.
- Candidates who have completed the M.Phil. programme with at least 55% marks in aggregate or its equivalent grade in a 10-point scale wherever grading system is followed or equivalent qualification from a foreign educational institution accredited by an assessment and accreditation agency which is approved, recognized or authorized by an authority, established or incorporated under a law in its home country or any other statutory authority in that country to assess,
accredit or assure quality and standards of educational institutions, shall be eligible for admission to the Ph.D. programme.A relaxation of 5% marks or its equivalent grade may be allowed for those belonging to SC/ST/OBC (non-creamy layer)/Differently-Abled, Economically Weaker Section (EWS) and other categories of candidates as per the decision of the Commission from time to time.Different categories along with eligibility criteria are listed below –
- Internal full-time Candidates: A candidate who wishes to work for his/her Ph.D degree on full time basis (including project staff working in sponsored projects at the GGU) should apply in the prescribed form on or before due dates, which are typically announced twice a year.
- Internal part-time candidates: The academic fraternity of GGU, whoever meets the required minimum qualifications can work on a part time basis for his/her Ph.D degree. They also should apply in the prescribed form on or before the dates to be announced normally twice in a year.
- External part-time candidates: Candidates working in an Industry involved in R&D activities, Colleges or Research Organizations, approved by this Institute, and who are sponsored for pursuing Ph.D. Program in GGU while continuing in his/her job, shall belong to this category. There shall be a Research Supervisor recognized by GGU and a Research Coordinator in their organization/GGU who are responsible to provide all necessary resources and guidance to help him/her to complete the research work in a time bound manner.
4.Duration of the Programme
- Full-time Ph.D. Programme shall be for a minimum duration of three years, including the course work and Part-time Ph.D. Programme and for candidates admitted directly from 4-year/8-semester bachelor’s degree programme shall be for a minimum of four years and a maximum duration of six years from the date of admission to the Ph.D. programme.
- A maximum of an additional two years may be given through a process of evaluating the status of research program as per the Statute/Ordinance of the GGU concerned. However, that the total period for completion of a Ph.D. programme should not exceed eight years from the date of admission to the Ph.D. programme.
- Candidates who joined for a full-time Ph.D. program with M.Phil., qualification shall be permitted to submit their theses, within a period of four years, but not earlier than two years from the date of registration while in the case of part-time researcher, thesis should be submitted within a period of five years, but not earlier than three years from the date of registration.
- Extension of time for submission of Ph.D., thesis may be granted up to a maximum period of two years on payment of the fee prescribed. Such extension will be granted for a duration of six months in the first instance and additional three six-monthly extensions may be granted, making a total of two years in exceptional cases with the recommendation of the research supervisor and the committee formed for this purpose.
- Provided further that, women Ph.D. scholars and Persons with Disabilities (having more than 40% disability) may be granted an additional relaxation of two years; however, the total period for completion of a Ph.D. programme in such cases should not exceed ten years from the date of admission to the Ph.D. programme.
- Women Full-time Ph.D. Scholars may be granted a Maternity Leave/Child Care Leave for up to 240 days in the entire duration of the Ph.D. programme.
5.Procedure for admission
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Admission to the Ph.D. programmes can be done by the following methods:
- Candidates who qualify for fellowship/scholarship in UGC- NET/UGC- CSIR NET/GATE/CEED and similar National level tests followed by an interview at GGU may get admitted.
- GGU may admit students through an Entrance Test conducted at the university level. The Entrance Test syllabus will be stipulated by GGU.
- Based on the student’s performance in the entrance test he/she may become eligible to be called for an interview.
- A relaxation of 5% marks will be allowed in the entrance examination for the candidates belonging to SC/ST/OBC/differently-abled category, Economically Weaker Section (EWS), and other categories of candidates as per the decision of the Commission from time to time.
- GGU reserves the right to decide the number of eligible meritorious students to be called for an interview based on the number of Ph.D. seats / facilities available.
- The selection of candidates will be carried out based on the entrance6 test conducted by the GGU. A weightage of 70 % for the entrance test and 30 % for the interview shall be given.
6. Allocation of Research Supervisor
- The eligibility criteria for serving as a Research Supervisor or Co-Supervisor will comply with UGC guidelines.
- The scientists who are equivalent to Professors/Associate Professors/Assistant Professors working in Central government/State government research institutions, may be recognized as research supervisors to supervise the research work of the scientist/research/technical officer seeking admission to the Ph.D. program of GGU.
- In areas or disciplines where there are no or limited number of peer-reviewed or refereed journals exist, GGU may relax the conditions (6.a. & 6.b.) for recognizing a person as a Research Supervisor.
- Co-Supervisors from within the same department or other departments of GGU may be permitted with the approval of the competent authority.
- Adjunct Faculty/Professor of Practice of GGU shall also be considered as Research Supervisors/co-supervisors with the approval of the competent authority.
- In case of interdisciplinary/multidisciplinary nature of the intended research work, if required, a Co-Supervisor from outside the Department/School or Government Research Organizations may be considered.
- An eligible Professor/Associate Professor/Assistant Professor may be given up permission to supervise the research work of up to eight (8) / six (6) / four (4) Ph.D. scholars, respectively, at any point of time.
- In case of relocation of a women Ph.D. scholar due to marriage or otherwise, the research data shall be allowed to be transferred to another educational institution to which the scholar intends to relocate, provided all the other conditions in these Regulations are followed, and the research work does not pertain to a project sanctioned to the parent Institution/Supervisor by any funding agency. Such a scholar shall, however, give due credit to the parent institution and the supervisor for the part of research already carried out in GGU.
- Faculty members with less than three years of service before superannuation shall not be allowed to take new research scholars under their supervision. However, such faculty members may continue to supervise Ph.D. of the existing scholars till he/she superannuates and subsequently act as a co-supervisor. He/she will be advised to identify a faculty member within the same department to supervise the work of current scholars.
At any point of time, the total number of Ph.D. scholars under an individual faculty member, either as a supervisor or a co-supervisor, shall not exceed the number prescribed in (6.g.) of this document.
7. Course Work
- The Credit requirement for the Ph.D. coursework is a minimum of 12 (Twelve), including a 3-credit “Research Methodology” course of GGU besides the relevant courses suggested by the concerned supervisors and Doctoral Research Supervisory Committee. The course work up to 9 credits may be done through MOOCs, as part of the credit requirements for the Ph.D. programme.
- All the selected Full-Time Ph.D. scholars, irrespective of discipline, will be assigned with teaching/education/pedagogy/writing related to the chosen Ph.D. problem during their doctoral period.
- A Ph.D. scholar must obtain a minimum of 55% marks or its equivalent grade in the UGC 10-point scale in the course work to be eligible to continue in the programme and submit his or her thesis.
- No change in the courses prescribed shall be made without the prior approval of the Doctoral Research Supervisory Committee.
8. Doctoral Research Supervisory Committee (DRSC) and its Functions
- There shall be a Doctoral Research Supervisory Committee (DRSC) at the GGU for each Ph.D. scholar. The Research Supervisor of the Ph.D. scholar concerned shall be the Convener of this committee, and this committee shall have the following responsibilities:
- To review the research proposal and finalize the topic of research.
- To guide the Ph.D. scholar in developing the study design and methodology of research and identify the course(s) that he/she may have to do.
- To periodically review and assist in the progress of the research work of the Ph.D. scholar.
- Each semester, a Ph.D. scholar shall appear before the DRSC meeting to make a presentation and submit a brief report on the progress of his/her work for evaluation and further guidance. The DRSC shall submit its recommendations along with a copy of Ph.D. scholar’s progress report to the concerned authority at GGU. A copy of such recommendations shall also be provided to the Ph.D. scholar.
- Full-time Ph.D. scholar must appear and get satisfactory report in DRSC meetings as per the guidelines.
- In case the progress of the Ph.D. scholar is unsatisfactory, the DRSC shall record the reasons for the same and suggest corrective measures. If the Ph.D. scholar fails to implement these corrective measures, the DRSC may recommend, with specific reasons, the cancellation of the registration of the Ph.D. scholar from the Ph.D. programme.
9. Change of Research Topic / Specialization
Change of topic of research by the candidate is permitted in genuine cases. The prescribed processing fee shall be paid by the concerned candidate. The time limit fixed for the change of topic of research of the Ph.D. programme is as follows:Full-time: Within eighteen months (1 ½ years) from the date of registration for the candidates registered with Master’s degree qualification and within twelve months from the date of registration for the candidates registered with M.Phil., qualification.
Part-time: Within twenty-four months from the date of registration, in case of candidates registered with Master’s Degree qualification and within eighteen months from the date of registration, in case of candidates registered with M.Phil., qualification.
In the genuine cases (i.e., correction in the topic/title), of the candidates who have crossed the time limit, the consent may be obtained from the concerned HOD / Dean concerned. However, broad field of research cannot be changed.10. Change of Supervisors and Transfer of Scholars
- Transfer of Ph.D., scholars from one supervisor to another supervisor can be permitted if mutual willingness is given by both the original and new supervisors by issuing No Objection Certificate (NOC). The prescribed processing fee shall be paid by the candidate. In the case of research supervisors who have shifted from the jurisdiction of GGU, GGU reserves the right to reallocate the students to the appropriate supervisor with the approval from the concerned authority.
- In the case of change of supervisor or transfer of candidates, if proposed, without the consent of any one of the parties concerned, the case shall be referred to the concerned authority. The recommendation from the concerned authority shall be treated as final. The prescribed processing fee shall be paid by the candidate.
- The supervisors who wish to avail leave/lien/deputation beyond a period of SIX MONTHS shall nominate co-guides in the concerned subject for the candidates registered under him/her and the same shall be intimated to the Registrar, GGU in advance.
11. Evaluation and Assessment Methods, minimum standards/credits for award of the degree, etc.
- Upon satisfactory completion of the assigned course work, the Ph.D. scholar shall be required to undertake the research work and produce a concrete plan of dissertation/thesis. The Ph.D. scholar will be encouraged to publish a minimum of two research articles on his/her findings in engineering/scientific journals of high repute.
- Before submitting the dissertation/thesis, the Ph.D. scholar shall give a presentation on research findings to the faculty and other scholars/students of GGU. Subsequent to a successful presentation of his/her findings, he/she may be permitted to write his/her Ph.D. thesis and submit SIX copies of the same to GGU.
- A candidate after successful completion of his /her presentation has to submit the Synopsis in the stipulated format.
- A Ph.D. scholar shall submit the thesis for evaluation, along with (a) an undertaking from him/her that there is no plagiarism and (b) a certificate to that effect from the Research Supervisor attesting to the originality of the thesis and that the thesis has not been submitted for the award of any other degree/diploma to any other Higher Educational Institutions.
- The University has a mechanism to detect Plagiarism in the research work and the research integrity shall be an integral part of all the research activities leading to the award of a Ph.D. degree. Similarity index up to 20% excluding self-publications is allowed for submission.
- The supervisor(s) has to enclose a panel of minimum of SIX experts (THREE from our country and THREE from abroad) with the thesis. Ph.D. thesis submitted by a Ph.D. scholar shall be evaluated by his/her Research Supervisor and at least two external examiners (one within the country and the other from overseas).
- The viva-voce shall be open to all interested which include the faculty members/research scholars, and students of GGU.
- The viva-voce of the Ph.D. scholar to defend the thesis shall be conducted as per the university guidelines.
12. Ph.D. through Part-time Mode
- Ph.D. programmes through part-time mode will be permitted, provided all the conditions stipulated in these Regulations are fulfilled.
- The candidate is expected to intimate his employers about his Ph.D. admission and a copy of this intimation may please be furnished to GGU.
13. Issuing a Provisional certificate
Prior to the actual award of the Ph.D. degree, the University shall issue a provisional certificate to the effect that the Ph.D. is being awarded in accordance with the provisions of these Regulations and GGU formalities.
14. Cancellation of Ph.D. Registration
For cancellation of Ph.D. registration in the absence of letter from the candidate, the supervisor may write a letter through the concerned authority to the Registrar who in turn informs the same to the candidate. If no reply is received within 30 days, a letter of cancellation will be sent to the candidate under intimation to the concerned supervisor and the Head of the Department (HoD).
