DU has issued a notification announcing the discontinuation of the MPhil from the next academic session. From 2022-2023, the university will implement this step in accordance with the National Education Policy of 2020.
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MPhil to be phased out to implement NEP
According to a notification released on January 27, DU will phase out the MPhil program offered by several of its departments from 2022-23. The university has taken this step in order to move forward with the implementation of NEP 2020. According to a university spokesperson, there will be no new admissions to MPhil programs from this point on. However, the varsity will allow students currently enrolled in the course to continue their studies.
Move stirs intense backlash, students robbed of ‘choice’Â
This move by DU has, however, been met with severe backlash. Several teachers have criticized the decision to stop the degree, citing negative effects on financially insecure students, including women. As per the former Executive Council member Abha Dev Habib, the goal of NEP-2020 is to expand the gap between the haves and the have-nots. The option has thus become either to commit to a PhD or not bother with a research degree at all. The NEP, which is based on the marketing of ‘choice’, is robbing students of actual options, according to many.
Students from low-income backgrounds looked to the MPhil as an affordable research degree option before pursuing teaching careers. According to Ms Habib, unlike a PhD, MPhil is a short-term degree exposing students to research and contributing to their curriculum vitae. Students having an MPhil, according to social scientists, also performed better in their PhDs.
Gender Dimension in the Scrapping of MPhil
In a Facebook post, JNU lecturer Ayesha Kidwai stated that the MPhil abolition has a gender dimension as well. She claims that since 2012–2013 a majority of women have enrolled for the degree, with the current figure hovering around 60%.
She also added that the announcement shows how women’s participation in conceiving and studying research subjects and in the education sector’s labour force is of little importance to educational policy-makers.
Mithuraaj Dhusiya, a member of the Academic Council, stated that the MPhil program has played a significant role in building research aptitude at DU and other Indian universities across several generations. This has been made possible by the program’s provision of rigorous coursework and introduction to higher research.
Read more DU Express here: DU to issue Hardcopy Degrees to 2021 Graduates
