PhD: Full Form, Entrance Exam, Admission 2025, Fees, Scholarships and Eligibility

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Aparajita Debnath

Content Writer | Updated on - Oct 4, 2026

PhD (Doctor of Philosophy) program is offered in more than 3000 colleges in India. It is the highest academic for candidates pursuing their education in the field of research and development. The time span of PhD program can range from anywhere between 5-6 years. The PhD program is offered in various modes such as Government/ Semi Govt Fellowship recipient students, Institute Reasearch Scholars with Teaching Assistance, Self-Financed candidates (Indian/ Foreign Candidates), Sponsored, Study Leave Candidates, ICCR Awardees, Part Time researchers.

PHD admissions in India are based on the scores of national entrance tests like UGC NET, GATE, JEST, CSIR NET. Candidates having a valid score in the mentioned exams are eligible for scholarships while pursuing the PhD program. The monthly scholarships under various exams vary from 5 thousand ? 67 thousand rupees.

Aspiring NET candidates must register themselves for the exam by December this year. However, the final selection of students is based on written test and interview. Private universities may encourage direct admission on the basis of your academic qualifications, university entrance tests and interview.

PhD application requires a research proposal for admission to IITs or NITs. You must clearly describe your intent to research the topic within 1500-3000 words count. After PhD admission, you can get stipend from government at around INR 37,000 per month as a Junior Research Fellow. Further, you can get Teaching Assistantships of around INR 31,000-37,000 per month for the first two years and INR 35,000-42,000 monthly for remaining years.

Why PhD?

PhD program is an advanced and highest academic degree that is offered in both full-time and part-time mode. Students willing to conduct deep research in a specific field aspire to earn a PhD degree. Here, given below the primary reasons to apply for PhD program:

Education Ministry offers valuable stipend amounting to INR 37,000 per month for Junior Research Fellow and INR 42,000 per month for Senior Research Fellow.
You can get opportunities to develop your career as Lecturer, Researcher, Associate Professor and Assistant Professor.
As an Associate Professor, you can expect to earn around INR 3 LPA-24.5 LPA.
You can apply for fellowships that offer stipend amounting to INR 37,000-70,000 per month for pursuing the program.

Top Specializations for PhD in India

PhD full form is Doctor of Philosophy that covers various specialization topics like Chemistry, Mathematics, Economics, Business Management etc. The table below states the lists of popular PhD specialization courses:

List of Popular PhD Specializations
PhD in Humanities	PhD in Chemistry
PhD in Economics	PhD in Bioinformatics
PhD in Psychology	PhD in Commerce
PhD in Mathematics	PhD Biotechnology
PhD in Civil Engineering	PhD in Engineering
PhD in Computer Science Engineering	PhD in Aeronautical and Automobile Engineering
PhD in Anthropology	PhD in Hospital Administration
PhD in Economics	PhD in Political Science
PhD in Clinical Psychology	PhD in Physics
PhD in Artificial Intelligence	PhD in Food Technology
PhD in Mechanical Engineering	PhD in Chemical Engineering
PhD Business Administration	PhD in Accounting and Financial Management
PhD in Logistics and Supply Chain Management	PhD in Management
PhD in Law	PhD in Legal Studies
PhD in Education	PhD in Teaching

Top PhD Colleges in India

More than 1000 colleges in India offered PhD courses that includes both private and public or government colleges. Government colleges like IIT Delhi, IIT Bombay, IIT Roorkee, Hyderabad University etc. offer PhD at an affordable cost ranging from INR 13,050- 1.02 lakhs p.a. For studying at private colleges, you may be charged around INR 23,833- INR 1.20 lakhs yearly. The table below states the fees and entrance exam for top colleges offering PhD program:

NIRF Ranking 2024	Top Colleges	Entrance Exam Accepted	Annual Tuition Fee
1	IIT Bangalore	GATE	INR 1.54 lakhs
3	IIT Delhi	GATE/CSIR/ UGC NET/ICAR/ICMR	INR 59,800
4	IIT Bombay	GATE/JEST, UGC NET	INR 1.02 l akhs
7	IIT Kanpur	GATE	INR 84,410
9	IIT Roorkee	GATE / CEED / JEST / UGC-NET / CSIR-NET	INR 13,050
13	VIT Vellore	VITREE	INR 40,00 0
18	Jawaharlal Nehru University	UGC NET/CSIR-NET/ICMR/GATE	INR 1 lakhs
23	Manipal Academy of Higher Education	Manipal Entrance Test (MET), UGC / CSIR ? NET ? JRF / ICMR ? JRF / DBT ? JRF / JEST	INR 23,833
24	SRM Institute of Science and Technology	UGC-NET/UGC- CSIR NET/GATE/CEED	INR 60,000
28	University of Hyderabad	UGC NET	INR 30,92 0
44	Lovely Professional University	LPUNEST	INR 1 lakhs
47	Amity University, Noida	UGC NET / CSIR / ICAR (ASRB), ICAR-AICE-JRF/SRF (PhD) / GPAT / ICMR / GATE	INR 1 lakh s

Direct Admission PhD Colleges

You can get direct admission to private colleges without NET clearance. However, students must appear for interview or university entrance test. You can take admission to government colleges like IITs, if you have 60% marks in MTech/ME/MD/MDes or equivalent. Here, given below the list of colleges to apply directly for PhD program:

List of Colleges
Amity University, Noida	Lovely Professional University
Symbiosis University, Pune	Thapar University
ICFAI University, Hyderabad	Chandigarh University
Christ University, Bangalore	Chitkara University

PhD Entrance Exam Registration Deadline 2025

You need to appear for national or university level entrance exams to apply for PhD course. UGC NET is the primary exam to pursue PhD programs in top colleges. The table below states the registration deadlines and cutoffs for PhD entrance exams:

Entrance Exam	Cutoffs	Registration Deadline
UGC NET	58-190 (varies as per different subjects)	10 December 2024
CSIR NET	46-99 %	21 May 2025 ( Tentative)
GATE	GEN: 25.2-37.1 OBC: 22.5-33.3 SC/ST:16.6-25.2	3 October 2025 (Tentative)
SET	GEN: 89 SC: 50 ST: 48 PwD: 45	12 April 202 5 (Tentative)
GPAT	GEN: 96 percentile SC: 75 percentile ST: 54 percentile OBC: 90 percentile	May 2025 (Tentative)
JEST	90 percentile	Application will open in the 1^st week of January 2025
AIIMS PhD Entrance Exam	-	26 January 2025
VITREE	-	25 November 2025 (Tentative)

PhD Application Process

PhD admission in India takes place twice in a year in the Spring and Autumn semesters. Admission to the spring cycle begins in January and autumn session starts from July. Here, given below a step-to-step guide to apply for PhD program:

Identify the research institutions and universities that offer PhD programs.
Visit the official website to check the program requirements, faculty profiles and research projects of the institutions.
Make sure you meet the eligibility criteria of the program.
Prepare for entrance exams like UGC NET, JRF, SET or university levels tests.
Collect the documents like marksheets, research proposal, statement of purpose, letters of recommendations and entrance exam scores.
Submit your application form along with the documents and pay the application fee.
After getting selected, you may be asked to attend the interview.
Wait for the notification of admission decision.
After receiving the admission offer, complete the enrolment process and pay the tuition fees.

PhD Eligibility Criteria

You must have master degree in related fields with 55% marks to apply for PhD program. Students having MPhil degree with 55% marks also can apply for the program. The table below highlights the PhD eligibility criteria for Tier 1, Tier 2 and Tier 3 universities:

Categories	Tier 1 Universities	Tier 2 Universities	Tier 3 Universities
Academic Qualifications	You must have master and 4-year bachelor degree in related fields	Hold a master degree and 4 years bachelor degree in related field from a recognized university	You must have 2-year master degree and 3-year bachelor degree in related fields or you can have 1-year master degree and 4-year bachelor degree in related fields.
Minimum Percentage	Secure 60% marks in masters and 70-75% marks in bachelors	Minimum 55% marks in masters and 75% marks in bachelor studies	Secure 55% in masters and 50% in bachelors
Entrance Exam	GATE/CSIR/ UGC NET/ICAR/ICMR	Either appear for PhD entrance test (PET) or qualify UGC NET / CSIR / ICAR (ASRB), ICAR-AICE-JRF/SRF (PhD) / GPAT / ICMR / GATE	Either clear UGC NET or appear for PhD entrance test
Research Proposal	Required	Not mandatory	Not mandatory
Interview	Admission is based on written test and interview	Admission is based on written test or interview	Admission is based on interview only. Some universities may take written tests.

PhD Scholarships

Students can apply for research assistantships or teaching assistantships to afford the expenses of studying PhD courses. You can also get the benefit of scholarships that cover 50% of tuition fees of the program. The table below states the popular PhD scholarships offered by different universities:

Scholarship Name	Eligibility	Award Amount
Amity Research Fellowships	You must have 55% marks in masters degree and 75% marks in bachelor degree. You must be 28 years of age when applying.	INR 37,000/month
IIT Bombay PMRF Fellowship	You must have strong academic qualifications and show potential for research	INR 70,000 per month
IIT Bombay Teaching Assistantship	You must have BE/BTech/BArch/MSc/MA or equivalent degree and GATE or national level test score	INR 37,000 per month for 1st two years. INR 42000 per month for remaining years
IIT Delhi Teaching Assistantship	You must have BE/ BTech/ MSc/ MTech or equivalent degree	INR 31,000 per month for the 1^st 2 year of registration INR 35,000 per month for next 2 year of registration
VIT Vellore- SC & ST Adi-Dravidar Tribal Welfare Scholarship	Only SC and ST category students are eligible	INR 1.35 Crore
Manipal University- Dr. TMA Pai Scholarships	You must have master degree with 60% marks and bachelor degree with 75% marks	Varies

PhD Stipend

The Ministry of Education offers a stipend to PhD research scholars that varies as per seniority. The monthly stipend has received a hike after 1^st January 2023. Here, given below the stipend as per different designations of PhD students:

Categories	Stipend
Junior Research Fellow	INR 37,000 per month
Senior Research Fellow	INR 42,000 per month
Research Associate-I	INR 58000 per month
Research Associate-II	INR 61,000 per month
Research Associate-III	INR 67,000 per month

Students after securing PhD degree get opportunities to develop their career as lecturer, research scientist, associate professors and assistant professors. For pursuing the program, you must have a master degree or MPhil degree with 55% marks. You must be qualified UGC NET or GATE to apply to top colleges. You will get the chance to earn a government stipend of INR 37,000-67,000 as per your research level of experience.