The University Grants Commission (UGC)  issued a cautionary notice advising students against enrolling in the Master of Philosophy (M.Phil) program offered by certain universities.The commission, through an official notification, said some universities were still accepting fresh applications for the M.Phil course, despite the UGC cancelling it in 2022. The education body said M.Phil was no longer a recognised degree.The official notice stated, “It has come to notice that a few universities are inviting fresh applications for M.Phil Programs. In this regard, it is brought to notice that an M.Phil degree is not a recognised degree.”The UGC referred to its 2022 regulation, which prohibits higher educational institutions from offering M.Phil programs. Students with a Masters degree can now directly apply for a PhD.After the UGC discontinued M.Phil, it instructed universities to prevent admissions for the academic year 2023-24.The decision to stop M.Phil was officially communicated by the UGC at the beginning of last year, as it aligned its “Minimum Standards and Procedures for Award of PhD Degree Regulations” with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.The NEP advocates a four-year Bachelor’s degree and a research-intensive Master’s degree, eliminating the need for an M.Phil for a PhD.