Maulana Azad National Fellowship For Minority Students

The Maulana Azad National Fellowship (MANF) was introduced by the Ministry of Minority Affairs to provide financial assistance to individuals pursuing a PhD for five years. The Maulana Azad National Fellowship gave assistance to individuals belonging to minority communities like Buddhist, Jain, Christian, Muslim, Parsi, and Sikh. 

The individuals belonging to the minority communities were selected through entrance exams like UGC NET and CSIR NET. The selected students were enrolled in any UGC recognised university for the PhD program. However, this fellowship was discontinued in the year 2022-23. Students will be getting their fellowship stipend till the end of their program. The duration of the Maulana Azad National Fellowship is 5 years, which includes 2 years of Junior Research Fellowship and 3 years of Senior Research Fellowship. 

Individuals who haven’t cleared the entrance exams can complete their PhD degree through the online DBA program. The online DBA program refers to the Doctor of Business Administration, which is equivalent to a full-time PhD program. The classes will be held online, which is an ideal option for individuals who are working. 

Key features

Features	Details
Fellowship	Maulana Azad National Fellowship
Duration	5 years
Objective	Offer financial assistance to minority students in PhD programs.
Year of discontinuation	2022-23

Eligibility Criteria for the Fellowship

The individual had to meet the following eligibility criteria to receive the Maulana Azad National Fellowship before its discontinuation:

• The individual must belong to the minority community recognized under Section 2 (c) of the National Commission for Minorities Act, 1992, viz., Buddhist, Christian, Jain, Muslim, Sikh, Zoroastrian (Parsi). 
• Individuals who have cleared the UGC NET and CSIR NET are eligible for this fellowship.   
• The individuals cannot apply for more than one fellowship 
• Employees of any university/college/ Educational Institution/ Central/ State/ UT are not eligible to receive the Fellowship. 

How to apply 

To apply for the fellowship, students are required to meet the following criteria: 

• To avail this fellowship, students are required to apply for the entrance exams like UGC NET or CSIR NET. 
• The candidate must meet all the eligibility criteria to apply for the fellowship
• They must submit all their required documents 
• Individuals are selected based on merit. 

Stipend details

The stipend offered in the Maulana Azad National Fellowship before its discontinuation was- 

Fellowship	Stipend details (monthly)
Fellowship in Science, Humanities, and Social Science	INR 31,000(JRF)   INR 35,000 (SRF)
Fellowship in Engineering & Technology	INR 31,000 (JRF)   INR 35,000  (SRF)

NOTE: The Maulana Azad National Fellowship was discontinued from the year 2022-23. 

https://d1aeya7jd2fyco.cloudfront.net/uploads/2025/08/28/1736920570.pdf

Reasons for the discontinuation of the fellowship

The Maulana Azad National Fellowship was discontinued from the year 2022-23. The main reason for the discontinuation was the overlap of many schemes for higher education. 

Students who were already enrolled in the fellowship will continue to receive the fellowships till the end of their respective tenures. 

After the discontinuation of the Maulana Azad National Fellowship, individuals can receive fellowships through the Junior Research Fellowship after clearing the UGC NET and CSIR NET. 

JUNIOR RESEARCH FELLOWSHIP 

 The Junior Research Fellowship or JRF is a fellowship provided to students pursuing PhD programs in various specializations, including humanities, arts, commerce, or science. Students who appear for the entrance exams for the PhD (Doctor of Philosophy) are eligible for the fellowship. The individuals have to get scoring marks in the entrance examination, like UGC NET and CSIR NET. 

Students who couldn’t get the cut-off scores to be eligible for the JRF and wish to pursue their Phd program from the top universities. Such individuals can consider opting for the online DBA program. The online DBA, which refers to the Doctor in Business Administration, is considered equivalent to the degree earned through a regular PhD program. 

Eligibility for Junior Research Fellowship

The criteria for the Junior Research Fellowship are- 

• Individuals who have cleared any of the entrance examinations and got cut-off marks in UGC NET or CSIR NET. 
• They must also meet the eligibility criteria of the University to which they wish to enroll. 

Earn your JRF through UGC NET 

The University Grants Commission - National Eligibility Test (UGC-NET) is a national-level examination conducted twice a year. The examination is conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA) to determine the eligibility of individuals who wish to pursue a PhD. Based on the scores, the students are selected for the junior research fellowship. 

The individuals will not receive the fellowship if they get the cut-off scores; they have to enroll in a university to avail the benefits of the fellowship.  

Who can apply for the  UGC NET?

The eligibility criteria for applying for the fellowship through UGC NET are as follows-

Educational Qualifications

• To apply for the UGC NET, a post-graduation in any of the streams, like social science, science, and commerce, is required from a UGC recognized university. 
• The candidates must score at least 55% or above in their post-graduation to be eligible to apply for the UGC NET 
• Individuals belonging to the reserved category must score at least 50% or above in their post-graduation to apply for the examination. 

Age criteria

For the Unreserved category (General category)

• The maximum age limit of 30 years applies to individuals who belong to the unreserved category. 

            Reserved category (SC/ST)

• Students belonging to the reserved category have a five-year relaxation. Therefore, the upper age limit for individuals belonging to the reserved categories is 35 years. 

Number of Applicants applied for UGC NET 

Here is the number of individuals who applied for the UGC NET and qualified for the JRF in the year 2024. 

Highlights	Details
Number of candidates registered	11,21,225
Number of candidates who appeared	6,84,224
Candidates qualified for JRF	4970

Stipend details of the fellowship 

Here is the detail of the stipend offered in UGC NET and CSIR NET Junior Research Fellowship:

Designation	Duration	Qualification	Stipend (monthly)
JRF through UGC NET	2 years	Post-graduation in humanities, social science, science, and equivalent subjects.	37,000
JRF through CSIR NET	2 years	Post-graduation in science or related subjects	37,000

What is CSIR-NET?

The CSIR NET refers to the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research National Eligibility Test. This examination is conducted at the national level once a year by the National Testing Agency. The examination checks the eligibility of the students who wish to pursue a PhD in science or related fields. The applicants needed to wait for the cut-off marks and results after their exam was conducted. 

The individuals will only receive the fellowship after they have enrolled in a university or institute that offers the fellowship. 

Who can apply for the CSIR NET fellowship

The eligibility criteria for the CSIR NET fellowship are as follows- 

• The individuals must have their post-graduation in Life Sciences
• They must have a minimum of 55%  in their master's,
•  The upper age limit of the individuals applying for the CSIR NET is 30 years. 
• There is age relaxation for individuals belonging to the reserved categories, which is 5 years. 

Applicants for CSIR NET 

The table below represents the number of applicants who applied and qualified for the fellowship in the year 2022-2023.

Subjects	Registered	Appeared	Cleared JRF
Life Science	1,05,478	78,168	73,953
Chemical Science	61,559	44,429	43,421
Mathematical Sciences	52,432	38,002	33,589
Physical Science	44,835	32,671	30,790
Earth Science	9,723	6,620	7,122

Pursue your doctoral degree through the DBA program

The individuals who couldn’t meet the eligibility criteria to enroll in any of the universities for their PhD program can also consider opting for the online DBA program. An online DBA refers to the Doctor of Business Administration, which is a three-year online program to earn your doctoral degree. The degree earned from an online DBA program is considered equivalent to the degree earned from a regular PhD program. 

Key highlights of the online DBA program:

Here are a few features of an online DBA program- 

• An online DBA program is a three-year program
• The classes will he held online, and the enrolled students can take classes at their convenience. 
• An online DBA offers programs in various specializations.
• The individuals will receive their doctoral degrees from a top foreign university. 
• The individuals will earn the ‘Dr’ title on completion of their program
• In the DBA program, students will learn practical skills that they can use in both international and national markets. 
• As the classes will be held online, the enrolled students will meet their subject-matter experts online. Where they will learn about their subject and clear their doubts.
• After receiving the degree on completion of the DBA program, the students will receive a wide range of job opportunities from top companies. 
• The individuals will enhance their personality 

How to take admission in an Online DBA program:

The individual has to meet these requirements to take admission in the online DBA program- 

•  There is no interview process or entrance exams to take admission in the program.

Educational Qualification:

• The candidate must have a bachelor's degree in any of the specializations with a minimum of 5 years of experience. 
• Individuals having a master’s degree in any specialization are also eligible to apply for the online DBA program. 

Top universities that offer online DBA programs

Here's the list of universities that offer online DBA programs along with their fee structure:  

Universities	Fees
Birchwood Online University DBA Online	INR 6,00,000
Golden Gate University DBA Online	INR 8,14,000
Rushford Business School DBA Online	INR 8,12,500
EIMT Online DBA	INR 5,50,000
ESGCI International School of Management Paris DBA Online	INR 8,14,000
Swiss School of Business Management DBA Online	INR 7,50,000
Edgewood College DBA Online	INR 7,00,000