UGC Approves 101 Universities, 20 Category-1 Institutions for ODL, 126 for Online Courses in 2025-26

The University Grants Commission (UGC) has published the list of approved institutions to conduct the 2025-26 academic session and approved 101 universities and 20 Category-1 institutions to execute the programs under the Open and Distance Learning (ODL) model, and 126 institutions to offer the online programmes.

The announcement is made when the UGC is still opening more ways to access higher education by flexing. The accredited institutions will be in a position to accept students to join programs starting with the July-August 2025 academic year.

Key Highlights:

• ODL Programs: 101 universities and 20 institutions of category-1 have been granted to conduct courses under the Open and Distance Learning mode.
• Online Programs: 126 institutions have been granted to provide online degree programs.
• Admission Deadline: Students should have their admissions made by October 15, 2025.

The Indian distance and online education regulation and quality are regulated by the Distance Education Bureau (DEB) of the UGC. The commission has been slowly but steadily expanding the number of accredited institutions to fulfil the increasing demand for flexible education among working professionals and students who are unable to access the normal on-campus education programs.

Student Precautions:

UGC has also cautioned the students to confirm the status of the institutions before joining ODL or online courses. The full list of approved institutions and programs is available on the UGC-DEB official site, and the students must use it to ensure that they are not lured to unidentified institutions.

The growth in the number of institutions that are recognized is an indication of the willingness of the government to democratize the educational process and offer quality learning opportunities in different forms of teaching.

The full list of recognized universities and the specifics of the program are available to students below.