Distance/Online Degree Admission 2026: Last Date, UGC Guidelines, Top Colleges

How To Verify Universities Offering Online Programmes?

To ensure the quality of online education, UGC DEB has made regulations so that students can enrol in the right institution and programme.

According to UGC guidelines, the higher educational institutions (HEIs) that are entitled to offer online programmes must meet NAAC or NIRF ranking requirements.

The UGC has made it mandatory for all HEIs that are recognised and entitled to offer ODL and Online programmes to display the following details on their websites.

• Applications submitted to UGC

• Affidavits and approvals from statutory bodies

• Regulatory authority approvals (if applicable)

• Additional information on their website as per regulation 9, i.e., Self-regulation through disclosures, declarations and reports of UGC (ODL Programmes and Online Programmes) Regulations, 2020.

This information will significantly help prospective students to choose the right university for online programmes.

Students should also confirm the recognition status of HEIs offering ODL and Online education for the session opted for admission on UGC DEB website, check the details on the HEIs' website, take note of prohibited programmes and prohibition of franchising arrangement and ensure that all activities are being conducted within Territorial Jurisdiction for ODL Programmes.

Also Read: How to Choose the Right Online MBA Colleges in India

Mandatory Creation of DEB-ID

Students applying for open distance learning and online programmes are required to create a DEB ID on the UGC-DEB web portal. They shall register their Academic Bank of Credit (ABC)-ID to generate a unique DEB-ID to enroll in ODL/Online programmes in recognised/entitled HEIs. The DEB-ID once generated on the UGC-DEB web portal will remain valid for lifelong ODL/Online learning.

Check How to Create a UGC DEB ID for Admission in Open and Distance Learning (ODL) and Online Programmes

List of Universities Entitled to Offer Online Programme

UGC has released a new list of HEIs entitled to offer online programmes from academic year 2025-26, session July-August 2025. As per the new UGC list, 113 universities, across state, private, central, state open, and deemed-to-be, are entitled to offer programmes in online mode.

Additionally, the latest UGC notification lists 13 higher education institutions (HEIs) recognised to offer online programmes for academic year 2025-26, session July-August 2025.

Explore UGC Entitled vs UGC Recognised Online Degree: What Students Should Know?

List of Universities Entitled to Offer ODL Programme

UGC has also released a new list of HEIs entitled to offer open and distance learning (ODL) programmes from academic year 2025-26, session July-August 2025. As per the new UGC list, 101 institutions are recognised to offer programmes under open and distance learning mode.

Apart from this, UGC DEB has also listed Category-I HEIs entitled to offer ODL programmes for academic year 2025-26, academic session July-August, 2025. As per the latest UGC notification, 20 institutions are entitled to ODL programmes.