The National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) is set to launch a new accreditation system for higher education institutions in August this year. Under this system, physical inspections will be replaced by Artificial Intelligence-powered assessments and online document verification.
The NAAC aims to accredit over 90 per cent of higher education institutions in the country using the new framework over the next five years, according to NAAC Chairman Prof Anil Sahasrabudhe, who shared this in an interview with ANI.
The framework will include both a basic accreditation system and a more advanced, maturity-based, graded-level accreditation. The new framework will replace the current eight-point grading scheme.
"The earlier model had nearly 90 parameters, 70 per cent of which were verified through document-based evidence and 30 per cent through peer team visits. But peer visits led to complications and integrity concerns. That's why, in the new system, there will be no physical visits for basic accreditation. Instead, the process will rely on verified documents," he said.
The reform initiatives are based on suggestions from a committee chaired by former Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) Chairman K Radhakrishnan, who was appointed by the Education Ministry in November 2022 to restructure the accrediting system.
Under the existing system, only around 40 per cent of India's universities and 18 per cent of colleges are accredited.
The NAAC, an autonomous agency that examines and accredits higher education institutions (HEIs), hopes that the new method will cover the majority of HEIs while also addressing integrity problems.
A fundamental novelty in the upcoming system is the use of artificial intelligence, which removes the necessity for peer review trips in favour of crowdsourced validation from a diverse pool of stakeholders.
The basic system will classify institutions as either "accredited" or "not accredited." Institutions will be evaluated using 55 factors for universities, 50 for autonomous institutions, and 40 for affiliate colleges.
Those who score below the criteria (50 per cent for universities, 45 per cent for autonomous institutions, and 40 per cent for associated ones) will not be authorised.
Institutions that have already been accredited under the prior systems, such as NAAC grades A, A+, or A++, will be able to apply immediately for maturity-based graded level accreditation.
In a maturity-based system, the quantity and complexity of parameters grow with each level, indicating the institution's maturity and goals.
Physical visits are expected to be added only at Levels 3, 4, and 5, and even then, they will be performed in a hybrid format, with some online and some on-site, to maintain checks and balances while reducing the possibility of manipulation.
The new system also incorporates essential elements of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, including encouragement for innovation, multilingualism, numerous entry-exit points, sustainability, and internationalisation.
Foreign institutions that establish campuses in India will also be entitled to apply under this scheme.
