Why the affiliation system is outdated

An often less discussed feature of the National Education Policy (NEP), 2020 is the new regulatory system envisaged for affiliating colleges. The objective of the new system is to foster empowerment and autonomy by gradually phasing out the affiliation system over a period of 15 years through a process of graded autonomy.

The NEP suggests that each existing university should play the role of a mentor for its affiliated colleges, and enable them to develop their own capabilities and achieve minimum benchmarks in academic and curricular matters, teaching and assessment, governance reforms, financial robustness, and administrative efficiency in order to become self-reliant. All affiliated colleges will have to attain the minimum required standards to secure accreditation benchmarks and acquire the status of an autonomous degree-granting institution. Needless to say, it is a big reform for which nation-wide efforts and governmental support is a sine qua non.

Untethering colleges

The college-university affiliation system has long served as the foundational structure for higher education and is so deeply entrenched in the Indian higher education system that disassociating colleges with the university sounds unrealistic. Universities conduct affiliation for colleges in accordance with the University Grants Commission (UGC) guidelines to maintain academic standards, ensure uniform curriculum and examinations, and regulate infrastructure and faculty quality. Moreover, college affiliation in India is not a one-time process. The affiliation is usually granted initially for one year and renewed annually or periodically.

However, while the conventional university affiliation model once provided centralised control and administrative stability, it now seems to hinder the growth, autonomy, and quality of colleges. The university affiliation system is now riddled with systemic inefficiencies, archaic academic rigidity, and administrative challenges that impede the progress of colleges.

Multiple challenges

One of the most significant problems with the affiliation system is the overwhelming burden it places on universities. Most universities in India are affiliated with hundreds of colleges, and entrusted to manage examinations, evaluate answer scripts, design curriculum, monitor college compliance, and oversee academic and extracurricular activities for an overwhelming number of students. The attention of resource strained universities, especially State universities, gets diverted from their core functions, such as research, innovation, faculty development, and collaboration, due to heavy administrative workloads. As a result, universities are compelled to act merely as bureaucratic bodies instead of pushing the boundaries of knowledge both for students and faculty. 

The lack of autonomy for affiliated colleges poses another challenge. Under the present university affiliation system, it is mandatory for all colleges to follow the regulations, syllabi, examination patterns, and administrative instructions issued by the affiliating university. This dependency prevents colleges from designing their own courses that align with their local or industrial needs, and emerging market trends. This rigidity imposes uniformity at the cost of creativity, denying colleges the freedom to differentiate themselves through specialised courses, modern pedagogical practices, or interdisciplinary initiatives. As a result, the potential for innovation is stifled. 

Then there is the slow pace at which curriculum reforms take place under the university affiliation model. Since universities oversee a large number of colleges, revising curricula requires extensive consultations, committee meetings with the board of studies and department councils, and administrative approvals from academic councils. This process often takes a very long time, causing course content to become outdated by the time reforms are implemented. The educational needs of students in disciplines such as engineering and technology change very rapidly, but the affiliation system is simply not agile enough to respond with the required speed. 

Moreover, the affiliation model, despite its best intentions to standardise education, has led to quite the opposite. While all colleges may follow the same curriculum, the actual delivery of education varies drastically due to the huge gaps in infrastructure. Many colleges operate with inadequate laboratories, insufficient library facilities, outdated equipment, and a shortage of qualified teachers. Such disparities weaken the credibility of standardised learning outcomes, as students from different colleges under the same university may graduate with vastly different levels of skill and competence.

An alternate model

While the university affiliation system once played a vital role in expanding higher education, its limitations now hinder progressive educational aspirations.

Instead of affiliations, colleges may be encouraged to participate in the National Institutional Ranking Framework/National Board of Accreditation exercise which is grounded in established quality criteria. The future of higher education in India hinges on empowering institutions with autonomy, flexibility, and the capacity to innovate freely — conditions the affiliation system can no longer adequately provide.

Milind Kumar Sharma teaches in the Department of Production and Industrial Engineering at MBM University, Jodhpur

Published – March 18, 2026 01:39 am IST