Difference Between Autonomous and Deemed University

Choosing a university can be a daunting task as we move on to study for further education. And we at Formfees have a view that if you want to go to study at the top Universities then you need to have a common understanding about the “ Difference Between Autonomous and Deemed University “ along with, Private institution or State & Central University as well because the validity of an educational degree is of utmost importance for a successful career and professional growth.  

As far as we know that  there are a total of 1074 universities in India that have been known to offer undergraduate and postgraduate courses in different subjects along with streams like science, arts, commerce, fine arts, etc. There Are universities that have been classified into various categories based on the type of education, and courses offered, amg many other factors. .

So, as a common knowledge we know that  mainly, All Indian universities have to be recognised by the UGC which is also known as the University Grants Commission That helps the university to function legally and offer valid degrees. 

Moreover, the UGC recognises the institutions on factors like: Institutions fulfilling the parameters are awarded recognitions 

1. Central, 
2. State
3. Private
4. Autonomous and Deemed-to-be universities/colleges. 

And if the institute is recognised by the UGC, it is recognised by the Government of India and the degree is valid across countries as well

Total Number of Universities in India

Difference Between Autonomous and Deemed University: 

As per the statistics there are about 1074 universities in India. Which are also classified into Central, State, Private and Deemed-to-be universities. 

Take a look at the table below for category-wise total number of universities in India.

S. No.	University Type	Total Number
1	State Universities	460
2	Deemed-to-be Universities	128
3	Central Universities	56
4	Private Universities	430
	Total	1074

There are mainly four kinds of universities. They are Central Universities, State Universities, Deemed Universities and Private Universities.

• Central Universities: These universities are established by an Act of Parliament and come under the direct purview of the Ministry of Education in India.
• State Universities: These universities are established and funded by the State.
• Deemed University or Deemed- to-be- university- These include universities which have been granted autonomy by the MHRD on the advice of the UGC based on their excellent performance in academics. 
• Private universities- These universities have autonomy over their courses and exams and also awards degrees to its students. However, they cannot affiliate an institution or college.

Other than the above-mentioned universities, there are also some other institutions which award degrees of higher education to students such as undergraduate, postgraduate and doctoral degrees.

Autonomous University

Autonomous universities are actually autonomous branches of a state or central university which have the freedom to decide their own courses, syllabus, fee structure and pedagogy. However, it cannot awards degrees in its own name. The degrees are awarded under the name of the parent university.

Institutions of National Importance

The top institutes of the country such as IITs, IIMs, AIIMs, IISERs, NITs, IIITs, NIDs, some central universities and ither specialised research institutes are considered to be Institutions of National Importance (INI) under an act of Parliament of India. The aim of these institutes is to play an important role in developing skilled personnel in the country in the fields of technology, medicine, research, etc. These institutes receive special recognition and funding from the Government of India and are autonomous institutes.

Deemed University

An educational Institute is given the title of a deemed university when it is considered to provide excellent quality of education and knowledge to its students.  These universities also provide world- class research facilities. The status of a deemed university is granted to an institution of higher education by the Ministry of Human Resource Development on a recommendation by the UGC. Deemed Universities follows guidelines given by the UGC but have a certain degree of autonomy over subjects such as course design, syllabus, exams, etc.

• Deemed universities have the autonomy to design its own course curriculum and teaching methodologies. This gives them an opportunity to be different from other universities as they get the freedom to adapt to most updated techniques as and when required.
• Deemed universities have administrative autonomy too. This means they are given the right to set their own rules and regulations. 
• Deemed universities are also given autonomy in awarding degrees to its students. This is useful in increasing the brand value of the university among students and their parents.
• Using the Right to Information Act (RTI), a person can also attain information about any deemed university in India.

Deemed Universities can be considered to be very good options for students because of the autonomy that these universities enjoy in implementing changes related to science and technology in the course curriculum and research facilities according to the changing needs of the world for the students.

Some universities can also misuse this autonomy by implementing policies which might not be very helpful to the students. Therefore, it is important to do some research about the institute, its courses, its research facilities, placements, etc. before taking admission into any deemed university. 

Difference between Autonomous and Deemed Universities

1. The status of deemed university is granted to an institution of higher education by UGC for setting high standards in the domain of academics, whereas Autonomous institutes are affiliated to a Government University (state or central). 
2. Autonomous institutes get the autonomy to design its own courses and syllabi and take its own exams but it cannot award degree of its own. It awards the degree in the name of the Government university to which it is affiliated. Deemed university on the other hand, has full autonomy over its courses, syllabus, exams and awarding of degrees. 
3. A deemed university is generally freer and more flexible in comparison to an autonomous institute. An autonomous institute often has to follow the guidelines of the university of which it is an autonomous part.
4. There is only one university running under the name of the deemed university. But there can be many autonomous institutes of the same parent government university.
5. It is necessary for a deemed university to run a research-based course along with several other courses. For an autonomous institute, this criterion is not important. Research based courses are not a must in autonomous institutes.

State Universities

Universities established or set up by a State Act come under the category of State Universities. Today, there are 425 state universities in India. It is the responsibility of the state to maintain the state universities through adequate grants and funds. The state universities are also expected to conform to the rules and guidelines of the UGC, even if UGC provides state governments with grants only in very special cases. Some of the popular State Universities are- Mumbai University, University of Calcutta, Jadavpur University, Punjab University, Osmania University, Hyderabad, etc.

Difference between State University and Deemed University

• State Universities are established and funded by the state government, whereas Deemed universities are given the status of deemed by the UGC.
• The state university is a public university and has the responsibility to provide education to large masses of the society. It has to design its fee structure in a way such that it is affordable by maximum number of people in the state. On the other hand, deemed universities are often more costly as it vouches to provide latest infrastructure and technology to its students. Deemed universities have full autonomy in deciding the fee structure of its courses.

Frequently Asked Questions about Difference Between Autonomous and Deemed University

Q1. Is autonomous and deemed university same?

Ans. No, deemed and autonomous universities are not same. Autonomous institutes are affiliated to a government university while deemed university gains it status by approval from UGC.

Q2. What is difference between university and deemed university?

Ans. The main difference between a university and deemed university is that deemed university is actually not a full- fledged university, it is just provided autonomy in its matters by being given the title of “deemed” by Director of Higher Education upon the advice of UGC. If deemed universities continue to perform well, they might have a chance to be granted with the status of a university by the UGC.

Q3. Is deemed university good or bad?

Ans. Deemed university is better than many state or central universities in terms of infrastructure and latest technologies used. These universities are given a status of deemed due to high excellence in research fields as well as course curriculum. So, these are certainly good options for students.

Q4. What is autonomous university?

Ans. Autonomous university is generally affiliated to a government university but has autonomy to decide its own courses, exams and syllabus. The award degrees however are given in the name of the parent university.

Q5. Which is best autonomous or deemed university?

Ans. Both the universities have its own advantages and disadvantages. As an autonomous institute is affiliated to a government university, it provides more guarantee and is more trustworthy. On the other hand, deemed university has full autonomy and hence tries to work for the best of its students. But too much autonomy can also affect the students negatively as it does not have a controlling body like an autonomous institute.

Q6. Is IIT a deemed university?

Ans. IITs come under the category of Institutes of National Importance. They are established by the Institutes of Technology Act, 1961 unlike deemed universities established under UGC Act 1956. IITs are Central Funded Technical Institutes and are neither given the status of the university and nor are they guided by the UGC.

Q7. What is benefit of studying in deemed university?

Ans. Deemed universities are considered to be good options for students as they have very well-developed infrastructure as well as updated market- oriented courses to offer to its students. They usually provide good placements too and are mostly popular for designing courses beneficial in developing skills in students. As they have autonomy over their courses and syllabus, their courses are updated and advanced in nature than the curriculum of the state university.

Q8. Which is the best deemed university in India?

Ans. Some of the best deemed universities in India are- Jamia Hamdard, New Delhi; BITS Pilani; Bharati Vidyapeeth, Pune; SRM University, Chennai; Banasthali University, Rajasthan; VIT Vellore; Birla Institute of Technology, Mesra, Ranchi; Manipal University, Manipal; Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, Coimbatore, KIIT University, Bhubaneshwar.