Centre for Development Studies PhD Economics Admission 2025-26

Centre for Development Studies (CDS), an Autonomous Research Centre sponsored by the Government of Kerala and the Indian Council of Social Science Research (ICSSR) invites applications for its PhD Programme in Economics for the academic year 2025-26.

About CDS PhD Economics Program

The PhD programme in CDS was launched in 1975. The Programme has a strong orientation towards development with a core focus on economic aspect of development.

The degree is awarded by the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), New Delhi. CDS is also a recognised centre for the PhD research of Kerala University. Admission to the programme and its conduct will be according to the prevailing rules and regulations of the University Grants Commission (UGC) and PhD Ordinance of JNU.

The PhD research topics chosen by the students are usually aligned with the research interest and expertise of CDS faculty members. Therefore, applicants are advised to go through the research profile of the current faculty members and PhD supervision vacancies available with each faculty member provided at CDS website www.cds.edu.

Broadly, the research interest and expertise of the current faculty members include Macroeconomic issues of Indian economy, Industrial Development, International Trade, Innovation and Technological Progress, Gender and Development, Migration and Development, Poverty, Vulnerability and Social Security, Labour and Employment, Agriculture and Plantations.

JNU PhD Ordinance also allows for PhD Programme in part-time mode, provided that all the relevant provisions in the Ordinance are complied with.

Eligibility Criteria

Candidates having any one of the followings are eligible to apply.

• An M.Phil degree from any Indian university recognized by the UGC or from a foreign educational institution.
• Master’s degree or a professional degree declared equivalent to Master’s degree by the corresponding statutory regulatory body, with at least 55% marks in aggregate or its equivalent grade ‘B’ in the UGC 7-point scale (or an equivalent grade in a point scale wherever grading system is followed).
• An equivalent degree from a foreign educational institution accredited by an Assessment and Accreditation Agency, which is approved, recognized or authorized by an authority, established or incorporated under a law in its home country or any other statutory authority in that country for the purpose of assessing, accrediting or assuring quality and standards of educational institutions.

A relaxation of five percentage points in marks, from 55% to 50%, or an equivalent relaxation of grade, may be allowed for those belonging to SC/ST/OBC(non-creamy layer)/Person with Disability (PWD) (≥ 40%) and other categories of candidates as per the decision of the UGC from time to time, or for those who had obtained their Master’s degree prior to 19th September, 1991. The relaxation of 5 percentage points in the case of the categories mentioned above are allowed only on the qualifying marks without including the grace marks, if any.

Those awaiting results of the qualifying degree may also apply. Such candidates, if selected, will be allowed to join the programme only if their previous institutions certify that they have completed all the requirements for award of degree. The name of such candidate shall stand automatically removed from the rolls of the Centre & University if he/she fails to acquire the relevant degree or the relevant marks/grades stipulated above in Master’s programme, when his/her results are announced.

In addition to the above eligibility requirements, the candidates should also possess any of the following:

• Must have qualified for UGC JRF and the offer of the JRF is valid at the time of applying. OR
• Declared eligible for PhD admission based on the score of UGC NET Examination of June 2024 onwards.

Admission Process

• The admission process is different for UGC-JRF and non-JRF holders. Note that candidates having fellowships other than UGC-JRF (like NFSC, NFST and NFOBC) will be considered under the category of non-JRF and the corresponding admission procedure will be applicable.
• JRF category candidates having valid NET score, if they prefer, can seek admission through non-JRF route. For this the candidates have to mention this in the relevant field in the application portal and these candidates will be considered for admission under non-JRF route as explained below.

Admission of JRF holders

• In the case of candidates qualified for JRF through UGC NET examination, the admission will be based solely on personal interview. The interview will be held in online mode and its date will be announced later.

Admission of non-JRF holders

• Admission of non-JRF holders and JRF holders who preferred non-JRF route will be done on the basis of the UGC-NET score and a personal interview. Final selection will be based on combined scores of the UGC-NET and interview; the scores will be combined by giving 70 percent weight to UGC-NET score and 30 percent to interview score.

Research proposal and interview

• Candidates have to submit a research proposal written in English along with their application.
• The research proposal should not be more than 2000 words.
• The research proposal should have a critical understanding of the body of knowledge in the proposed area of research and to be specific in terms of study issues and objectives and to demonstrate some understanding of the analytical framework and data.
• The research proposal should not be a copy of a study presented as part of any other programme.
• Applications without research proposal will be summarily rejected.

The interview focuses on the followings.

• The competence of the candidate to undertake the research proposed in the re-search proposal.
• The suitability of pursuing the research at the Centre.
• The potential of the proposed research to contribute the relevant literature.

Fellowships

• Students who have already cleared doctoral research fellowship schemes like JRF can avail them for their PhD research in CDS.
• PhD students in CDS can also apply for the ICSSR doctoral fellowship. ICSSR doctoral fellowships are awarded on the basis of an all India competition in terms of quality of the research proposal submitted by the candidate to the ICSSR.
• It is important to note that admission to the PhD programme in CDS does not guarantee fellowship. Therefore, candidates not having cleared any fellowship scheme must have a plan for financing their doctoral research.

Application Process

• Candidates are required to apply online through the online application portal given in the website www.cds.edu.
• It is the responsibility of the candidates to ensure that all the relevant details are correctly entered.
• Applications that are found to be incomplete or contain incorrect information at any stage of the admission process will be rejected without any notice.

• Date of Online Registration: August 07, 2025 to August 25, 2025
• Online interview for shortlisted candidates: September17 -20, 2025 (tentative)
• Commencement of programme: October 15, 2025

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