Page 501 - Compendium of UGC Regulations 1957-2023

Regulations pertaining to Credits, Academic Programmes and Award of Degrees:

(g) ‘Diploma’ means an award, not being a Certificate or Degree, granted by a Higher
Educational Institution, certifying that the recipient has successfully completed an
Online Course or Programme of study of minimum one year duration;
(h) ‘e-Learning Material’ means and includes contents in the form of structured course
material, as a part of one or more courses in the Online Course or Programme, in
digital format delivered through Learning Management System, which is inter-alia
self-explanatory, self-contained, self-directed at the learner, and amenable to self-
evaluation, and enables the learner to acquire the prescribed level of learning in a
course of study, but does not include text-books or guide-books;
(i) ‘Examination centre’ means a place, where examinations are conducted for the online
mode learners, having the requisite infrastructure including security features for smooth
conduct of such examinations;
(j) ‘Higher Education’ means such education, imparted by means of conducting regular
classes or through open and distance education systems or through online education
system, beyond twelve years of schooling and leading to the award of a Certificate or
Diploma or Degree as the case may be;

(k) ‘Higher Educational Institution’ means a university covered under clause (f) of section
2 and an institution deemed to be a university under section 3 of the Act, which is
imparting higher education or research therein by means of conducting regular classes
or through Open and Distance Learning systems or through online education system:
(l) ‘Learner Support Services’ means and includes such services as are provided by a
Higher Educational Institution in order to facilitate the teaching-learning experiences
by the learner;
(m) ‘Learning Management System’ means a system to keep track of delivery of e-Learning
Programs, learner’s engagement, assessment, results and reporting in one centralized
location;
(n) ‘Open University’ includes a University which imparts education through distance
education or Open and Distance Learning mode using different modes of Information
and Communication Technology;

(o) ‘Information and Communication Technology’ means the devices, tools, content,
resources, forums that can be converted into or delivered through digital forms, which
can be deployed for realizing the goals of teaching learning, enhancing access to and
reach of resources, building of capacities, as well as management of the educational
system;
(p) ‘MOOCs’ shall have the same meaning as assigned to it under sub-regulation 3.6
of regulation 3 of the UGC (Credit Framework for Online learning courses through
SWAYAM) Regulations 2016;
(q) ‘Online Course or Programme’ means the Course or Programme of studies which is
delivered through online mode leading to award of a Certificate or Diploma or Degree
by an approved Higher Educational Institution and recognised under these Regulations;
(r) ‘Proctored Examination’ means the examination conducted under the physical
supervision of approved neutral person who ensures the identity of the test taker and
the integrity of the test taking environment.
(s) ‘SWAYAM’ (Study Webs of Active Learning for Young Aspiring Minds) means the
learning management system as specified in the UGC (Credit Framework for online
learning courses through SWAYAM) Regulation 2016;

500
UGC Regulations