NAAC Revises Grading System

The National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) has revised its grading system, under which the existing four-point grading system -- A, B, C and D -- has been replaced with a seven-point system. The revised grading will be implemented from July 1.

NAAC director DP Singh said in a circular dated May 17, " The present system of descriptors for letter grades, that is, very good, good, satisfactory, unsatisfactory, is discontinued... All higher education institutions for which visits will take place from July 1 will be graded as per the revised grading system irrespective of date of submission of self-study report."

All other aspects of assessment and accreditation methodology such as criteria, calculation of cumulative grade point average (CGPA), and the manuals remains the same, the circular says.

The new gradings are A++ (cumulative grade point average of 3.76 to 4), A+ (3.51 to 3.75), A (3.01 to 3.50), B++ (2.76 to 3), B+ (2.51 to 2.75), B (2.01 to 2.50, and C (1.51 to 2). Institutions which get less than 1.50 cumulative grade point average get D grade and such institutions will not get accreditation.

About NACC-

The NATIONAL ASSESSMENT AND ACCREDITATION COUNCIL (NAAC) is an autonomous body established by the University Grants Commission (UGC) of India to assess and accredit institutions of higher education in the country. It is an outcome of the recommendations of the National Policy in Education (1986) which laid special emphasis on upholding the quality of higher education in India. To address the issues of quality, the National Policy on Education (1986) and the Plan of Action (POA-1992) advocated the establishment of an independent national accreditation body. Consequently, the NAAC was established in 1994 with its headquarters at Bangalore.

Source - Prasad Patil, City Journalist, College Dekho