Best Career Options After Qualifying UGC NET 2024

Sudeshna chakrabarti

Updated On: February 21, 2025 01:39 PM | UGC NET

The best career options after qualifying UGC NET include opportunities at ONGC, Indian Oil Corporation Limited, PGCIL, NMRL, and more. Both state and central governments, as well as PSUs, offer various lucrative roles to NET-qualified candidates.

Best Career Options After UGC NET

Some of the best career options after qualifying UGC NET include career opportunities at ONGC, Indian Oil Corporation Limited, PGCIL, and NMRL among many others. The National Testing Agency (NTA) will tentatively declare the UGC NET 2024 Result for the December Session today, on February 21, 2025. The UGC NET 2024 December Result will be released at ugcnet.nta.ac.in along with the UGC NET Cutoff 2024. The authority will release the UGC NET 2024 Dec final answer key anytime soon. The UGC NET 2024 exam for December session was conducted from January 3 to January 27, 2025. The UGC NET 2024 result for the June session was announced on October 17, 2024 while the NTA released the final answer key on October 12, 2024. The UGC NET 2024 exam for the June session was held from August 21 to September 5, 2024, for 83 subjects.

The UGC NET is a key exam for candidates seeking teaching and research jobs. Qualifying for UGC NET is essential for eligibility as an Assistant Professor or Junior Research Fellow in colleges and universities. Additionally, state and central governments, along with PSUs, offer various roles to NET-qualified candidates with lucrative packages. The average salary for UGC NET qualifiers ranges from INR 30,000 to INR 60,000 per month. Candidates appearing for the UGC NET 2024 can proceed to apply for suitable opportunities after the UGC NET results 2024 are released by July/August 2024. Besides teaching and research, this article guides you on the best career options after clearing the UGC NET exam.

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What is UGC NET?

NTA (National Testing Agency)administers the UGC National Eligibility Test twice a year to help candidates become professors. It is an online exam comprising two papers: the first paper aims to test the examinee’s knowledge about teaching pedagogy and research. Whereas, the second paper is devoted to the core subject selected by candidates based on their Master’s specialization. Candidates can choose two options which include JRF or Assistant Professor. After successfully securing UGC NET passing marks 2024 , candidates can apply for lecturer or assistant professor posts at India’s top colleges and universities while JRF candidates can pursue careers as Junior research fellows, project fellows, etc.

Also Read:

Highlights on UGC NET

Explore some of the important details about UGC NET from the table below for a better understanding:

UGC NET HIghlights

Details

Conducting Authority

NTA (National Testing Agency)

Mode of Application

Online

Exam Mode

Online

Duration

3 hours

Total Questions

150

Frequency of Exam

Twice a Year (June and December)

Total Papers

  • Paper 1: Teaching, Research, and General Intelligence
  • Paper 2: Core subject

Also Read: UGC NET 2024 Important Topics for English Literature

Best Career Options After Qualifying UGC NET Exam

Candidates who are looking for other career options apart from an Assistant Professorship or JRF must note that Public Limited Companies like THDC India Private Limited. and PGCIL recruit UGC NET qualified candidates. Candidates can go through the table below to check the vacancies released by the THDC and PGCIL.

Public Sector Undertakings
(PSUs)

Post

Discipline

PGCIL Management Trainee (HR) Labour Welfare/ Industrial Relations/ Labour & Social Welfare/ Personnel Management/ Human Resources Management
Officer Trainee Labour Welfare/ Personnel Management/ Human Resources Management Industrial Relations/ Labour & Social Welfare/
THDC India Limited Public Relations Executive Trainee Mass Communication and Journalism
Human Resource Executive Trainee Labour Welfare/ Personnel Management/ Labour & Social Welfare/ Human Resources Managemen/t Industrial Relations
NHPC Trainee Officer Civil, electrical, mechanical, electronics and communication, IT, geology, and environment
Engineers Civil, electrical, mechanical, electronics and communication, IT, geology, and environment
Medical officers Civil, electrical, mechanical, electronics and communication, IT, geology, and environment

Top Career Options after UGC NET in PSUs

The Public sector organization provides exciting and lucrative career options to UGC NET-qualified candidates across multiple job roles. PSUs generally hire people in domains like corporate communications, management, finance, human resources, and science. Let’s help you learn more about these posts.

Indian Oil Corporation Limited

It's a renowned PSU offering top career options pursued by many after qualifying for UGC NET 2024. IOCL hires candidates across management, communication, and related sectors. Applicants can access the recruitment notification from its official website. Each of the posts comes with different qualification requirements; e.g. those applying for the human resources department need to qualify for UGC NET with management and hold an MBA degree. Besides considering the NET score, group discussions, writing tests, and interviews are also conducted to choose the best out of the rest.

ONGC

The ONGC full form is Oil and Natural Gas Corporation. Being India’s top-rated crude oil corporation often appears on the wishlist of NET-qualified candidates. There are a few roles for which the organization uses UGC-NET as the main selection parameters. If you have qualified UGC NET or are participating in the upcoming session then you can apply for roles of HR, PR officers, and official language officers at this prestigious company. Candidates can earn a package of up to INR 60,000 to 1,80,000 per month along with allowances.

NMRL

Naval Materials Research Laboratory is a renowned research-based organization. The company hires Junior Research Fellows from time to time. If you wish to be part of this emerging industry, choose JRF when applying for the UGC NET examination with subjects such as chemistry, physics, or mechanical. Apart from the score achieved in NET, a personal interview will also be conducted during the recruitment. Candidates can bag a monthly salary of around INR 30,000 along with remunerations and allowances.

THDC India Limited

The positions available in this PSU are Executive Trainee - Human Resource and Executive Trainee - Public Relations. The disciplines for HR Executive are Labour Welfare/Human Resources Management/Industrial Relations/Personnel Management/Labour & Social Welfare and the discipline for Public Relations Trainee is Mass Communication & Journalism.

PGCIL

The full form of PGCIL is Power Grid Corporation of India. The positions available are Assistant Officer Trainee (HR) and Management Trainee (HR). Candidates must pursue disciplines like Labour Welfare/ Personnel Management/ Industrial Relations/ Labour & Social Welfare/ Human Resources Management to seek employment in this PSU.

Also Read : UGC NET June Certificate 2024

Career Options after Qualifying UGC NET- JRF

After clearing the UGC NET and Junior Research Fellowship (JRF), candidates will have to pursue research as primary career option in their chosen field, typically by enrolling in a Ph.D program at a recognized university. There they have to conduct research under the guidance of a faculty member, publish research papers, and pursue a career as a research professor in academia. Other potential career options comprise working in research departments of PSUs or private companies depending on one's specialization. Before that, it is important to note that they will receive a fellowship for five years after clearing the UGC NET JRF Exam, whose advantage is that they provide with a stipend of Rs. 31000/- per month for the first two years of Ph.D. enrollment and 35000/- per month for the next three years of their research period.

Non-teaching Jobs After UGC NET

When it comes to choosing a career after qualifying UGC NET most individuals pave the common path which is teaching; however, a lot more exciting opportunities can also be availed. Many corporate firms hire NET-qualified candidates across various departments that often include research or academic domains. Let’s check out some of the top job roles in the academic sector.

Transmission Executive

Transmission executive is a respectable and lucrative career option for NET-qualified candidates. Generally, broadcasting corporations like AIR hire for this job profile. As part of the daily responsibilities, aspirants need to work at radio or television broadcasting center stations and will be responsible for watching programs being telecasted and framing reports. Transmission executives can bag an annual package of around INR 3.7 lakhs per annum.

Author

People portraying creative skills and love writing can make an opportunistic career as a writer or author in different government or private sectors. A lot of options are available including fiction writers, newspaper editors, copywriters, or academic content writers. An author’s role is researching, writing, editing, and drafting articles across various platforms like web or print media. Writers or authors can earn a salary of up to INR 9 lakhs per annum based on the type of organization or sector one chooses.

Intellectual Property Manager

It is a renowned position in corporate sectors that NET-qualified candidates can pursue. As part of the responsibilities, you need to scrutinize and enquire about the existing patents to ensure that their employer’s intellectual property is safeguarded at the time of any technology transfers. Intellectual property managers can earn an annual package of INR 19.5 lakhs per annum.

Career Options in College Teaching After UGC NET

The most common and best career option after qualifying for UGC NET is undoubtedly an Assistant professor or lecturer at a recognized university. After meeting the required cutoff, candidates can move ahead with the process of applying to different colleges in India. Initially, aspirants can kickstart their career as part-time lecturers, and based on their performance they can seek promotion as Assistant professors. Let’s explore the various positions that fall under the college teaching profile and their respective packages.

Post

Annual Package

Junior Assistant Professor

INR 4.92-5.75 LPA

Assistant Professor

INR 6.8 LPA

Senior Assistant Professor

INR 12 LPA

Associate Professor

INR 20 LPA

Professor

INR 36 LPA

Also Read: How to Become a Professor

Creative Career Options After Qualifying UGC NET

After qualifying UGC NET, candidates can pursue for creative jobs that suit their personality. This is for them who can't do 9 to 5 jobs on a set pattern. Such candidate with UGC NET certificate can look up the below mentioned jobs:

  • Author
  • Lyricist
  • Scriptwriter
  • Editor
  • Content Writing
  • Copywriting
  • Educational content development
  • Online course creation
  • Designing educational programs
  • Freelance researcher
  • Academic blogger

How to Secure a Career Through the UGC Portal?

Candidates after qualifying UGC NET often stumble upon finding the right platform to search for a suitable job. To assist such aspirants, the University Grants Commission has created a portal. This specialized academic job portal offers an exclusive opportunity for NET-qualified candidates to reach out to their prospective employers. To begin job hunting, candidates must register at the portal. Check out the steps to complete the registration process below:

  1. Browse the UGC job portal-jobportal.ugc.ac.in
  2. Find the “register” option at the top left corner of the homepage
  3. Enter valid details to complete the registration
  4. After successful registration, candidates can begin searching for their preferred jobs

The aforementioned career option after UGC NET might have offered you insight into the kind of opportunities you can bag after UGC NET. Embark on the path to a fulfilling career by taking into account your passion and ambitions.

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FAQs

What is the salary of a JRF qualified?

The salary of a JRF qualified is INR 37,000 per month for the first two years of the fellowship, according to the most recent UGC guidelines. The fellowship is upgraded to Senior Research Fellowship (SRF) after two years, with a monthly stipend of INR 42,000.

Is UGC NET very hard?

Undoubtedly, the UGC NET exam is hard and passing the exam requires a lot of work. However, with diligent preparation and effective strategies, it is possible to pass the exam in the first attempt. Candidates must first become familiar with the syllabus and exam pattern, create a time-table, make short notes for quick revision, and appear for mock tests to strengthen their preparation for the exam.

What is the benefit of passing UGC NET?

The benefit of passing UGC NET is that candidates become eligible to become an Assistant Professor post or Junior Research Fellowship to work in colleges and universities as teachers/professors/lecturers. Candidates also become eligible to work under state government, central governments, and PSU organizations with the salary package ranging from INR 30,000 to INR 60,000 per month. 

Can I get a government job after UGC NET?

Yes, you can get a government job after UGC NET. PSUs generally hire people in domains like corporate communications, management, finance, human resources, and science. UGC NET qualified candidates become eligible for PSUs like Indian Oil Corporation Limited, Oil and Natural Gas Corporation, THDC India Limited, Power Grid Corporation of India, and Naval Materials Research Laboratory, etc. The salary package goes up to INR 60,000 to 1,80,000 per month along with allowances.

Is UGC NET a good career option?

Yes, UGC NET is a good career option. UGC NET qualified candidates can become an Assistant Professor or Lecturer in any Indian university. They can also seek employment in top PSUs like Indian Oil Corporation Limited, Oil and Natural Gas Corporation, Naval Materials Research Laboratory, etc. Candidates can earn a package of up to INR 60,000 to 1,80,000 per month along with allowances.

Can NET-qualified candidates without a Ph.D. secure teaching jobs in colleges?

Yes, to work as a lecturer or assistant professor UGC NET is considered as the qualifying parameter. Well, in universities, working s a professor requires aspirants to hold a Ph.D. degree.

What is the starting salary of UGC NET-qualified candidates?

According to the 7th pay commission, the UGC NET-qualified candidates irrespective of their roles can bag an initial salary within the pay band of INR 15600-39100+AGP INR 6000.

What are the career options after UGC NET JRF?

Candidates who applied for UGC NET JRF can secure a plethora of career options in the research domain with handsome packages. Some of the top job profiles pursued by the candidates are:

  • Project fellow
  • Project Assistant
  • Author
  • Project manager

What is the difference between UGC NET for assistant professor and JRF?

NTA administers both UGC NET for Assistant professors and JRF twice a year. Though the exam pattern remains the same however difference lies in the cutoff. Candidates applying for JRF need to score more marks than the ones chosen  Assistant professor option in UGC NET.

Is it possible to become a professor after qualifying for UGC NET?

No, after qualifying UGC NET candidates need to start their career in college teaching as a lecturer or junior assistant professor. With better performance and experience, they will be eventually promoted to the post of a professor.

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