Doctoral Programme

NALSAR is a national law university established by Act 34 of 1998 to provide comprehensive legal education. It is recognised under Sections 2(f) and 12(B) of the University Grants Commission Act, 1956, accredited ‘A++’ by the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC), and has consistently been ranked third for the study of law by the National Institutional Ranking Framework.

NALSAR’s fully residential 50‑acre campus is at the ‘Justice City’ in Shamirpet, around 26 km from Hyderabad. It offers hostels, a dining hall, sports facilities, a well‑equipped library, Wi‑Fi classrooms, a moot court hall, an auditorium, a health centre, and counselling services, with 24‑hour power backup.

There are 15 vacancies in Law and/or Social Sciences and Humanities, and 10 vacancies in Management, across their respective cognate disciplines.

Yes. Admissions are made only if research proposals are found satisfactory and suitable; the University may also admit more candidates whose proposals align with its research agenda.

Candidates must hold a relevant Master’s Degree in Law, Management, Humanities, Social Sciences, or their cognate disciplines, as applicable, with at least 55% marks, or 50% for SC/ST/OBC-NCL/PwD/EWS categories. Candidates with professional qualifications, namely ACS, CA, or Cost Accountancy, are also accepted.

Yes, applicants who have qualified the UGC‑NET/UGC‑CSIR NET examination, or hold a JRF in their respective disciplines, are exempted from writing the entrance examination.

The online examination is 3.5 hours in length and carries 100 marks. It tests Research Aptitude and Writing Skill for 50 marks in 1.5 hours, and Disciplinary Knowledge for the other 50 marks in 2 hours in the relevant discipline.

Candidates must secure at least 50% of the marks in the written examination to be considered for the proposal and interview stage. The University may set a higher cut‑off mark.

Yes, candidates need a personal laptop/desktop with a functioning camera, an internet connection of at least 10 Mbps, the latest Google Chrome browser, and a system without disruptive pop‑ups.

The proposal, of 1,500 to 2,000 words, must clearly state the research problem and include a literature survey that demonstrates the topic is unexplored and capable of yielding an original scholarly contribution.

Proposals are checked for plagiarism, and any with a similarity index above 15% (excluding properly cited sources) or duplicating already registered topics may not be considered for the interview.

The fees are the same for both the Ph.D. in Law and/or Social Sciences and Humanities, as well as Ph.D. in Management. They are as follows:

• Registration fee (to be paid with application): INR 2,000 (INR 1,000 for SC/ST candidates)
• Admission fee: INR 10,000
• Tuition fee: INR 20,000 (one-time, payable at the time of admission)
• Retention fee: INR 1,000 for every completed six months
• Library fee: INR 5,000 per annum
• Internet fee: INR 8,000 per annum
• Thesis fee: INR 12,000
• Re-registration fee: INR 2,500 per annum

Refundable deposits:

• Library deposit: INR 5,000
• Mess deposit: INR 5,000
• Hostel deposit: INR 10,000 (INR 4,000 for SC/ST candidates)

In addition to the fees above, Ph.D. candidates living on campus have to pay the following:

• Electricity charges: INR 12,000 per annum
• Generator diesel charges: INR 5,000 per annum
• Water charges: INR 12,000 per annum
• Outsourced services: INR 3,000 per annum
• Room rent: INR 24,000 per annum
• Mess advance: INR 40,000 per annum

Official updates appear on www.nalsar.ac.in. For any other queries, you can email registrar@nalsar.ac.in and copy phdadmissions@nalsar.ac.in.

Yes, a virtual campus tour is available through the official YouTube channel here: https://youtu.be/2t_ryCjbfiE?si=brP-d69GShJpic4r