Why the NIRF must keep students at the centre

INTO ITS SECOND DECADE, IT MUST RISE TO BECOME NOT A RANKER, BUT A REFORMER

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WITH THE RELEASE of the NIRF 2025 rankings — the National Institutional Ranking Framework — India’s higher education discourse has been stirred.

While many celebrate the visibility it offers to institutions, others express disbelief at certain ‘wins’, and some question the credibility of parameters such as ‘perception’ which often feel imprecise or ineffectively captured. Yet, despite its limitations, the NIRF remains one of the few frameworks that allows every university in India to see itself in the mirror. Paid rating agencies rarely provide that opportunity, especially to publicly-funded or smaller institutions.

But the NIRF, in its current form, is largely a data aggregation exercise. To evolve into an inclusive, illuminative, and responsible tool, four key improvements are necessary.

Graduation outcomes