Pune: The Savitribai Phule Pune University (SPPU) has announced that the online PhD Entrance Test (PET) for admission to its various departments and affiliated research centers will be held on August 24.

Students who have registered for the examination can download their hall tickets starting from 6 PM on Monday, August 19, through the university’s official portal at https://bcud.unipune.ac.in/phd_entrance/applicant/login.aspx.

The university invited applications from prospective PhD candidates through an online process, with the application window closing on August 10.

A total of 10,600 students have applied for the PhD programs offered by the university, highlighting the intense competition this year. The entrance test will be conducted at designated centers in Pune, Ahmednagar, and Nashik districts.

Given the large number of applicants compared to the available seats, the competition is expected to be fierce. The list of candidates who will be sitting for the PhD entrance exam has been published on the university’s PhD tracking portal.

As per the official schedule, the results of the PhD entrance examination will be declared on September 5. University authorities have made efforts to ensure that students are assigned examination centers close to their homes, wherever possible.

Recently, research students were protesting outside Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Research and Training Institute (BARTI) office demanding a 100 per cent fellowship for Ph.D. scholars.

The students have been rallying for the state government to increase the fellowship from 50 per cent to 100 per cent, a demand which is expected to be fulfilled in a meeting soon to be organized with the Chief Minister Office.