University Grants Commission - Sri Lanka

Terms of Reference

Purpose and Key Responsibilities

1. The UGC is empowered to appoint Standing Committees as and when required to facilitate the implementation of its mandate and overall strategies of the Line Ministry of Higher Education and the UGC itself.
2. The membership and powers of the Standing Committees are determined by the Commission and the Chairman of each Committee is also deemed as a member of the Commission. The Standing Committee on Humanities and Social Sciences addresses pressing strategic issues in the Social Sciences and Humanities such as;
3. The lack of interfaces between the natural sciences, social sciences and humanities
4. The lack of opportunity for academic staff, recent graduates and professionals to pursue postgraduate studies at internationally recognized universities
5. The quality and relevance of courses in terms of learner centered and skill based education that increases graduate employability and
6. Proactively apply academic research findings to national policy making

Objective

• To provide operational and strategic direction in aligning the Social Sciences and Humanities to the changing needs of the global and national priorities.

Mutual Expectations

• Initiate actions on policy directions by the UGC based on the overall strategies in national policies and strategic imperatives and facilitate the implementation of prescribed initiatives, programmes and activities in universities, campuses and institutes that come within the purview of the UGC.
• Evaluate proposals submitted by universities and other HE institutions pertaining to curricular reforms and curriculum development for new study programmes and submit recommendations to the Commission to ensure that courses are practically oriented, user focused, are inter-disciplinary and of the highest academic quality.
• Departments/Faculties/Institutes and submit recommendations to the Commission to build on the strong academic base of our HE Institutions in training and capacity development.
• Frame guidelines for planning of new undergraduate degree programmes, namely;

• ways and means of evaluating need and demand
• graduate profile
• structure of the study programmes
• courses and intended leaning outcomes and planning for course modules
• evaluation procedures and
• credit qualification framework for natural and applied science degree programmes.

• Promote research and dissemination by reviewing research grants for postgraduate studies, seminars and dissemination and make recommendations to the Commission on how dissemination and knowledge building could be enhanced.
• Function as a catalytic unit to promote new initiatives and reforms to improve and advance quality and relevance of natural and Applied Science Degree Programmes and convey to the Commission for consideration.

Operating Procedure

• The Standing Committee will meet once in two months at the UGC. A designated member of the Committee will develop an agenda for the meeting with input from all its members. The Committee will be chaired by the Chairman of the Committee and the minutes will document all the agreements and action plans.
• Decision making will be by consensus but subject to approval by the UGC Commission.
• The progress of the Standing Committee will be reviewed every 6 months to address outstanding issues and delays.

Members Information