Those with an ITEP qualification will also be eligible to take the CTET and STET; eligibility criteria will be revised..

The National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE) is set to revise the eligibility criteria for the Central Teacher Eligibility Test (CTET) and State Teacher Eligibility Tests (STET). The NCTE has constituted an expert committee tasked with reviewing the existing guidelines for the Teacher Eligibility Test (TET) and proposing necessary amendments to include graduates of the Integrated Teacher Education Programme (ITEP). This move comes as the first batch of ITEP students is set to graduate during the 2027-28 academic session. Although the NCTE has granted recognition to the four-year ITEP, it is not explicitly included as an eligibility qualification under the current TET guidelines. Notably, qualifying for the relevant TET is a mandatory requirement for appointment to teaching positions.

Let us examine the matter in detail. We will look into what the ITEP entails, the committee formed by the NCTE, and the proposed changes.

ITEP can be pursued after Class 12; it is equivalent to a B.Ed.
The Integrated Teacher Education Programme (ITEP) was introduced under the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020. This four-year undergraduate course can be pursued after completing Class 12 and is equivalent to the existing two-year B.Ed. program, which is currently undertaken after graduation. At present, 409 higher education institutions are authorized to offer the ITEP, with a total capacity of 38,850 student admissions across 777 units. While the NCTE has recognized this as a teacher education program, it is not yet formally recognized for the purpose of appearing for the CTET or STET. Consequently, the NCTE is now moving to amend the eligibility criteria for these tests.

Who are the members of the committee? The committee constituted by the NCTE will be chaired by Professor Chand Kiran Saluja, former head of the Central Institute of Education (CIE) at Delhi University (DU). The committee also includes representatives from the NCERT, KVS, the Ministry of Education, the NCTE, and the CBSE.

The committee will review the following issues:
The committee formed by the NCTE will review the existing eligibility criteria for the CTET and STET. Furthermore, it will propose changes to enable ITEP graduates to appear for the CTET and STET examinations. To this end, the current provisions governing the CTET and STET will be examined, and recommendations for adjustments—aligned with the ITEP framework—will be made wherever necessary.

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