M.PT and M.OT get formal specialisations as UGC rewrites its degree list

The University Grants Commission has amended its specification of degrees — the fifth amendment to the 2014 notification, published in the Gazette of India on 27 August 2026 under Section 22(3) of the UGC Act, 1956. In plain terms: these are now the degree names a university may legally award, and allied health has finally been written into the list properly.

Master of Physiotherapy

M.PT now carries named specialisations in musculoskeletal sciences, neurosciences, cardiovascular and pulmonary sciences, sports sciences, paediatrics and neonatal sciences, obstetrics and gynaecology sciences, oncology sciences, and community rehabilitation sciences.

Master of Occupational Therapy

M.OT specialisations include musculoskeletal sciences, paediatrics and neonatology, neurosciences, mental health, rehabilitation, geriatrics, hand and oncological sciences, and cardiovascular and pulmonary sciences.

And the rest of the allied health family

Bachelor's and master's degrees are specified for medical laboratory science, emergency medical technology, anaesthesia and operation theatre technology, nutrition and dietetics, psychology, medical radiology, radiation therapy, nuclear medicine, respiratory technology, physician associates, dialysis therapy and health information management.

Why this matters more than it sounds

A degree that is not in the commission's specification is the degree that causes trouble later — at a job application, at a registration counter, at a foreign university's credential check. Naming the specialisation on the certificate also ends the long-running awkwardness where two M.PT holders with entirely different clinical training carried identical paperwork.

The change applies to students admitted from the 2026-27 academic year. Anyone already enrolled receives the degree under the regulations in force when they joined — so if you are midway through an M.PT, your certificate will not retroactively acquire a specialisation line.

CareerBox News Desk — reporting on the fifth amendment to the University Grants Commission (Specification of Degrees) notification, published in the Gazette of India. Official portal: ugc.gov.in. Dates and eligibility change; confirm them on the official portal before you act.