General Info

Goa University was established under the Goa University Act of 1984 (Act No. 7 of 1984) and commenced operations on 1st June 1985. The University is included under Section 2(f) of the UGC Act, 1956 and also awarded the status 12 B of the UGC Act, 1956 by the University Grants Commission. The University provides higher education in the Indian state of Goa. It is located on Taleigao Plateau overlooking Zuari estuary on a picturesque campus spread over 402 acres with state-of-the-art infrastructure such as faculty blocks, administrative building, library, sports facilities, student hostels, bank, post office, staff quarters, etc. Campus-Wide Internet connectivity with strong bandwidth is available for all 24 hours a day. The University took over the enhanced role of the Centre of Post-Graduate Instruction and Research (CPIR), which was set after the liberation of Goa by India in December 1961, by the University of Bombay (now Mumbai) in June 1962. Since 1985, Goa University has offered graduate and post-graduate studies and research Programmes. The university has implemented the curriculum as per NEP-2020 policy and has given a provision for multiple exit/entry options in its degree programs by adopting the Academic Bank of Credit Policy. The university also encourages students to opt for online courses on SWAYAM and other approved portals of the Government of India. The university conducted various online activities through the Directorate of Digital Learning and Initiatives like Unigoa Pathshala.

The National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF), an initiative of the Ministry of Human Resource Development, Government of India, ranked Goa University in its 2024 cycle of ranking Indian Higher Educational Institutions. Goa University was placed in the State Public University Rank-band of 51-100 and the University Rank-band of 151-200.

QS ranking has been ranked Goa University at 621-640 rank band in QS Asia Ranking 2025. In Southern Asia, Goa University is ranked 187 by the QS ranking. Goa University has been ranked in the 1451- 1500 rank band in the QS World Sustainability ranking 2025. Goa University has been rated as “Very High” in Research output.

In the Times Higher Education ranking Goa University holds an overall rank of 1501+ worldwide among the 2092 Universities in the world in the Times Higher Education World University ranking 2025. Goa University has been ranked 83rd in India among the 107 Universities that participated from India. Teaching is the highest-ranked pillar, followed by Research Quality of Goa University in THE ranking. The University has been ranked 501-600 in Asia. Under the category of Young University, Goa University has been ranked 401-500 in the World. The University has been ranked under the 1001-1500th in Quality Education 2024, 601-800th in Gender Equality 2024, and 1001-1500th in Partnership for Goals 2024 under Impact rankings on SDGs.

'India Today' ranked Goa University at the 23rd level among the General (Government) Universities in India (in 2024). 'The Week' ranked Goa University with 41st rank in India in the Overall category (Multidisciplinary Universities), 22nd in India in the State University category (Multidisciplinary Universities), and 7th in the Western Zone (Multidisciplinary Universities). Goa University is ranked 35th by the 'Outlook I Care Best University Ranking 2023' among the Government Universities.

Over the years, the University has steadily expanded its reach, both in terms of the number of affiliated colleges - professional and general education numbering to 67, as well as the diversity of courses offered. These colleges offer various courses leading to a degree at the graduate or post-graduate level. Some of them are also recognized as research centers to offer Ph.D. Programmes.

The University, on its campus, has ten Schools which were formed by amalgamation of traditional Departments to allow the organic evolution of new courses. These Schools offers various Programmes leading to Undergraduate Degree (3), Master’s Degree (44), Ph.D. Degree (28) and various certificate/diploma cpurses in various disciplines. The University has made a significant impact at the national level in various areas of specialization and draws students in select disciplines from across the country. Geographically, Goa is located in an ecologically sensitive region along the Western Ghats and the Arabian Sea. Goa University has appropriately emerged as an important resource centre for research in the field of flora and fauna endemic to this region, as well as the marine environment. The Ministry of Earth Sciences has recognized Goa University’s significant contribution in this domain, as a consequence of which a Centre of Excellence was established in Marine Microbiology. The Schools at the University have developed excellent research facilities, and large funding for research is received from Central Government agencies such as the University Grants Commission, the Department of Science & Technology, the Ministry of Earth Sciences, the Ministry of Environmental Sciences and Climate Change, the Department of Biotechnology, etc. For a relatively small university, Goa University attracts generous funding for research projects from national funding agencies, which reflects the high quality of research undertaken by the faculty at the university (http://info.unigoa.ac.in/proj_yrwise.php). Goa University has been at the forefront of its societal activities. University has adopted five villages in Goa under Unnat Bharat Abhiyan and, under this scheme, has carried out various activities that directly benefit the villagers (https://www.unigoa.ac.in/a/directorate-of-unnat-bharat-abhiyaan-duba.html). University has taken a project on mussel farming at Marcaim village. The university has successfully implemented a student summer internship program through its curriculum since 2018, and several students have been trained in this program. Very recently, the University successfully completed a community project on the revival of Puran Sheti in Sattari Taluka, which benefits many villagers.

Goa University has established a Research Park, “GURU,” housing three incubators: A Bio incubator, an IT incubator, and a Health Incubator 2024, which is open to students and researchers to seed their ideas for start-ups. Goa University has been selected under the Scheme of Pradhan Mantri Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan (PM-USHA) under Multi-disciplinary Education and Research Universities (MERU) with financial support of Rs 100 crore in February 2024.

The strength of Goa University lies in the number of research publications and the H-index. Goa University has so far published over 7000 research publications (including PhD theses), and the full text of these are available at the unique Publications Repository. There are very few state universities in India that have made such an effort to consolidate the information. There is a multi-fold increase in the visibility of the university with its publications on the repository. The current H-index, as per the Web of Science database, from just 2332 journal publications out of 7400 is 83.

In addition to the conventional graduate and postgraduate Programmes, Goa University has also taken initiatives to provide innovative Programmes. Some noteworthy initiatives are the National Resource Centre in Marine Science under the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) for the professional development of higher education using the MOOCs platform SWAYAM, the State Resource Centre for Women funded by the Ministry of Women and Child Development, Govt. of India as well as Dept. of Women and Child, Govt. of Goa, the Study India Programme with Nihon University of Japan, etc. Goa University launched the Visiting Research Professors Programme (VRPP) in 2013-14 to bring luminaries in the fields of liberal arts & literature, social and natural sciences, and other fields. The visiting professors interact with students, deliver lectures, offer courses, and work on collaborative research projects or stimulate the creation of art installations and music performances with faculty and students. These visiting professors are found to generate a creative environment in learning and contemporary knowledge production practices with their intellectual and aesthetic endeavors. The Programme is being supported by the Directorate of Art and Culture, & Directorate of Higher Education, Government of Goa, and is open to the general public. Goa University has a functional alumni association which helps the students in various activities. Goa University is well equipped with sports facilities, and it also conducts activities for all colleges in Goa.