The University Grants Commission of India is a statutory body set up by the Government of India in accordance to the UGC Act 1956 under Ministry of Human Resource Development, and is charged with coordination, determination and maintenance of standard of higher education. The National Eligibility Test (NET), also known as UGC NET or NTA-UGC-NET, is the test for determining the eligibility for the post of Assistant Professor and / or Junior Research Fellowship (JRF) award in Indian universities and colleges. This national level entrance exam is conducted twice every year in the month of June and December.