The University of North Bengal is a publicly funded major research institution located in Siliguri. Commonly known as North Bengal University (NBU), it was founded in 1962 through an Act of the West Bengal Legislature. NBU is recognized by the University Grants Commission (UGC) and has received a 'Grade A' accreditation from NAAC. Additionally, it is a member of the Association of Indian Universities (AIU). The university also acts as the affiliating authority for 50 colleges in the districts of Alipurduar, Coochbehar, Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri, Kalimpong, and Uttar Dinajpur.
NBU comprises two faculties that encompass over 30 departments offering undergraduate, postgraduate, and doctoral programs, as well as diplomas and vocational courses. It provides education in various fields such as Arts, Commerce, and Science, including Microbiology, Law, Mathematics, Economics, Sociology, Mass Communication, Management, Computer Science & Application, Chemistry, and History. In addition to regular courses, NBU offers programs through the Directorate of Distance Education. It also features a Centre for Innovative Studies (CIS), a collaboration between NBU and Techno India Academia, which provides several higher education courses. Furthermore, it offers virtual learning resources in partnership with Coursera, Udemy, edX, NPTEL, and others. The key highlights of the University of North Bengal (NBU) are presented in the table below:
| Particulars | Statistics |
|---|
Establishment year | 1962 |
Campus size | 315.99 acre |
Constituent departments | 30+ |
No. of affiliated institutes | 50+ |
Number of courses | 80+ |
Types of scholarships offered | Merit-based |