Failed Forensic Career: Why Are We All Chasing UGC-NET?
Walk into any classroom of Forensic Science postgraduates today, and you'll notice a striking pattern. Instead of discussing casework, crime scene reconstruction, or lab techniques, the conversations are dominated by one thing: UGC-NET preparation.
Coaching institutes advertise "NET/JRF for Forensic Science." Telegram groups and WhatsApp study circles are overflowing with questions, notes, and frantic revision tips. The very students who once entered the field dreaming of becoming crime fighters through science now find themselves buried in teaching eligibility test materials.
But pause and ask yourself: Why is a professional degree like Forensic Science forcing its graduates to run after UGC-NET?
Wasn't this degree marketed as a gateway to government forensic labs, investigative agencies, and specialized crime investigation departments? Why then has it been reduced to nothing more than a stepping stone for a teaching career?
The truth is harsh and uncomfortable: Forensic Science as a profession has failed in India. And UGC-NET has become the default escape route for frustrated graduates.
✓ Latest
🔥 Hot
Exposing the Parasites Exploiting India's Forensic Community
In-depth analysis of the self acclaimed Guardian ofForensic Science and their Opression to Forensic Community
UF
Unfiltered Forensic
Sept 2025
→
UGC-NET: A Test for Teachers, Not Crime Fighters
The University Grants Commission – National Eligibility Test (UGC-NET) was never created to define the career path of forensic graduates. Its purpose is clear and narrow:
- To qualify candidates for Assistant Professor posts in universities and colleges.
- To award Junior Research Fellowships (JRF) for those pursuing research.
That's it. NET was designed for academia. It was never meant for professionals trained to handle bloodstains, ballistic evidence, or digital forensics. Yet today, thousands of Forensic Science graduates pin all their hopes on this exam.
Why?
👉 Because there are hardly any jobs in Forensic Science.
The Broken Promise of Forensic Science
Students enter this course with noble dreams. They imagine themselves working with the CBI, NIA, or state forensic labs, standing at the intersection of science and justice. Universities fuel these dreams, painting the course as a professional pathway into crime labs and government agencies.
But reality hits soon after graduation:
- Scarce vacancies: Government labs open recruitment once in a decade, and even then, the number of seats is laughably small.
- FACT and FACT-Plus exams: Marketed as "opportunities," but in truth, they only offer temporary contractual jobs with no job security or benefits.
- Opaque hiring: Merit often takes a backseat. Recruitments are riddled with favoritism and backdoor entries through "personal calls."
What remains for graduates is a cocktail of disappointment, exploitation, and desperation.
The Monopoly of Outsiders: Old Guards vs. Forensic Graduates
Here's where the story turns downright unfair.
The forensic system in India is dominated by people who don't even hold degrees in forensic science. Most of the senior officials occupying comfortable government positions are MSc holders in Chemistry, Physics, or Life Sciences.
And they make sure that the next generation of forensic professionals comes from the same background—not from forensic graduates.
You may spend years mastering toxicology, ballistics, DNA profiling, cyber-forensics.
But the job goes to someone with a plain MSc Chemistry degree.
You may clear FACT, FACT-Plus, or even NET in Forensic Science.
Yet they will still declare you "not eligible" and hand over the job to outsiders.
This isn't just oversight—it's deliberate. It's a systemic exclusion of actual forensic science graduates from the very profession designed for them. The older generation, sitting in powerful chairs, is preserving its monopoly and choking the future of those who truly studied the subject.
Why UGC-NET Becomes the Last Resort
UGC-NET was never part of the dream. It has simply become a survival mechanism.
At least with NET, there is a small chance of:
- Getting a stable Assistant Professor job.
- Building a career in academia or research.
- Escaping the humiliation of endless short-term contracts.
But let's be honest: if teaching was the end goal, we didn't need to spend lakhs of rupees on BSc and MSc in Forensic Science. A simple MSc in Chemistry, Physics, or Biology could have landed us in the same place—without wasting years chasing a broken promise.
Running after NET is not about passion. It's about helplessness.
✓ Latest
🔥 Hot
Forensic College Scam
In-depth forensic analysis of the Forensic College scandal
UF
Unfiltered Forensic
Sept 2025
→
FACT and FACT-Plus: The Cruel Joke
The FACT (Forensic Aptitude and Caliber Test) and its variant FACT-Plus were introduced as supposed solutions. But they have turned into nothing more than distractions.
- Even after clearing, graduates are only offered contractual roles.
- These jobs come with no pension, no long-term security, and no future growth.
- The recruitment process remains plagued by the same favoritism and influence.
Instead of being a gateway to a career, FACT has become a cruel joke—keeping graduates busy while permanent opportunities vanish.
Forensic Science: A Professional Course Without a Profession
It's time to face the truth.
- Jobs are routinely handed to non-forensic graduates.
- Forensic graduates are reduced to temporary contractual workers.
- Postgraduates are forced to chase UGC-NET for survival.
The degree that was supposed to put us in labs, solving crimes, has turned into a treadmill pushing us toward classrooms—not as professionals, but as teachers.
Forensic Science in India today is a professional course without a profession.
What Needs to Change?
The system will not fix itself. Those in power benefit from keeping things broken. If we want change, we must demand it.
- Exclusive forensic recruitment: Jobs in forensic labs must be reserved for forensic graduates—not outsiders.
- Transparent hiring: Recruitment should be merit-based, with clear eligibility rules.
- Permanent jobs: Stop exploiting graduates with endless contractual roles.
- Collective resistance: Forensic graduates must unite, raise their voices, and challenge the system.
Silence only benefits those feeding on favoritism. Unless we speak up, this cycle of exploitation will never end.
Final Word
Right now, the truth is brutal: forensic careers are collapsing, and UGC-NET has become the only fallback.
But remember—this is not the failure of students. This is the failure of a corrupt and negligent system that has sidelined forensic professionals in favor of outsiders.
If we don't raise our voices, Forensic Science will remain nothing but a cruel academic trap—a degree that promises justice but delivers disappointment.
It's time to stop accepting this fate.
It's time to fight back.
Because chasing UGC-NET should not be the destiny of an entire generation of forensic graduates.
It's time to stop accepting this fate.
It's time to fight back.
Because chasing UGC-NET should not be the destiny of an entire generation of forensic graduates.
