Tribhuvan University

Tribhuvan University (TU; Nepali: त्रिभुवन विश्वविद्यालय) is a public university located in Kirtipur, Kathmandu, Nepal. Established in 1959, TU is the oldest and the largest university in Nepal. It offers 1,000 undergraduate and 500 postgraduate programs across a wide range of disciplines. Additionally, the institution has 5 Institutes, 4 Faculties, 40 Central Departments. 64 constituent campuses 1,053 affiliated colleges and 4 Research Centers across the country. History Named after the late King Tribhuvan, Tribhuvan University was established on 25 June 1959 (11 Ashar 2016 BS). It is the oldest and largest university in Nepal. In its early years, all the postgraduate classes were held at Tripureshwor Campus, where the administrative office was also located. It was only in 1967 that the university was relocated to its main campus in Kirtipur – an ancient town about 5 km south-west of the city of Kathmandu. The university site, spread over 154.77 hectares, constitutes the Central Administrative Office and the Central Campus. Academics Since its inception, the state-owned university has expanded its programmes. There are five technical institutes and four general faculties. The university offers 115 courses for the technical proficiency certificate level. TU offers 1079 courses at Bachelor's level and 1000 courses at Master's level. It offers PhD degrees in the technical institutes and faculties. Tribhuvan University ran its programmes only through its constituent campuses before 1980. With the increasing number of students seeking higher education, it was not possible to accommodate all the students in the constituent campuses. This situation led to the establishment of colleges in the private sector because the constituent campuses alone could not meet the demand. From 1979 to 1980, TU started providing affiliation to private colleges. As of April 2016, 1,084 private and public colleges were affiliated with TU. In the 2014–2015 academic session 405,341 students were enrolled in TU academic programmes. 148,141 (36.55%) students study in its 60 constituent campuses including 38 central departments, while 257,200 (63.45%) students study in 1,053 affiliated colleges. Student enrollment and educational quality Tribhuvan University is the leading University in Nepal. Many colleges are affiliated with Tribhuvan University. In 1971, all the community colleges were part of Tribhuvan University. The university has the largest number of full-time enrollments in the world. The 49th graduation ceremony of Tribhuvan University was on 18 December 2023, in Kathmandu, Nepal. The registrar of Tribhuvan University said more than 73000 students were graduating at that time. The significant number of graduates made Tribhuvan University hold a Guinness World Record. Although the education system of Tribhuvan University has produced many graduates, many of them still need to get jobs in the market. They cannot find jobs in Nepal, so they go abroad to look for financial opportunities. Nepal's Public colleges are government-funded, and community colleges are privately funded. Both types of colleges are university-oriented and implement the university curriculum and university exam system. The university's education and services, such as business education, employment, training, and vocational education, are not up to date with new technology and career preparation. TU has 8,841 teaching faculty and 7,413 non-teaching staff including the support staff in its constituent campuses. The number of total employees is 15,254. Rankings Tribhuvan University is ranked in the top 1201-1500 universities in the world as per the Times Higher Education World University Rankings in 2024, published by the Times Higher Education (THE) magazine. It is ranked among the 251-300 best universities of Asia. It is ranked at 6676 in the world and 1st in the country as per the unirank University Ranking. Technical institutes The university administers its science and technology programs, such as BSc, BE, MBBS, etc., through its technical institutes. There are five technical institutes at the university, each taking care of a specific domain within the field of science and technology education. Institute of Agriculture and Animal Science (IAAS) Institute of Engineering (IOE) Institute of Forestry (IOF) Institute of Medicine (IOM) Institute of Science and Technology (IOST) Faculties and associated Central Departments There are four faculties and a total of 40 associated central departments and 4 Research centers at the university: Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences Central Department of English Central Department of Nepali Central Department of Hindi Central Department of Sanskrit Central Department of Nepal Bhasha Central Department of History Central Department of Linguistics Central Department of Buddhist Studies Central Department of Sociology Central Department of Psychology Central Department of Anthropology Central Department of Geography Central Department of Economics Central Department of Social Work Central Department of Home Science Central Department of Fine Arts Central Department of Political Science Central Department of Rural Development Central Department of Population Studies Central Department of Journalism and Mass Communication Central Department of Library and Information Science Central Department of Nepalese History, Culture and Archaeology Central Department of International Relations and Diplomacy Central Department of Conflict, Peace and Development Studies Faculty of Education Central Department of Education Central Department of Curriculum and Evaluation Central Department of Educational Planning and Management Central Department of Health and Physical Education Central Department of Mathematics Education Central Department of Science Education Central Department of English Education Central Department of Nepali Education Central Department of Geography Education Central Department of History Education Central Department of Economics Education Central Department of Political Science Education Faculty of Management Central Department of Management Central Department of Public Administration Faculty of Law Central Department of Law Research centers Tribhuvan University has the following research centers: Centre for Economic Development and Administration (CEDA) Centre for Nepal and Asian Studies] (CNAS), formerly called the Institute for Nepal and Asian Studies (INAS) Research Center for Applied Science and Technology (RECAST) Research Centre for Educational Innovation and Development (CERID) Schools School of Mathematical Sciences Graduate School of Education School of Management School of Forestry Constituent campuses TU has 64 constituent campuses; Organization TU is government-financed but still an autonomous organization. The head of the government, the prime minister, is its chancellor. Chancellor: Prime Minister of Nepal (Balendra Shah) Pro-Chancellor: Minister of Education (Sasmit Pokharel) Vice Chancellor: Vacant Rector: Prof. Dr. Khadga K.C. Registrar: Prof. Dr. Kedar Rijal Societies Nepal Chemical Society Nepal Mathematical Society Nepal Physical Society Nepal Geography Student Society Nepal Geographical Society Economics Students Society, Central Department of Economics Facilities Natural History Museum Ayurveda Teaching Hospital Tribhuvan University Central Library Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital B.P. Koirala Lions Centre for Ophthalmic Studies (BPKLCOS) Tribhuvan University International Cricket Ground Manmohan Cardiothoracic Vascular & Transplant Center Controversies Foreign academic equivalency controversy In late 2025, Tribhuvan University faced criticism after Nepali students and education observers accused its Curriculum Development Centre (CDC) of granting academic equivalency to certificates from foreign institutions that were not legally authorised to award degrees in their home country. According to reporting in The Kathmandu Post, the CDC had issued equivalency for a Master’s in Business Administration in Hospitality from Britts Imperial University College, a Sharjah-based entity that students claimed was registered only as a training institute in the United Arab Emirates and not recognised by the UAE government as a degree-granting university. Students organised under the banner “Scan the Scammers” asserted that the practice ran contrary to university directives, which state that equivalency should only be provided if qualifications are recognised or attested by the government of the country where classes were conducted. They demanded the revocation of equivalency certificates issued to unaccredited institutions and accountability from officials involved in the process. The controversy also drew attention to the role of overseas education consultancies in allegedly misrepresenting foreign training centres as accredited universities. Following the allegations, Nepal’s Ministry of Education, Science and Technology temporarily stopped issuing No Objection Certificates for students seeking to study at suspicious foreign institutions and urged prospective students to verify the accreditation status of overseas providers before enrolling. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs also cautioned students about the credibility of institutions operating in UAE free zones, which often have limited academic oversight. These actions reflected broader concerns about foreign degree recognition and the quality assurance mechanisms of Nepal’s higher education system. The free student union at Tribhuvan University Tribhuvan University also has a free student union as another facility. This free student union has established the rights and interests of students who come to study at the university and to solve students' problems. The committee of the students' union has to be elected at the university. The university students who are affiliated with different political parties vote for their supporter leaders. The student union election is held every two years. Regardless of winning by embracing the idea of any party, the student union works to solve problems for all students. Notable alumni Pushpa Kamal Dahal, prime minister of Nepal Sushila Karki, interim prime minister of Nepal Bimalendra Nidhi, deputy prime minister of Nepal Arjun Narasingha KC, 5-time former minister and Nepali Congress party leader completed his master's degree in political science at TU Gagan Thapa, former health minister and popular youth leader who studied sociology at TU Sushma Shakya, award-winning visual artist Sharada Sharma, writer Udayraj Khanal, physicist Binil Aryal, physicist Bodh Narayan Shrestha, MP from RSP Bharat Prasad Parajuli, MP from RSP Ananda Bahadur Chand, MP from RSP Komal Gyawali, MP from RSP Jagat Prasad Joshi, MP from RSP Asha Jha, MP from RSP Rabindra Patel, MP from RSP Sushil Kumar Kanu, MP from RSP Prakash Chandra Pariyar, MP from RSP Ramesh Prasai, MP from RSP Udit Narayan, playback singer Yuba Raj Khatiwada, economist and former governor of Nepal Rastra Bank Malvika Subba, Nepalese TV personality Niranjan Parajuli, Nepali chemist Madhav Kumar Nepal, former prime minister of Nepal Suman Pokhrel, Nepali poet and lyricist Abhi Subedi, Nepali poet and playwright Radha Paudel, Nepalese nurse, activist and writer Gyanendra Shah, former King of Nepal Shriya Shah-Klorfine, Nepalese-Canadian who died on Mount Everest Bidya Devi Bhandari, former president of Nepal Ek Nath Dhakal, Nepalese politician Krishna Bahadur Mahara, former speaker of the House of Representatives of Nepal Shankar Pokharel, 1st Chief Minister of Lumbini Province Sunil Kumar Yadav, Nepalese politician Ram Sharan Mahat, former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Nepal Khil Raj Regmi, former Chief Justice and (acting) prime minister of Nepal Arjun Karki, diplomat Gyan Chandra Acharya, diplomat Agni Prasad Sapkota, former speaker of the Parliament of Nepal Sarita Lamichhane, Nepalese actress Purna Chandra Thapa, former Chief of Army Staff of the Nepal Army Prabhu Ram Sharma, former Chief of Army Staff of the Nepal Army Rookmangud Katawal, former Chief of Army Staff of the Nepal Army Dharmapaal Barsingh Thapa, former Chief of Army Staff of the Nepal Army Bipin Karki, Nepalese film actor Queen Aishwarya of Nepal, Queen of Nepal Prince Dhirendra of Nepal, member of the Shah dynasty Keki Adhikari, Nepalese film actress Jeevan Ram Shrestha, former Minister of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation of Nepal Geeta Tripathee, Nepali poet and lyricist Devyani Rana, member of the Rana dynasty See also List of largest universities and university networks by enrollment References