Netaji Subhas Open University offers distance education in eastern India. It is the forty-fifth largest university in the world. The University began its journey in 1997 on the occasion of the birth centenary of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose.

The medium of instruction is English and Bengali and has been following the format of the Open University, UK and IGNOU. It offers courses in various disciplines of graduate and postgraduate study. Other than graduate and postgraduate degrees on general subjects the university also offers doctoral level courses on all subjects of arts, commerce and science (mathematics, geography and environmental science) and also in management, computer science and various interdisciplinary subjects. It also offers various postgraduate diploma courses, diploma courses, and also vocational courses.

In 2006, the University received the Excellence in Distance Education Award from Commonwealth of Learning (COL).