VOLUME 9, ISSUE 1 ISSN: 2322-0147 Excellence International Journal of Education and Research (Multi- subject journal) Page 1 Higher Education and COVID-19: An Exploratory Study of Jammu and Kashmir Dr. Showkeen Bilal Gul&Abdal Ahmad Bhat Assistant Professors, Govt. Degree College for Boys Pulwama, Department of Higher Education, J&K Abstract Education for human beings is perhaps the most precious goal of any human civilization that ever existed. Education is the process of learning or the acquisition of knowledge, skills, beliefs, values, and habits. Human personality has different dimensions like physical, mental, social, emotional, and spiritual. It is the education that ensures harmonious and balanced development of the innate power of an individual by providing a nurturing and conducive environment for growth and development. The present COVID 19 pandemic has significantly disrupted the education sector of J&K. The Covid-19 pandemic has had a major impact on the higher education sector of J&K- both negative and positive. The higher education sector is facing unprecedented challenges and needs to adapt to the new situation and find ways and means to keep students motivated in their pursuit of acquiring knowledge. The present paper highlighted how the education sector and educators will overcome the existing challenges caused by pandemic on higher education; how will students continue to learn, even as educational institutions, by necessity, have become a digital space; and what strategies needed to be adopted to overcome the challenges caused by the pandemic in higher education sector. Keywords: COVID-19, Higher Education, Exploratory Introduction The COVID-19 pandemic has affected every aspect of human endeavour and none more so than education. We are passing through a very tough and unpredictable phase in our life. COVID 19 has changed substantially, the way we live (Svoboda, 2020). Educators, Students and their parents around the world are feeling the extraordinary ripple effect of the novel corona virus as all schools, colleges and universities are shutting down and quarantine methods are being ordered to cope with the global pandemic. Most Governments around the world have temporarily closed educational institutions in an attempt to control the spread of the pandemic Covid-19. This worldwide closure has impacted drastically the world’s student population (UNESCO). Governments around the world are making efforts to diminish the immediate impact of closure of educational institutions particularly for more vulnerable and disadvantaged communities and trying to facilitate the continuity of education for all using different digital modes of learning. According to a survey report of the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD), Government of India, conducted on higher education it was observed that there are 993