PhD Admissions August 2017

PhD Admissions August 2017

Online Application will be available at http://appserv.iisertvm.ac.in/phd

Applications are invited from highly motivated students for admission to the Ph.D. Programme of Indian Institute of Science Education and Research – Thiruvananthapuram (IISER TVM), starting August 2017.

Biological Sciences:

Applicants must satisfy the following criteria.

1. Master’s degree (A five-year degree after +2 level) in Biological Sciences/Chemical Sciences/Physical Sciences/ Mathematics/ Bioinformatics/ Agricultural Sciences/ Veterinary Sciences or a Bachelor Degree in Medicine (MBBS). The qualifying degree should have been obtained within 5 years as on August 1st, 2017.
2. The applicant must have a minimum of 60% marks or CGPA 6.5 on a scale of 10, or equivalent. According to your mark list if your CGPA is not calculated on a scale of 10, please convert the CGPA to a scale of 10 and enter in the space provided. Please mention this in the remarks column [See point-1 under the heading "Important Points" below for relaxation in the eligibility criteria].
3. Qualification in one of the following national level tests, with validity as on 1st August 2017: CSIR-UGC-JRF/ DBT-JRF (Category I)*/ ICMR-JRF*/ Ranks 1 to 90 in GATE (Ecology and Evolution)** /JGEEBILS (GS-2017)***. Or the candidate should be eligible for DST-Inspire PhD fellowship [See point-2 under the heading "Important Points" below for INSPIRE Ph. D^[a] fellowship].

* Only candidates whose ranks make them eligible to avail Category 1 DBT-Junior Research Fellowships tenable at any university/institution in India. Fellowships restricted to join DBT or ICMR sponsored projects are not eligible.

** GATE (EY) qualified candidates are eligible only for Ecology, Evolution and Behaviour. GATE exam scores for other subjects will not be considered for PhD admissions to IISER TVM.

*** JGEEBILS qualified candidates will be shortlisted based on their marks and may apply ONLY after receiving an e-mail invitation from IISER TVM. Please don't write to us asking for your JGEEBILS marks.

It is mandatory for all the candidates to submit a short research proposal of 300-400 words, which should clearly state a research problem you find interesting to address and how you approach towards solving this. While applying online, please upload this proposal under the section "Statement of Purpose". Please note: This proposal does not need to be related to the research ongoing at the School of Biology IISER TVM. The proposal will be used to evaluate your scientific aptitude and will be a major criterion for short-listing candidates for the interview. Your application will be treated as incomplete if you do not submit the short research proposal.

Short-listed candidates will have to appear for interviews conducted at IISER TVM. There will be two rounds of interviews, conducted over three days. In case of a high turnout of candidates (more than 75), an entrance exam will be conducted (based on Master’s level Biology questions for 70% marks and 12th level Physics, Math, Chemistry questions-together 30%) on the first day of interviews. Hence, all the short-listed candidates must report at IISER TVM on the first day of the interviews. The final selection of candidates will solely be based on your performance during the interviews.

Research Areas in School of Biology open for PhD students in this round of selection:

• Ecology, Evolution and Behavior (Group1, Group2)
• Bacterial Genetics and Cell Biology
• Cellular Plasticity and Reprogramming in Plants
• Drosophila Development and Energy Homeostasis
• Genome Stability
• Immune Cell Biology
• Molecular Genetics
• Plant Molecular Genetics
• Stem Cells and Regenerative Medicine
• Structural Molecular Biology

Chemical Sciences:

Applicants must satisfy the following criteria.

1. The candidate must have a Master’s degree in Chemical Sciences with 60% marks or equivalent [See point-1 under the heading "Important Points" below for relaxation in the eligibility criteria].
2. The candidate must have qualified CSIR-UGC-JRF/GATE examinations valid as on 1st August 2017 or DST INSPIRE Ph. D. fellowship [See point-2 under the heading "Important Points" below for INSPIRE Ph. D^[a] fellowship].
3. 3. Previous research experience and quality publications will be considered as an added qualification.

Selection procedure:

The shortlisted applicants will be invited to attend an interview at IISER TVM. The selection of the candidate will be based on the performance in the interview.

Research Areas:

• Inorganic and organometallic chemistry
• Organic synthesis, Medicinal chemistry, Carbohydrate chemistry, Chemical Biology
• Organic Synthesis/DNA Nanotechnology/Supramolecular Chemistry
• Protein structure determination through NMR spectroscopy
• Inorganic & Materials Chemistry
• Development of new synthetic strategies, C–H activations and Asymmetric catalysis
• Planar pi-conjugated and extended macrocyclic systems
• Photochemistry, Photophysics, Nanomaterials
• Biomass conversion
• Theoretical Chemistry
• Ultrafast Spectroscopy
• Asymmetric synthesis and Catalysis

Physical Sciences:

Applicants must satisfy the following criteria

1. Master's degree in Physical Sciences, Materials Science, Engineering (Biomedical, Instrumentation, Electrical, Electronic, and Communication Engineering), in areas closely related to the interests of the physics faculty at IISER TVM. 60% marks or equivalent is desirable.
2. Qualifying in one of the following national level examination with validity as on 1st August 2017: GATE#/CSIR-UGC-JRF/JEST-2017/INSPIRE Ph.D.^[a] Fellowship.

# Applicants with M. Tech need a GATE score valid as of 1st August 2016.

^[a]Candidates who meet the minimum eligibility criteria for obtaining INSPIRE PhD fellowship as per the DST guidelines can also apply. In the event of shortlisting, and successful clearing of interview, the candidate shall be provisionally admitted for the PhD program. The admission shall be cancelled, if the candidate is unable to provide evidence for INSPIRE PhD fellowship at the time of registration.

Important points

1. Normal relaxation to the eligibility criteria will be applicable as per Government of India guidelines.

2. Candidates who meet the minimum eligibility criteria for obtaining INSPIRE PhD fellowship as per the DST guidelines can also apply. In the event of shortlisting, and successful clearing of interview, the candidate shall be provisionally admitted for the PhD program. The admission shall be cancelled, if the candidate is unable to provide evidence for INSPIRE PhD fellowship at the time of registration.

Application Procedure

1. Applicants should complete the online application form in the url http://appserv.iisertvm.ac.in/phd/. Before proceeding with the application please go through the required documents list which is to be made ready.
   [ Only Properly submitted applications would be considered. Incomplete applications will not be considered. Do not forget to click the "Submit Application" button after completing your application ]
2. GE/OBC [SC/ST/PH] applicants are required to make a payment of Rs. 200/- [Rs. 100/-] as processing fee through the Powerjyoti Account.
3. Applicants will also be prompted to upload all the supporting documents, like photograph, signature, community certificate and national level examination (CSIR/NBHM/Inspire etc) online.
4. Applicants should provide Name/Affiliation/Contact number and Email address of two referees in the application form.
5. After Submitting the application an unique application number will be generated. Candidates can download the application as a 'pdf' file for acknowledgement.
6. After Submitting the application an email will be sent to the refrees email address requesting his referee report to the candidate. Email will have a link where referee should fill the online referee report form. The candidates are requested to make sure with their referees that their reference is submitted online on time.
7. Applicants are NOT required to post hard copy of the application to IISER TVM.
8. In case of any application related queries, please contact by email, addressed to the PhD coordinator [phdprogramme[at]iisertvm[dot]ac[dot]in]. Any other mode of communication will not be entertained.

Important Dates

Mere fulfilling the eligibility criterion does not entitle a candidate to be called for the test and interview.