Academics

DEPARTMENT OF BIOTECHNOLOGY

Bhupat and Jyoti Mehta School of Biosciences

Indian Institute of Technology Madras

Welcome message from the Head

Dual Degree programmes

  • 5 year Dual Degree(B.Tech.) (M. Tech.) in Biological Engineering
  • 5 year Dual Degree(B. S.) (M. S.) in Biological Sciences

Post-graduate programmes

2 year M. Tech programme in (Joint Degree programme with Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute of Medical Sciences and Technology, Trivandrum and Christian Medical College, Vellore)

Research programmes

  • MS (Biotechnology)
  • PhD (Biotechnology, Biomedical Devices and Technology)
  • PhD (Joint Degree Programme).

The MS and PhD programmes are postgraduate research oriented programmes. Research is carried out by scholars admitted to the programme of study under the guidance of the faculty in the department. The scholar needs to obtain a minimum number of credits from regular courses. The average duration of an M.S programme is between two to three years and that of a PhD programme is between four to five years. Options exist for the conversion of the MS programme into the PhD programme.

Admission to research programmes

MS (by research) programme: Eligibility requires undergraduate/postgraduate degree and a valid GATE score in any area.

PhD progam: Eligibility is a post graduate degree (M.Tech/MS/MSc or equivalent and a GATE score in any area or an award of research fellowship from a national eligibilty exam like UGC/CSIR/DBT/ICMR etc

See IIT Madras admissions page for details. The applicant has to appear in a test/interview conducted by the Department. Admission is decided on the performance in the test/interviews. Admissions are twice a year; in January and July.

Areas of research

The research interests in the department can be organized into four major thrust areas:

BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES

BIOLOGICAL ENGINEERING

COMPUTATIONAL BIOLOGY

CHEMICAL BIOLOGY

The Department of Biotechnology encourages applicants from a wide range of specializations. Research here is highly interdisciplinary and applicants with degrees/strong background in physical science or chemical science or mathematical and computational sciences are strongly encouraged to apply.