Mid-Year Admission Notice for PhD Programmes for the Academic Year 2026-27 at IISc

IISc counts among its former students and faculty several eminent scientists such as Homi J Bhabha, the founder of India’s nuclear program, Vikram Sarabhai, the founder of India’s space programme, the meteorologist Anna Mani, the biochemist and nutrition expert Kamala Sohonie, and solid state and materials scientist CNR Rao, to name just a few. The Institute also played a key role in establishing other academic institutions and organisations.

Applications are invited from eligible applicants for admission to regular (1) Research Programmes, (2) External Registration Programme (ERP) at Indian Institute of Science.

Applicants possessing the educational qualification, including those in the final semester/year of their qualifying examinations but expect to complete all the requirements for award of the degree (like examinations, project dissertation, viva-voce, etc.) by 01st January 2027, and can furnish the necessary certificates on or before 31st March 2027, are eligible to apply.

RESEARCH PROGRAMMES [Ph.D.]
Department /Centre/ Unit Ph.D. in Science Faculty : Inorganic and Physical Chemistry, Materials Research, Developmental Biology and Genetics, Neuroscience, Organic Chemistry, Physics, Solid State and Structural Chemistry, and Instrumentation and Applied Physics
Ph.D. in Engineering Faculty : Aerospace Engineering, Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences, Chemical Engineering, Civil Engineering, Computer Science and Automation, Electrical Communication Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Electronic Systems Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Nano Science and Engineering, Design and Manufacturing, and Sustainable Technologies.
Ph.D. in Interdisciplinary areas : Energy (offered by Interdisciplinary Centre for Energy Research), Mathematical Sciences (offered by IISc Mathematics Initiative (IMI)), Cyber Physical Systems (offered by Robert Bosch Centre for Cyber Physical Systems), and Brain, Computation, and Data Science.
Ph.D. in Medical Sciences : Medical Sciences (offered by the Division of Medical Sciences)

Eligibility : Applicants possessing a minimum of second class or equivalent in the following degrees, as applicable to the individual departments/areas, are eligible to apply
Sl No. : 1 Qualifying degree : Bachelor’s degree in Engineering/Technology / 4-year Bachelor of Science Qualifying in national entrance tests (Mode of entry) : Valid GATE score / NET JRF\* is mandatory
Sl No. : 2 Qualifying degree : Master’s degree in Science / Master’s degree in Economics, Geography, Psychology, Management, Commerce, Operations Research, Computer Science/Application Qualifying in national entrance tests (Mode of entry) : Valid GATE score / NET JRF is mandatory
Sl No. : 3 Qualifying degree : Master’s degree in Engineering / Technology / Architecture / Agriculture / Pharmacy / Veterinary Sciences Qualifying in national entrance tests (Mode of entry) : Desirable to have valid GATE score / NET JRF/GPAT.
Sl No. : 4 Qualifying degree : Graduates of any course with a minimum duration of FOUR years, from any Centrally Funded Technical Institution (including IITs in PPP mode) with a minimum CGPA of 8 out of 10 or its equivalent. Qualifying in national entrance tests (Mode of entry) : Desirable to have valid GATE score / NET JRF.
Sl No. : 5 Qualifying degree : MBBS/MD/MDS/Pharm D Qualifying in national entrance tests (Mode of entry) : Desirable to have valid NEET-PG, GATE score / NET JRF.
Sl No. : 6 Qualifying degree : B Pharm Qualifying in national entrance tests (Mode of entry) : Valid GPAT score / NET JRF\* is mandatory
Sl No. : 7 Qualifying degree : BDS (Bachelor of Dental Surgery) Qualifying in national entrance tests (Mode of entry) : Valid NET JRF is mandatory
Sl No. : 8 Qualifying degree : BE/B.Tech. equivalent examinations of Professional Societies, recognized by MoE/UPSC/AITCE (e.g. AMIE by Institutions of Engineers). Note: Candidates enrolled up to 31.05.2013 with professional societies (e.g. AMIE) recognized by MoE are only eligible to apply. Qualifying in national entrance tests (Mode of entry) : Valid GATE score/NET JRF\* is mandatory
Sl No. : 9 Qualifying degree : Master’s degree in Life Sciences/Chemical Sciences from IISc with a minimum CGPA of 8.5 or equivalent. Qualifying in national entrance tests (Mode of entry) : Valid GATE score/NET JRF is mandatory (no minimum cutoff)
Sl No. : 10 Qualifying degree : 1 Year M. Engg from IISc Qualifying in national entrance tests (Mode of entry) : Must have been admitted to the M. Engg. program through GATE.

Notes
1. The GATE/ GPAT/ JEST/ NET JRF/other National entrance test passing certificate/ score card should be valid as on 01st January 2027.
2. *NET JRF includes –Joint CSIR-UGC NET for JRF; UGC-NET for JRF; DBT JRF; ICMR JRF; JEST; NBHM Research Award; INSPIRE. Applicants must be qualified for Junior Research Fellowship (JRF) to be eligible to apply through NET JRF mode. Candidates who have qualified only for Lectureship (LS)/Assistant Professorship/qualified under Category-2 or Category-3, are not eligible for admission to the Research Programme at IISc.
3. Applicants applying through INSPIRE mode must have a valid provisional INSPIRE offer for consideration of their application at level II of the selection, issued by DST at the time of interview. 4. Applicants who have qualified in the Joint Graduate Entrance Examination for Biology and Interdisciplinary Life Sciences-2026 (JGEEBILS) are also eligible to apply.
5. Applicants who have qualified in NEET PG/INI-CET/AIAPGET are eligible to apply for Ph D in Medical Sciences. Note: Candidates who were called for the interview held in May 2026 in any of the above-mentioned departments are also eligible to apply again.

Selection procedure : Candidates will be shortlisted for the in-person interview based on their performance in the National Entrance Test and/or the qualifying degree as detailed in the above table. The selection is based on the performance in the interview (in some of the departments, an aptitude test/preliminary interview will precede the final Interview).

External Registration Programme [Ph.D.]
The External Registration Programme (ERP) is meant for: (1) professionals from R&D Organizations / Industries and (2) Faculty members from Engineering, Agricultural, Pharmaceutical, Veterinary, Medical Colleges/ Universities, recognized by the appropriate government agencies.
Eligibility
The educational qualifications remain the same as for the regular candidates. Qualifying in one of the national entrance tests like CSIR-UGC NET for JRF, UGC-NET for JRF, DBT JRF, ICMR JRF, GATE, NBHM is desirable. Further, the candidate should have completed two years of full- time employment as on 1st January of the respective Academic year. The candidates must be officially sponsored by their employing organizations and compulsorily fill in an online application form and upload the necessary documents.
Selection procedure : Based on the performance in the in-person interview.

APPLICATION FEE
General / OBC / EWS : Rs. 800
SC / ST / PwD : Rs. 400
ERP candidates (all categories) : Rs. 2000
*The fee is non-refundable; any bank or payment gateway service charges must be borne by the applicant.
Payment options : Online payment through net-banking, debit card, credit card, and UPI.

Notes
1. Reservation/concession/relaxations for SC/ST/OBC/EWS/ PwD (Person with disability) and KM (Kashmiri-Migrant), Kashmiri Pandits/ Kashmiri Hindu Families (Non-Migrants) living in the Kashmir valley: As per Government of India regulations.
2. The minimum class prescribed in the qualifying examination is relaxed to a “Pass Class” for SC/ST candidates.
3. Applicants applying under EWS/OBC (NCL) (as per central list of OBC available at ncbc.nic.in) category must ensure that they have valid EWS/OBC-NCL Certificates issued o n o r after 01st April 2026 (i. e. FY: 2026-27) at the time of interview and admission.
4. Scholarships: All the regular PhD students who join the Institute are eligible for scholarships from MHRD/CSIR/UGC/ICMR/DBT/DST/AICTE/DAE (NBHM), depending upon their mode of entry. Scholarships from many Indian and multinational agencies and business houses are also available for meritorious students.
5. IISc has many merit-based private/donor fellowships that provide enhanced monthly fellowship (up to two times) for Research (Ph.D.) programmes of IISc. Further details, including entitlements, can be accessed here: https://odaa.iisc.ac.in/fellowships- consolidated/.
6. The applicants are advised to visit the website iisc.ac.in/admissions and admission portal regularly for admission related updates. Applicants are also advised to visit the department website to which they are applying to familiarize themselves with complete admission related matters, areas of research, etc.