NISER Admission to PhD Programme 2026-27

Online applications are invited from Indian citizens for admission to Ph.D. programme scheduled to commence from January 2027 in the following schools of NISER, Bhubaneswar.

1. School of Biological Sciences (SBS)
2. School of Chemical Sciences (SCS)
3. School of Computer Sciences (SCoS)
4. School of Earth & Planetary Sciences (SEPS)
5. School of Humanities and Social Sciences (SHSS)
6. School of Physical Sciences (SPS)

Eligibility
Biological Sciences : 55% or equivalent GPA* in Masters or M. Tech or M. Pharm in any branches of Agricultural Sciences, Biology, Life Sciences, Pharmacy (any specialization), Veterinary Sciences, Computer Sciences, Bioinformatics and Biotechnology. Students with Master’s degree in Physics, Chemistry or Mathematics having interest in pursuing a career in Biology are also encouraged to apply. Candidates with a 4 year / 8 semester Bachelor’s degree programme with a minimum of 75% marks in aggregate or equivalent grade are also eligible to apply for the programme.
Chemical Sciences : 55% or equivalent GPA in Master’s in Chemistry or allied Chemistry fields. Students with Master’s degree in any branches of Basic Sciences with undergraduate degree in Chemistry (or Chemistry as one of the subjects) or M.Tech in applied Chemistry or Computer Sciences with interest in pursuing a career in Chemistry are also encouraged to apply. Candidates with a 4-year / 8-semester Bachelor’s degree programme with chemistry as major subject with a minimum of 75% marks in aggregate or equivalent grade are also eligible to apply for the programme.
Computer Sciences
55% or equivalent GPA in Masters in Mathematics or Masters in Computer Science, or M.Tech or M.E. in Computer Science/Electronics/Electrical Engineering or related fields. Candidates with a 4 year / 8 semester Bachelor’s degree programme with a minimum of 75% marks in aggregate or equivalent grade are also eligible to apply for the programme.
Earth & Planetary Sciences
55% or equivalent GPA in M.Sc./M.Tech/M.E in Physics/ Astronomy and Astrophysics/ Space Science/ Geology/ Applied Geology/ Geoscience/ Geological Sciences/ Geophysics/ Earth Science(s)/Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences/ Mathematics/ Chemistry/ Engineering Physics/ Electrical/ Electronics/ Mechanical/ Civil/ Computer/ Data Science and related. Candidates with a minimum 75% marks in aggregate or its equivalent grade in a 4 year / 8 semester Bachelor’s degree science programme with physics/chemistry/geology as one of the subjects or in a 4 year B.E/B.Tech degree programme are also eligible to apply for the programme.
Humanities and Social Sciences
A Master’s or an equivalent degree from a University or Institution recognized by UGC with 55% or equivalent GPA in Master’s degree examination in Humanities and Social Sciences or Candidates with a minimum 75% marks in aggregate or its equivalent grade in a 4 year / 8 semester Bachelor’s degree programme with Philosophy/ Sociology/ Psychology/ History/ Tourism as one of the subjects.
Physical Science
55% or equivalent GPA in Masters in Physics or M.E / M.Tech in Applied Physics, Quantum Technology / Photonics / Optical Engineering or any other relevant fields. Candidates with a minimum 75% marks in aggregate or its equivalent grade in a 4 year / 8 semester Bachelor’s degree science programme with physics as one of the subjects or in a 4 year B.E/B.Tech degree programmes are also eligible to apply for the programme.
* Candidates with a GPA in a qualifying degree may need to produce the conversion note (in case it is not mentioned in their mark sheet) from their institution for the calculation of the percentage.

Candidates who are appearing for their final examination for the qualifying Degree can also apply, provided they submit an undertaking that they will submit the qualifying degree certificates by the time of admission into the programme.

Requirement of Qualifying in National Level Examinations for pursuing the Ph. D programme
School of Biological Sciences - Candidates should have qualified at least one of the National Level Examinations i.e. CSIR-UGC-NET/GATE/GPAT/DBT-BET/ICMR/JGEEBILS-2025, valid for the academic year 2026-2027.
School of Chemical Sciences - Candidates should have qualified at least one of these National Level Examinations: CSIR-UGC NET/GATE, valid for the academic year 2026-2027.
School of Computer Sciences - Candidates should have qualified at least one of these National Level Examinations i.e. CSIR-UGC-NET (LS or JRF)/GATE in MATHS/CS/IT/EE/STATS or NBHM/JEST/ TIFR-GS (Maths or CS or LIDS) or related areas valid for the academic year 2026- 2027.
School of Earth and Planetary Sciences – Candidates should have qualified at least one of these National Level Examinations i.e. CSIR-UGC-NET/GATE/JEST, valid for the academic year 2026- 2027.
School of Humanities and Social Sciences – Candidates should have qualified at least one of the National Level Examinations as described below, valid for the academic year 2026-2027. Philosophy: JRF or NET in Philosophy from UGC/CSIR/ICSSR/GATE or any such credible funding agency Sociology: JRF in Sociology / Psychology / History / Tourism from UGC / CSIR / ICSSR / GATE or any such credible funding agency. School of Physical Sciences – Candidates should have qualified at least one of these National Level Examinations i.e. CSIR-UGC-NET/GATE/JEST, valid for the academic year 2026-2027.

Important Note
(a)The cut-off marks for national examinations such as GATE/JEST/ JGEEBILS/CSIR-UGC-NET etc. will be further decided by the respective School for the relevant subject area.
(b) Students having INSPIRE Doctoral Fellowship ONLY, without qualifying any of the above- mentioned national level written examinations, will NOT be considered for admission to PhD programme in NISER. (c) Candidates with GPA/CGPA in a qualifying degree will be required to produce supporting documents from their respective University/Institute specifying the conversion into percentage if it is not mentioned in their mark sheet.

Fellowship
i. ₹37,000/- as Junior Research Fellowship for the first two years, and subsequently ₹42,000/- for a maximum period up to another three years as Senior Research Fellowship, subject to fulfilment of all the academic requirements stipulated by the Institute from time to time.
ii. Students with external fellowship from agencies viz. CSIR, UGC, etc. will be mandatorily required to draw fellowship as per the extant rules of the respective funding agencies. Such students will NOT be considered for the NISER/DAE fellowship.

Research areas currently pursued in different schools are as follows :
School of Biological Sciences
• Organelle biogenesis and cellular trafficking
• Dynamics between the gastric cancer microenvironment and the extracellular matrix.
• Extracellular vesicles (EVs) in gastric cancer progression and EV-based biomarker identification.
• Mechanistic insights into genomic and epigenomic regulators in the pathogenesis of Fuchs Corneal Endothelial Dystrophy
• Development and Validation of biomarkers for Pseudoexfoliation Glaucoma
• Mechanistic insights into antimicrobial resistance and persistence in Gram-negative bacterial pathogens
• Molecular mechanisms of non-AUG start codon selection in eukaryotic translation initiation
• Structure and function of Dengue virus replication complex proteins
• Identification and characterization of phage-encoded anti-defense proteins that neutralize bacterial immune systems

School of Earth and Planetary Sciences
• Petrology, geochemistry, and lithosphere dynamics of Archean terranes, with a focus on understanding the evolution of tectonic processes on the early Earth.
• Continental growth and evolution on the Hadean–Archean Earth, including the formation, differentiation, and stabilization of early continental crust.
• Radiative transfer in earth/planetary surface photometry & reflectance spectroscopy; Hyperspectral data processing and analysis; Geochemical analysis of planetary analogues; Instrumentation and development of VIS-NIR spectrometer
• Atmospheric physics and fluid dynamics, field meteorological observations, regional convective processes and climatology
• Exoplanet Atmospheres & Interiors, Planet formation, Observational Astrophysics: JWST and ALMA observations
• Earthquake seismology and physics of earthquakes, laboratory friction experiments and inverse problems

School of Humanities and Social Sciences Philosophy :
Philosophy of Science, Philosophy of Biology, Philosophy of Mind, AI-Ethics Sociology :
• Heritage, Gastronomy, Urban Tourism, Pilgrimage
• Host-guest, Host perspective, Tourist experience, Digital technology, Networks, Monumentality

Selection Procedure
• The selection committee of the respective schools will shortlist the candidates from the applications received by the deadline. Merely satisfying the minimum qualifications does not guarantee shortlisting. The schools may set additional criteria as deemed necessary.
• The short-listed candidates will be called for an interview, supplemented by a written test, if necessary, for admission.
• Based on the academic record and the performance of the candidates in the selection process, the selection committee will recommend candidates for admission to the Ph.D. programme.
• All eligible candidates called for the Test / Interview will be reimbursed the return travel fare equivalent to second-sleeper class railway fare by the shortest route from their place of residence to the Institute upon production of valid documents.

How to Apply
• The applicant must apply online through the NISER website Online Application Portal, following the stepwise instructions mentioned therein to complete the application submission process. Successful submission of the online application is entirely the candidate’s responsibility. NISER will not bear any liability for an incomplete application or non-submission of any required supporting document.
• Candidates intending to apply for more than one school must fill out separate online application forms for each school with appropriate supporting documents.
• NISER does not demand any application fee from the candidates for the PhD programme.

Important dates
• Online application portal will be activated on – 1st October 2026
• Last date for filling up online application – 1st November 2026 (all schools)
• Short-listed candidates will be uploaded on NISER website by –10th November 2026 (all schools)
• Tentative dates for test/interview are as follows:
School of Biological Sciences : 14 - 15 December 2026
School of Chemical Sciences : 19 – 20 November 2026
School of Computer Sciences : 01 – 02 December 2026
School of Earth & Planetary Sciences : 01 – 02 December 2026
School of Humanities and Social Sciences : 26 – 27 November 2026
School of Physical Sciences : 01 – 02 December 2026
• Each school will send the call letters to the candidates separately. Kindly refer to the website for the announcement of the selected candidates.
• The PhD first-semester registration is scheduled to be held on 1st January 2027, and classes commence on 4th January 2027.

• If you have any further queries, kindly send an email to:
School of Biological Sciences : cpsbs@niser.ac.in
School of Chemical Sciences : cpscs@niser.ac.in
School of Computer Sciences : cpscps@niser.ac.in
School of Earth & Planetary Sciences : cpseps@niser.ac.in
School of Humanities and Social Sciences : cpshss@niser.ac.in
School of Physical Sciences : cpsps@niser.ac.in
Applicants are encouraged to visit the school's web page for more information on research activities.

Checklist for application submission
During online submission, you will need to have the following ready with you for uploading;
• JPEG file of your passport-size photo.
• JPEG file of your valid signatures.
• Birth Certificate/10th pass certificate in support of date of birth.
• Certificate and mark sheets in support of passing the qualifying examination i.e Master's degree OR 4 Years / 8 Semester Bachelor’s degree, whichever is applicable. In case the original pass certificate is not issued by the University, then a provisional certificate from the University/college certifying the completion of the degree should be submitted.
• Certificate/document in support of qualifying national level examination(s) viz. CSIR-UGC NET
JRF/DBT-BET JRF/JEST/NBHM/GATE or any other as applicable.