INSTITUTE POST DOCTORAL FELLOWSHIP
GUIDELINES
IIT Madras is offering Institute Post-Doctoral Fellowships to attract high-quality researchers who have
demonstrated exceptional potential early in their careers. This scheme aims to bridge the gap between doctoral
research and faculty positions, enhancing the research output of IIT Madras while ensuring faculty mentors are
financially and intellectually invested in the fellow’s success.
The fellowship amount will be funded by the Institute and from faculty project funds.
A. ELIGIBILITY FOR IPDF
1. Ph.D. degree holders are eligible to apply within five years of completion of Ph.D.
2. Age limit: Maximum 32 years by the date of joining. Relaxation of 5 years for SC/ST and women candidates,
and 3 years for OBC-NCL candidates.
3. The applicant should have published a minimum of two (2) Q1 (top quartile) journal publications as
primary contributor.
4. The candidate should be nominated by a faculty member, and a commitment of funds signed by the faculty
(Annexure I of the Application Form) must be submitted along with the application.
5. Ph.D. scholars who have submitted their thesis are also eligible to apply for IPDF posts. However, they must
submit the provisional/degree certificate within 6 months from the date of appointment as IPDF. If not
submitted within the time limit, the appointment will stand cancelled or a decision will be taken in consultation
with the thesis processing authority.
6. IITM Ph.D. scholars are not encouraged to apply for Institute PDF. However, outstanding candidates on merit
can apply in exceptional cases to a department different from their parent department, which will be
considered by the Department IPDF Committee. The evaluation will be with respect to:
a. The strength and novelty of the proposal. The proposal should not be a mere extension of the applicant’s
Ph.D. work.
b. The expertise brought in by the applicant to the department’s/mentor’s research area(s).
c. Value addition to the department/applicant.
B. TENURE OF IPDF
7. The minimum tenure is 2 years to ensure tangible institutional contributions.
8. The duration of the fellowship will be initially for a period of 1 year, extendable for a further period of up to two
more years based on the progress of the PDF and the recommendation of the Department’s Performance
Assessment Committee (PAC).
C. APPLICATION PROCESSING AND SELECTION
9. The candidate should identify a potential mentor (faculty member) according to their area of research by visiting
the Department websites. The candidate should submit the research proposal to the mentor and obtain
his/her concurrence for the research proposal.
The candidate shall apply only through the faculty member with whom the candidate proposes to work
as an IPDF. The commitment of funds must be signed by the faculty in the Commitment Form (Annexure I)
enclosed with the application form. Adequate fund availability will be verified before releasing the offer.
10. The application received by the faculty member will be scrutinised by the Department.
11. If the applicant is found to be eligible, a Departmental Evaluation Committee (DEC) will conduct a seminarbased evaluation of the candidate. This evaluation will assess:
a. The strength and novelty of the proposal (not a mere extension of the applicant’s Ph.D. work).
b. The expertise brought in by the applicant to the department’s/mentor’s research area(s).
c. Value addition to the department/applicant.
12. If found suitable by the DEC, the Institute Selection Committee (ISC) comprising the following members:
– Dean (AR) – Chairperson
– Dean (AC)
– Head of the Department (or nominee)
– 2 members from the Department
– 2 members from outside the Department (allied departments);
will evaluate the candidate and recommend the candidate to the Director for approval.
13. The ISC will interview candidates and recommend the selected list to the Director for approval.
14. For selected candidates who obtained their Ph.D. from IIT Madras, the mentor faculty member must be other
than the candidate’s Ph.D. Guide(s).
15. The selection will be done throughout the year. On obtaining approval from the competent authority, the offer
letter will be sent by the Department along with formats for Medical History and Relief Certificate (if
employed).
D. BENEFITS
16. The IPDF is eligible for the following benefits:
Benefit Details
Monthly Fellowship Rs. 1,30,000/- consolidated (Base Rs. 70,000/- from Institute + Faculty
Top-Up of minimum Rs. 60,000/- from project funds)
Contingency Grant Rs. 2,00,000/- per year for travel, contingency, and consumables.
Medical Benefits / Insurance As applicable to Ph.D. scholars at IIT Madras.
Conference Participation National or International Conference may be permitted, subject to
availability of funds in the contingency grant.
Guest Faculty IPDFs may, if appropriate, be utilised by the Department as guest
faculty and compensated as per extant guest-faculty rules, in addition
to the monthly fellowship.
Leave Leave with fellowship not exceeding 30 days in a year for each
completed year of fellowship, availed on a pro-rata basis (6-monthly).
Maternity Leave Women IPDFs are eligible for Maternity Leave subject to:
(i) minimum
6 months of service prior to proceeding on leave;
(ii) post re-joining
service of not less than 6 months; (iii) production of original medical
certificate. Salary for the maternity leave period will be disbursed only
on re-joining.
E. ASSIGNMENT AND ROLE
17. Apart from quality research work, IPDFs will be encouraged to write funding proposals.
18. The IPDF will be attached to the mentor only for administrative purposes. The IPDF will work ‘with’ the
mentor rather than ‘under’ the mentor, and will have independence to change the course of research.
19. IPDFs will be eligible to serve as co-guide for B.Tech/DD/M.Sc./M.A. and M.Tech projects along with the
mentor.
F. PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT COMMITTEE (PAC)
20. The performance of the IPDF will be reviewed annually by the Performance Assessment Committee (PAC),
constituted as follows:
Sl.
No.
Member Role
1. Head of the Department (or HoD representative)
(If the HoD is the Mentor of the IPDF, one of the
other members will assume the Chairperson role)
Chairperson
2. The Mentor Member
3. Two faculty members in the area of research
carried out by the fellow (need not necessarily be
from the same Department)
Member
21. The second-year renewal is contingent upon the submission of at least one manuscript based on work done
at IIT Madras during the first year of fellowship.
22. Progress Report: The IPDF must present a progress report to the PAC detailing the research work carried
out and findings, supported by reprints/preprints/manuscripts of papers published, accepted, or
communicated, and/or research reports.
G. JOINING
23. While joining as Institute PDF, the fellow must submit a Joining Report to the Academic Section through the
mentor and the Head of the Department.
H. TERMINATION
24. If the IPDF wishes to leave the programme before the end of the tenure, he/she may do so with prior approval
of the PAC, giving one month’s notice.
25. The fellowship may be terminated by the Institute if the performance or conduct of the fellow is unsatisfactory,
after giving one month’s notice to the IPDF.
I. GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS
26. The application format and other relevant details are hosted at: https://www.iitm.ac.in/careers/postdoctoral-opportunities
27. Separate applications must be submitted for each Department applied to.
28. Applications should be sent by email to the respective mentors (faculty member) along with all relevant
documents. Total size of documents should not exceed 25 MB.
29. At the time of interview, the candidate must submit the signed printed copy of the Institute PDF Application.
30. In addition, if appropriate, IPDFs may be utilised by the Department as guest faculty and compensated as per
extant guest-faculty rules – this is in addition to the monthly fellowship.
31. IPDFs are not eligible for Institute accommodation / HRA.
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