Research is to see what everybody else has seen, and to think what nobody else has thought
-Dr. Albert Szent-Gyorgyi

Being one among the most sought after institutes of the country, and hence, an agglomeration of some of the brightest minds, IIT Roorkee is an institute that is expected to have a firm-footed research culture and produce some unparalleled research output. These assumptions turn out to be true but only to limited extents. Owing to the heterogeneity of the student population in terms of their interests and future aspirations, the research culture at IIT-R lags behind a few other research centred colleges in India (read IISc, IISERs, etc) but is still dynamic enough to provide adequate opportunities to the enthusiastic. On a positive note, the state of undergraduate research at IIT Roorkee is consistently improving both due to the efforts of the administration and also the student community (essentially, people who are already pursuing a career in research).

Research activities at IITR are aptly supported by proper infrastructure and facilities. The Central Library at IIT Roorkee is a member of the National Digital Library Consortium through which students can gain access to over 15000 journals belonging to various domains of Science, Engineering and Technology. Apart from this, several standard books on varied topics are present for the reference of students at both the Central and the departmental libraries. Talking content infrastructure, the institute has several dedicated facilities like the Institute Computer Centre and the Institute Instrumentation Centre, apart from the departmental laboratories and research centres.In addition to this, the newly set-up Tinkering Lab provides free 3-D printing facilities to the students which could provide a huge boon for engineering-based research taking place at IITR. All this is supported by a 400 member strong faculty where some of the professors are the pioneers in their field at the global stage.

The step of initiation for any undergraduate at IITR, in the field of research, is generally taking up a project under a professor. There is no set procedure for doing this. Just being on the lookout for professors who have common fields of interests and discussing the prospects of a project with them is sufficient. The process is actually much easier than it sounds. After having started working on a project, the outcomes generally depend on the amount of hard work put in and some people even succeed in getting their research published in renowned journals and conferences.

A recent initiative by the administration is the Spark IITR programme, aimed at cultivating enthusiasm for research amongst UG students. Under the Spark programme, the institute offers funded, project-based summer internships to UG students of IITR and other institutes. Candidates can choose from a list of projects with their associated faculty after two semesters of undergraduate study, provided they fulfill the CG requirements. Applications for the program are to be submitted in the spring semester, before February 28th, and selected candidates would be allowed to start their summer training immediately after the completion of their end term exams. The project serves as a gateway for potential research enthusiasts to follow their passion through Master’s or PhD courses in the institute.

A lot of national and international programs also open their doors for the students of IITR for pursuing research in various top institutions around the world. Through these programs, students are offered funded research internship positions during the summer breaks. Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship(SURF) offered by CalTech, Charpak Scholarship offered by the Embassy of France, German Academic Exchange Service(DAAD) for German Colleges and Mitacs Globalink Research Internship offered for Canadian universities are some of the many programs utilised by students for getting an international research exposure. Other programs such as those by Indian Academy of Sciences(IAS), Tata Institute of Fundamental Research(TIFR) and various IITs and IISERs offer similar research opportunities in India. To apply for these programs, it is important to keep track of updates on their websites since the beginning of the Autumn semester. Students can also mail professors with coherent interests to ask for research internships.Though a little tough administratively, this is a good approach to work with researchers of aligning interests irrespective of their participation in any program or eligibility criteria.

Students also have an option for undergoing a semester exchange at colleges such as KTH Royal Institute of Technology Sweden, Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts Switzerland, York University Canada, HTWD Germany, ESTP France, University of Southampton, IIT Delhi and IIT Bombay.

Another provision that helps in encouraging students towards research is the ability to carry out projects outside IIT Roorkee. Students can avail this if they have an offer letter from the supervisor of the organisation.

In addition to this, Prime Minister’s Research Fellows is another opportunity that is offered to the students. This is open to final year students with a CGPA>8.0. If they are selected to pursue a PhD in the PMRF granting institutes of the country, they are granted a fellowship(upwards of INR 70000 per year) and a research grant of INR 200,000 per annum.

What sets IITR apart from other Institutes is the ability to pursue your Bachelor Thesis in a foreign university. Bachelor Thesis Project or BTP is the final year project, every undergraduate must undertake for completion of their graduation. IITR gives a student the flexibility to choose a foreign university to conduct his/her bachelor thesis, given he qualifies the criteria. Thus, a student can visit a university for a duration of 4th year, 1st semester and complete his/her BTP. This is made possible by taking courses early on such that you end up clearing a complete semester for your foreign visit. With a professor backing you up, semester courses cleared and approval from the title of Department, you can pursue research in a foreign university which is a feat in its own.

Altogether, even though the research at IIT-R lacks behind on some pointers, the university succeeds in providing ample opportunities to people who have the will and grit to pursue core research as a career.