How to prepare for the interview

In the interview, candidates are expected to answer questions from the core subjects of CSE such as (i) Engineering Mathematics (ii) Digital Logic, (iii) Computer Organization & Architecture, (iv) Programming & Data Structures (v) Algorithms, (vi) Theory of Computation, (vii) Operating Systems, (viii) Database Systems, (ix) Computer Networks. We generally use a syllabus nearly identical to GATE CS syllabus for the interview. However, please note that in the interview, we may ask questions from your research areas that are not covered in the GATE syllabus.

At the time of Interview, we generally ask the candidates to mention at least three core subjects from which we will asked few fundamental questions. Therefore, the candidates must take preparation on core subjects before appearing in interview. By preparation, we do not mean just “reading” through the textbooks and recalling the definitions. The candidates should have understood the concepts, have thought about them critically, and be able to solve problems related to these concepts intelligently. We also try to observe how a candidate thinks while trying to solve a problem.
Few more points to remember:

• If you are currently working as a lecturer, we expect that you will be able to answer questions from the subjects that you have taught recently in your institution.
• If you were involved in a research project, then we expect that you will be able to explain the work that you have done in the project.
• If you have done BTech/MTech Thesis work, then we expect that you will be able to tell your contribution in the thesis work.

Should I take preparation on my expected research domain/ research interest?

It is not a mandatory requirement to prepare on advanced topics or research domains. However, knowledge on advance topics or research domains will add additional weight to your application. But the first and foremost eligibility criterion that we will be looking for is if you have a clear understanding of core CS concepts, especially those underpinning the area that you will be working in PhD. For example, if you want to work in ML, we expect that you can answer conceptual questions from subjects like Probability, Linear Algebra, Computer Programming, Data Structure and Algorithms, etc. If you want to work in theoretical computer science, we expect that you can answer questions by applying concepts from Data Structure and Algorithms, Discrete Mathematics, Probability, etc. A candidate who wants to do research in computer systems should be able to solve problems in Data Structure and Algorithms, Computer Programming, Operating Systems, Networking, Computer Architecture, Database Systems, etc. You may not have prepared well to answer questions from all these subjects but you should be ready to take questions from at least a few of them.

Types of Financial Assistance in Ph.D.

PhD students are eligible to receive financial assistance through various avenues such as:

• MHRD Fellowships: As per current norms, MHRD supports PhD fellowships for five years max. PhD students get the monthly stipend of ₹37000 for the first two years (at JRF level) and ₹42000 for the next three years (at SRF level).
• Travel Fund: IIT Guwahati provides financial assistance to regular PhD students to present their research papers in reputed conferences (preferably in international venues) during their PhD. Every such student is entitled for a total of Rs.1,00,000/- (one lakh only) in the entire institute assistantship duration of PhD period subject to the approval as per institute rules.
• PMRF: Prime Minister's Research Fellowship (PMRF) is a very prestigious fellowship which pays high amount as compared to MHRD fellowship. Please see https://www.pmrf.in/ for more details. Visit the PMRF Scholars of IIT Guwahati here https://www.iitg.ac.in/acad/pmrf.php
• Visvesvaraya Fellowships: PhD students of CSE department can also apply for Visvesvaraya Fellowship. This scheme supports till PhD completion or 5 years whichever is earlier. It also has provision for some contingency fund and HRA, if applicable. Please see https://phd.digitalindiacorporation.in/ for more details about Visvesvaraya PhD Fellowship. You can also visit our institute webpage https://iitg.ac.in/acad/admission/doctoral/disciplines.php/#visvesvaraya to get the details.
• Industry Fellowships: Companies such as TCS, Intel, Google, Infosys often provides fellowships for full time PhD students. Some of our PhD students have got such fellowships earlier. Getting such fellowships also adds a plus point in your CV. These fellowship amounts vary but usually provides similar monthly stipend as MHRD fellowships.
• Project Funded Fellowships: Faculty members of the department work on various research projects and students can be hired for doing research in a particular project. The fellowship amount remains the same as MHRD fellowship but an added advantage is that the research problems are predefined from the beginning of the project. Students working in such research project may get the opportunity to do MTech/PhD upon qualifying the MTech/PhD recruitment process. To know more about Project Mode MTech and PhD in IIT Guwahati, please visit https://iitg.ac.in/acad/admission/doctoral/studentship.php and https://iitg.ac.in/acad/admission/doctoral/disciplines.php/#projectmode , respectively. To know more about the funded research projects running in the CSE department, please visit https://iitg.ac.in/cse/csesponsoredresearchprojects.php#Page