General Information

The department offers postgraduate academic programs leading to MTech, MS (Research), and PhD in Computer Science and Engineering. These high-quality programs are flexible and allow students to choose courses from a number of elective courses offered by the department and do research in a wide range of topics in Computer Science & Engineering (CSE). The CSE department faculty are actively involved in research in various fields of Computer Science. The department provides an excellent academic and research platform, and encourages and nurtures students to solve real-world research problems.

All postgraduate programs in the Institute are subject to the provisions of Institute PostGraduate manual. It describes the rules regarding all aspect of the postgraduate programs. Please refer the DoAA PG Admissions page for more details on the PostGraduate Programs (MTech, MS, and PhD) at IIT Kanpur.

MTech

The MTech program is designed for students who have a BTech/BE in Computer Science or equivalent degrees, and is oriented towards research and advanced training in Computer Science. The degree program exposes students to a wide range of courses combined with specialised research, which culminates in a thesis. Such a combination gives students the breadth and depth necessary for pursuing careers in academics as well as in industry.

There are two modes of pursuing MTech institute-funded and QIP/Sponsored, as explained below:

Institute funded

Eligibility Requirements

  • Bachelor's degree in engineering or science (4-year program) or
  • 3-year Bachelor program + Master’s degree in engineering or science
  • CPI >=6 or >=60% in the qualifying degree
  • GATE score in CS or DA/MA/EE/EC

Shortlisting Process

  • Through GATE scores. There will not be any interviews.
  • Shortlisting cutoff for different GATE papers (CS/DA/MA/EE/EC) may be different.


QIP/Sponsored

Eligibility Requirements

  • A sponsored candidate must have been in service of the sponsoring organisation for at least two years at the time of admission
  • The sponsoring organisation must specifically undertake to provide full salary to the candidate and to relieve him/her to pursue the programme for its full duration
  • GATE is not required. A good academic record is needed

Shortlisting Process

  • Ad-hoc basis: through an admission written test and a programming test determined by the CSE department


Please refer to the departmental MTech Program page for more information.

 

MS (Research)

The MS program is designed for students who want to work on research or industry-sponsored projects at IIT Kanpur and earn an MS (by Research) degree at the same time. There are two modes of pursuing MS (by Research) institute-funded and project-funded, as explained below:

Institute funded

Eligibility Requirements

  • Bachelor's degree in engineering or science (4-year program) or
  • 3-year Bachelor program + Master’s degree in engineering or science
  • CPI >=6 or >=60% in the qualifying degree
  • GATE score in CS; or DA/MA/EE/EC

Shortlisting Process


Project funded

This program is meant for those students who wish to pursue an MS degree while working on a project in the Institute.

Eligibility Requirements

  • The applicant must be employed in an IITK project for at least 1 year.
  • GATE score is not required. Separate admission test can be taken.
  • Applicants already employed with an IITK project with a valid GATE score who falls under the following categories need not wait for one year before joining the program:
    • BTech/BE/BS(4yrs) (CS or IT) /MCA/MSc (CS) with CPI ≥ 6.00 or ≥ 60%, and a valid GATE score in CS/Data Science (DA)
    • BTech/BE/BS (4yrs) (any discipline) with CPI ≥ 7.5 or ≥ 75%, and a valid GATE score in CS
    • BTech/BE/BS (4yrs) /MSc in EC/EE/Electronics/Math, a valid GATE score in Data Science (DA)/EE/EC/MA, and CPI ≥ 7.5 or ≥ 75% in the concerned degree
    However, such applicants must clear the admission test.
  • The sponsoring project must have at least one year (preferably three years) of funding available

Shortlisting Process

  • Ad-hoc basis: through an admission written test and a programming test determined by the CSE department

Funding

  • The (part-time) students employed on sponsored research projects in the Institute will not be supported by the Department, in case they fail to get project funding in their subsequent year of the program. Such students could be offered Institute Assistantship, as in the case of MTech students, for a maximum of one year, provided they have a valid GATE score and their case is considered favourably by the DPGC of the Department


Sponsored

Eligibility Requirements

  • Need to be employed at an IITK project or an external organisation such as a company, govt. body, PSU, etc.
  • The sponsoring organisation must specifically undertake to provide full salary to the candidate and to relieve him/her to pursue the programme for its full duration
  • GATE score is not required. A good academic record is needed

Shortlisting Process

  • Ad-hoc basis: through an admission written test and a programming test determined by the CSE department


Please refer to the departmental MS Program page for more information.

 

PhD

The PhD program is designed for students with strong motivation for doing research in Computer Science. The emphasis during PhD is on research training to make our students competent in their respective areas, and help them prepare to take up teaching or research-and-development professions.

Eligibility Requirements

Admission to the PhD program is open to candidates with an MTech/ME degree or equivalent in any discipline. However, candidates without a master's degree may also be considered provided they have a strong CS background, as well as a BTech/BE or equivalent degree in any discipline or an MSc degree in Maths, Statistics, or Physics.

Shortlisting Process

Aspiring PhD candidates will need to appear for an on-campus written test and a programming test. Candidates shortlisted based on these tests will need to then appear for an interview.

Round-the-year walk-in interviews may happen for PhD candidates based on the credentials of the candidates. Any candidate with relevant experience or publications in top conferences and journals may write to admissions chairs or the department chair to see if they qualify for walk-in interviews for a PhD.


Please refer to the departmental PhD Program web page for more information.

Documents Required

Please make sure you carry original documents while appearing for the written test, programming test, and interviews.

  • Candidate should come with all educational and experience certificates
  • Candidate should carry latest GATE score card
  • SC/ST candidates should come with their original caste certificate
  • OBC-NCL candidates should come with their latest and valid OBC-NCL certificates, otherwise they will be treated as general candidates.
  • Candidate should come with original photo ID proof (e.g., government-provided ID card, college ID card, etc.)
  • Sponsored candidates should produce original certificate from sponsoring agencies/institutions.