What to do you after you join MS Research at IIT Kharagpur

Here, I plan to write about my MS (Research) journey at IIT Kharagpur, India. In this article, I will provide the complete details of all the administrative procedures and guidelines required throughout the course of pursuing an MS Research degree after you get accepted to the program.

This is targeted toward students that have already received the joining letter and have successfully gotten through the admission process.

Many congratulations on your acceptance!

The application process, Interview Preparation, and More on MS Research Program

If you are planning to apply and are yet to complete the admission procedure, I think my previous post will be more useful. It extensively covers topics such as how a student can apply (the application process), the eligibility criteria, how to prepare for the interview, and how to decide to pursue it.

Let us now start …

Online Application Portal of IIT Kharagpur – ERP

I think you have already used the ERP profile for completing your admission formalities. Please follow the admission letter mail as it will clearly outline how to complete the process of creating an ERP account using your institute roll number and password.

If I remember correctly, you have to set a new password and create a set of 3 questions and its associated correct passphrase. Every time you plan to log in from now on, you have to provide:

1. Institute Roll Number
2. Password
3. Any 1 of the 3 passphrase-based questions that you have set in the previous step

Great, we have now entered, and you will be looking at the ERP dashboard

Most used sections of ERP as an MS Research student

Academic -> MS student -> Student Status

Provides updates regarding your admission like joining status, joining date, topic, coursework selected semester registration status.

Since ERP does not send you any notification if there is any status update, you need to keep checking it periodically.

Apna (Internal) IIT KGP Notices

For Ph.D. rules or any other Academic Regulation details, please visit APNA IIT Kharagpur’s Rules and Regulations section and Academic section (Academic PG).

Academic -> Student Profile

This option contains the complete academic details, emergency contact details, institute email id, and current student status information.

Workflow of MS Research Program

1. MS or Ph.D. Admission (Available at ERP homepage. Login credentials not required)
2. Coursework Assignment
3. Enrollment
4. Mid and End-sem examinations
5. Semester Registration,
6. Change of Coursework
7. Comprehensive Viva-voce
8. First Seminar
9. Second Seminar
10. Synopsis Seminar
11. Thesis Submission
12. MS Thesis Defense

MS General Rules and Guidelines

You should understand the details of the following MS rules published by the Institute [Download link]. Per my understanding, these rules applied during my tenure (till 2019).

msrules

I would love your comments and get feedback from you.

Disclaimer: These facts are based on my experience during my MS research tenure and may change over time. I advise you first to approach your Office of the respective departments and enquire about the requirements and various formalities that must be completed and submitted by the student. However, for a detailed interpretation of the rules, kindly enquire with the PGSRS section in advance.

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Related articles that may be of interest to you

I wish you all the very best for starting your journey in research. I have summed up my learning over the past five years in academia in the following articles

1. A Self-help guide to starting your own Machine Learning research project
2. Ten ways to sharpen your Soft Skills as a grad student