Applications are invited from prospective candidates for admission to the PhD Program at IISER Mohali in the areas of Biological Sciences, Chemical Sciences, Physical Sciences, Mathematical Sciences, Earth & Environmental Sciences and Humanities & Social Sciences, for the session beginning in August/September 2021. Candidates interested in pursuing research in interdisciplinary areas are also encouraged to apply.

Eligibility Criteria:

Biological Sciences: The applicant should have a Master’s degree/ B.Tech/MBBS/ M.Tech/ /M. Pharm with a good academic record (at least 60% and above) and should be GATE/CSIR or UGC-NET/ JEST/ GPAT/ ICMR-JRF/ DBT-JRF/ DBT-BINC/ ICAR-NET/ DST- INSPIRE qualified in the relevant subject.

Chemical Sciences: The applicant should have a Master’s degree/ B.Tech/ MBBS/ M.Tech/ M.Pharm with a good academic record (at least a high second class) and should be GATE/ CSIR or UGC-NET/ JEST/ GPAT/ ICMR-JRF/ DBT-JRF/ DBT-BINC/ ICAR-NET/ DST- INSPIRE qualified in the relevant subject. The research interests of the candidates will be given due consideration while assigning a laboratory and guide. Accordingly, additional information may be sought from the candidates shortlisted for interview. The candidates must check their email periodically and provide necessary information, if asked, failing which may lead to cancellation of their application. 

Physical Sciences: The applicant should have a Master’s degree/ B.Tech/ MBBS/ M.Tech with a good academic record (at least a high second class) and should be GATE/ CSIR or UGC-NET/ JEST/ GPAT/ ICMR-JRF/ DBT-JRF/ DBT-BINC/ ICAR-NET/ DST- INSPIRE qualified in the relevant subject.

Mathematical Sciences: 

Kindly click on these two links:

(i) https://www.iisermohali.ac.in/files/frontpage/IISER-Mohali-PhD-Admission-Poster2021.pdf
(ii) https://www.iisermohali.ac.in/files/frontpage/Admission-through-NBHM.pdf

Click here for update on NBHM exam

Earth and Environmental Sciences: An applicant should have a Masters/ B.Tech/ M. Tech degree in Atmospheric Sciences/ Earth and Environmental Sciences/ Geology/ Chemistry/ Physics/ Environmental Biotechnology /Biological Sciences/Geophysics/Meteorology/Hydrology/ Climate Sciences/ Mathematics / Remote Sensing / Computer Sciences / Artificial Intelligence /Data Sciences and should havea valid GATE/ CSIR-UGC-NET/ DST-Inspire fellowship. Apart from applying online, an applicant must send a SOP document of 600 words in the following format SOP template to the following email address: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. mentioning the broad subject area (Atmospheric Sciences, Environmental Sciences, Geology etc) as the subject of the email, failing which the application may not be considered for shortlisting.

Humanities and Social Sciences: An applicant should have M.A./M.Sc./M.Phil degree (minimum 55% for General and OBC category, minimum 50% for SC/ST/PD.) in one or more of the following subjects: Sociology / Anthropology / Modern Indian History / Urban History / Political Economy / Urban Studies / English Literature / Development Studies / South Asian studies / Economics / Labour Studies / Public Policy Studies / Feminist Geography / Labour Geography and Critical Infrastructure Studies. Apart from applying online, an applicant must send a statement of proposed research (minimum 1500 words) to the following email address: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. mentioning the broad subject area (History, Literature, Economics, etc.) as the subject of the email, failing which the application may not be considered for shortlisting. This email address is meant ONLY for sending the statement of proposed research. Having qualified UGC/NET/NET-JRF/GATE or any other national level eligibility test is required at the time of the PhD application submission. The candidates who have not yet qualified (including those who are awaiting results) any of the above-mentioned national eligibility tests will not be shortlisted. For English literature, only candidates with UGC-NET-JRF will be considered in the areas of Trauma Studies, Scatology Studies, and Science-in-theatre/fiction.

PMRF fellowship:  IISER Mohali is one of the PMRF granting institutes offering PMRF Fellowship to meritorious Ph.D. candidates. To apply for PMRF through direct entry, the candidate needs to get selected in our regular Ph.D. program, and the Institute will recommend selected few candidates for PMRF. The final decision will be taken by the National Level Discipline-Specific Selection Committee. Detailed eligibility criteria are mentioned on the (https://dec2020.pmrf.in/) and the same will be applicable. Candidates are advised to visit (https://dec2020.pmrf.in/) to know more.

Application procedure: Prospective candidates should apply online using the “Online Application Facility” by visiting the website at http://www.iisermohali.ac.in. Short-listed candidates will be invited for a screening-test/interview/online interview at IISER Mohali.

Due to the postponement of the JEST exam, the candidates are requested to apply for the PhD admissions without the score/rank in the JEST exam. However, you are requested to mention the JEST exam application number and Qualifying year.  You may fill the score as 0 and leave the Rank field empty. The conveners will contact those candidates whoever chose JEST as the option at a later stage when the results for the exam will be out.

Instructions: Please read the instructions for filling up the applications.

IMPORTANT: All candidates should ensure that their application form is complete by downloading the filled application form from ERP. All communication with candidates will be shared by email only and all the announcements will be made in the IISER Mohali webpage. Applying does not automatically guarantee that a candidate will be shortlisted for an interview. The respective departments may use additional criteria (based on academic performance and/or performance in the national level tests) in order to shortlist candidates for interviews depending on the number of applications received - this particularly applicable when we receive a large number of applicants and conduct an online/offline interview.

Last date: The online application facility will be open till 12.00 noon, May 07, 2021 (Friday). For further details about the program and research areas, please visit our website: https://www.iisermohali.ac.in.