Pune: The Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA), Pune and National Centre for Radio Astrophysics of the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (NCRA-TIFR), Pune have notified for IUCAA-NCRA Admission Test 2017. The IUCAA-NCRA Admission Test (INAT-2017) is conducted to select candidates for a research scholarship towards a PhD at either IUCAA or NCRA-TIFR.
These are two leading centres of research in a wide range of areas in Physics, and Astronomy and Astrophysics. IUCAA and NCRA-TIFR are located on neighbouring campuses in the Pune University Campus.
Eligibility Conditions: Prospective applicants should complete their B.Sc./ M.Sc./ Integrated M.Sc. degree (in Physics, Electronics, Astronomy or Applied Mathematics) or B.E./ B.Tech./ M.E./ M.Tech. degree (in any branch) by July 2018, with 55% marks or more. Students who have already completed any of the above degrees are also eligible. In addition, talented final-year B.Sc., 1st year M.Sc., 3rd/4th year Integrated M.Sc. and 2nd/3rd year B.E./B.Tech. students may also apply to be pre-selected for the PhD programme at IUCAA.
Students who complete their MSc/Integrated MSc/ME/MTech degrees by July 2018 will be eligible for selection to the PhD programme of both IUCAA and NCRA-TIFR. Students who complete their BE/BTech degrees by July 2018 are eligible for selection to the PhD programme at IUCAA and to the Integrated PhD programme at NCRA-TIFR). Students who complete their BSc degrees by July 2018 will be eligible for selection to the Integrated PhD programme at NCRA-TIFR and for pre-selection to the PhD programme at IUCAA.
Key Dates: The closing date for submission of online application is 15 September 2017 (Friday). The last date for the online submission of the Assessment forms is 20 September 2017.
The Admission (written) test will be held on Thursday, 07 December 2017, at 9:00 a.m. The venue for the test is Chandrasekhar Auditorium, IUCAA, Pune University Campus, Ganeshkhind, Pune 411007, Maharashtra.
Selection Process: The selection for the research scholarship will be through a written test at IUCAA on Thursday, 7 December 2017, and two interviews on December 7 and/ or 8, 2017 (Thursday and Friday), at NCRA-TIFR, Pune.
For eligibility criteria, how to apply and other details, candidates should visit official website of INAT-2017:
http://inat.ncra.tifr.res.in/INAT2017/candidate/welcome.ncra
IUCAA (an autonomous institution of the University Grants Commission) offers challenging opportunities to young researchers in theory, observation, and instrumentation in Astronomy and Astrophysics. Recently, IUCAA has acquired a share in the 10-m Southern African Large Telescope; it also operates the IUCAA Girawali Observatory with a 2-m optical telescope. Both these telescopes have imaging, spectroscopic and polarimetric capabilities. IUCAA also has a high-performance computational facility and a good library.
NCRA-TIFR offers exciting opportunities for research in Astronomy and Astrophysics, and instrumentation, with an emphasis on Radio Astronomy. NCRA-TIFR has built and operates the Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope, which is located near Pune, and is the biggest and most powerful radio telescope in the world at low radio frequencies. NCRA-TIFR also operates the Ooty Radio Telescope (ORT), which is located near Udhagamandalam. Both GMRT and ORT have yielded several significant discoveries. NCRA-TIFR has modern computing facilities and an excellent library.
