North Columbus News

The Ohio State University and the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IIT Bombay) have announced a new dual doctoral degree program aimed at strengthening their research and academic partnership. The initiative is designed to offer graduate students from both institutions international educational and professional experiences.

IIT Bombay, recognized as a leading technical institute in India, focuses primarily on engineering but also has strong research programs across various science and engineering fields. The newly launched dual PhD program will support outstanding graduate students by giving them access to educational resources and industrial partnerships from both universities.

“This new opportunity will help students gain an international experience in graduate education and provide access to new information and perspectives, innovative concepts and methods, emerging research technologies, and unique populations and environments not typically available at a single institution and country,” said Balasubramaniam Shanker, professor and chair of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Ohio State.

A key feature of the program is its link with the IIT Bombay-Ohio State Frontier Science and Engineering Research Center. Established by Ohio State’s Institute for Materials and Manufacturing Research (IMR), this center supports joint doctoral projects between faculty members from both institutions. The dual degree program will initially focus on collaborative work in microelectronics and artificial intelligence.

“This program will offer exceptional education and hands-on research training to graduate students by providing access to complementary strengths, expertise and facilities at both institutions. Along with the vibrant Frontier Center, this program deepens Ohio State’s collaboration with a premier Indian university and supports globally connected graduate education,” said IMR Executive Director Steven A. Ringel, Distinguished University Professor in electrical and computer engineering.

The objective is to produce highly skilled graduates by attracting top domestic and international talent into the graduate programs at both universities. Students enrolled in the dual degree program will complete portions of their coursework and research at each institution. They are expected to fulfill requirements for both degrees within the standard timeframe for a single PhD.

This marks the first time Ohio State has introduced such a dual doctoral degree arrangement.