IISER Kolkata invites applications from motivated students for admission to the MS programme in Chemical Biology for Autumn 2026.

No. of Student Intake:About 16 per year

Eligibility Criteria:
Students with a degree in Chemistry or Biochemistry (major or honors) are eligible to apply for the Two-Year M.Sc. program in Chemical Biology.
or
Applicants with any Life Sciences undergraduate degree are eligible if they have completed at least five (5) chemistry courses, including core courses in Organic Chemistry, Inorganic Chemistry, and Physical Chemistry.

*Candidates who are in the final year of B.Sc. or B. Tech. may also apply. Admission, however, will be subject to completion of all formalities, as described below, in the 'Selection Procedure'.

Minimum Qualifying Marks:*
Candidates need to secure a minimum of 60% marks/equivalent grades in Honors/Major (if applicable) or in aggregate (if Honors/Major is not applicable). Those appearing in the final examination of their degree course can also apply; for them, the eligibility marks are 60% (or equivalent) based on the marks obtained in the undergraduate examinations held till the date of submission of the application form.

*For candidates whose final examination marks are not available at the time of application, the marks till their 5th Semester will be considered.

Who Can Apply:
Please note that applicants who have qualified in the following nationwide aptitude tests in 2025 or 2026 can apply for the program: JAM Chemistry, JAM Biology, and JAM Biotechnology.

Reservation Policy:As per the Govt. of India norms.

How to Apply: The applicants should open the link at the bottom of this page (Submit New Application) and properly fill out the application form as instructed, and submit. Applicants should save the properly filled application form. If submitted, an application slip will be available as a PDF. You need to print the application slip.
During the in-person interview, candidates selected for the interview should bring a printout of the application slip along with the required documents (along with originals) listed below at the time of the interview.

Documents Required:

1. Self-attested copies of mark sheets and certificates of all examinations starting from the secondary examination.
2. Self-attested copy of the qualifying examination certificate.
3. Proof of qualification in nationwide aptitude tests and score card.
4. SC/ST/OBC/OBC-NCL/PwD/ EWS certificates as applicable.EWS/OBC-NCL certificate valid for the current financial year 2026–2027(certificate issue date for EWS/OBC-NCL has to be on or after April 1, 2026).
5. Identity Proof /photo ID [Any ONE of the following: Driving License, Aadhar Card, Passport, Voter ID Card, and PAN Card] and a self-attested photocopy of the same.
6. Self-attested copy of Aadhar Card (if not provided as Identity Proof).
7. Proof of age: Date of Birth Certificate.

Selection Procedure: A department/institute-level committee duly approved by the competent authority will scrutinize all applications and prepare a shortlist of candidates to be called for the interview. The results will be displayed on the Institute website. * The candidates whose final results are awaited will be admitted provisionally. Such candidates must meet all the criteria within 60 days of their admission.

Selection Criteria:*
JAM rank will be considered based on the applications received.

Important Dates (Tentative):
Application portal opens: 10th April 2026
Application portal closes: 10th June 2026
Publication of Shortlisted Candidates for Interview: 15th June 2026
Interview (offline only): Tests / Interviews: fourth/fifth week of June 2026
Publication of interview results: First week of July 2026
Pre-registration starts (first list): First week of July 2026
Pre-registration starts (second list): Second week of July 2026
Registration: 29 July 2026
Class starts: First week of August 2026