Department of Computational and Data Sciences (CDS)

CDS invites applications for the regular PhD programme in the Spring semester 2027. The core research strengths of CDS are in the areas of Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Information Retrieval, Data Mining, Soft Computing, and Meta-Heuristic Optimization. Moreover, CDS is uniquely positioned to conduct interdisciplinary research in Computational Natural Sciences (e.g., Computational Physics, Computational Chemistry, Computational Biology, and Computational Earth Sciences) due to its co-location with the legendary natural science departments at IISER Kolkata.

Minimum Eligibility criteria:

Criterion 1. Bright and motivated candidates having a Master's degree with minimum 55% marks (or equivalent) or 4 Years bachelor's degree with 75% marks (or equivalent) in any fields related to Computer Science. A relaxation of 5% marks or its equivalent grade may be allowed for those belonging to SC/ST/OBC (non-creamy layer)/Differently-Abled, Economically Weaker Section (EWS) and other categories of candidates as per the UGC norms.

Criterion 2. A candidate must pass UGC-NET or GATE or at least one equivalent national-level qualifying exam in a subject related to Computer Science. IISER graduates with a CGPA > 8 are exempted from criterion 2.


Besides satisfying the aforementioned criteria, the candidates are expected to have valid CSIR/UGC-NET JRF or other equivalent fellowships. Please note that fulfilling the minimum eligibility criteria does not ensure that a candidate will be called for the interview. Additional shortlisting criteria might be set by the department based on the academic records, experience, and research interests of the candidates.

Reservations for SC/ST/OBC/Divyang candidates are applicable as per the Government of India rules.

Application Instructions:
An interested candidate is requested to read the following instructions carefully before filling in the application form on the application portal.

1.Potential Supervisor:
There is a field called 'Potential Supervisor' in the application portal. It is a dropdown list from which exactly one faculty member’s name can be selected. Even if you have more than one preferred supervisor, please select the name of your most preferred supervisor. Only the following faculty members are accepting PhD candidates at the moment. Therefore, selecting anyone else as your potential supervisor may result in a desk rejection of your application.

Name of the Facutly Member	Research Areas	Website	Remarks
Dr Kripabandhu Ghosh	Artificial Intelligence and Law, Natural Language Processing	Click Here	Candidates with or without CSIR/UGC-NET JRF or other equivalent fellowships can apply
Dr. Monidipa Das	Data Mining, Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning	Click Here	Candidates must possess CSIR/UGC-NET JRF or other equivalent fellowships
Dr Priyanka Singh	Soft Computing, Meta-Heuristic Optimization	Click Here	Candidates with or without CSIR/UGC-NET JRF or other equivalent fellowships can apply
Dr Saptarshi Pyne	Causal AI (algorithm design and/or applications in single-cell multi-omics network inference)	Click Here	Candidates must possess CSIR/UGC-NET JRF or other equivalent fellowships

2. Scientific Interest:
There is a textbox called ‘Scientific Interest’. If you have a single preferred supervisor, please mention how your research interests align with his/hers. Otherwise, if you are open to work with any available supervisor, please clearly mention that in this textbox, e.g., “I am open to work with any faculty member”, “I am open to work with Dr X and Dr Y”. Also, please describe your research interests in this textbox.

3. Your Preparation:
There is a textbox called ‘Your Preparation’. In this textbox, please mention the subject name for each qualifying exam, e.g., “passed UGC-NET (2025) JRF for Computer Science and Applications”, “passed GATE (2026) for Computer Science & Information Technology”, “passed GATE (2026) for Data Science & Artificial Intelligence”. Kindly also mention the discipline name(s) in which you have received your preceding degree(s), e.g., “MSc in Computer Science”. It is also important that you mention your current position. Apart from these, please describe what makes you well prepared for conducting doctoral research in the areas of your interest (as you have specified in the ‘Scientific Interest' textbox).

Other fields in the application form are self-explanatory.

Tentative Timeline:
PhD application portal opens: 20.09.2026
Application portal closes: 25.10.2026
Publication of shortlist for the Interview: 31.10.26
Selection Interview window: 9.11.26- 22.11.26
Publication of PhD interview results by: 27.11.2026
Pre-registration portal opens: 30.11.2026
Registration for Spring Semester 2027 All new students- 30.12.2026

About the Department:

Please visit the department homepage at Click here for more information.