Ph.D. Program at the INSTITUTE OF LIFE SCIENCES (Associate Institute of the University of Hyderabad)

The Ph.D. program at the Institute of Life Sciences (ILS) will provide students with opportunities for original research in modern biology and chemistry. The uniquely designed coursework is designed to provide cross-disciplinary education in specific areas of chemistry and biology, to develop capability in true interdisciplinary research. The long-term vision of the ILS Ph.D. program is to nurture future generations of scientists in India with the ability to innovate at the interface of chemistry and biology.

Ph.D. admission to ILS is contingent on students qualifying in the ‘NET’ examination for JRF conducted by CSIR, DBT or ICMR. Qualified candidates will be required to appear for two rounds of interview. The final selection will be based on an overall assessment of the candidates.

Ph.D. in Chemistry and Ph.D. in Biochemistry or Biotechnology will be offered. Students admitted to the Ph.D. program have to undertake courses of 12 credits in one year and must pass all of them with an aggregate score of 60%. The teaching philosophy at ILS is to create a student-centric and flexible course curriculum, taught by interactive and discussion-based sessions.

The courses are as follows:

1. Introductory Chemistry or Biology (Cross-disciplinary) (3 credits):

A basic cross-disciplinary course in which biology students will be expected to learn basic chemistry, and chemistry students will be expected to learn basic biology.

1. Advanced Chemistry or Biology (3 credits):

An advanced course in which students will be expected to understand concepts in detail within their own disciplines (chemistry and biology).

1. Introductory Seminar Series (1.5 credits):

A common seminar course in which all students will be expected to acquire the fundamentals of critically reading, analyzing and presenting research articles.

1. Chemical Biology (3 credits):

An advanced course in which all students will be expected to gain an appreciation of the interfacial field of chemical biology, utilizing specific examples from published literature.

1. Advanced Seminar Series (1.5 credits):

A common advanced seminar course in which all students will be expected to critically analyze and present a review of contemporary journal articles.

[One credit is defined as one 50-minute learning session per week for 15 weeks]

Students are expected to provide a priority list of three faculty members as potential mentors for their Ph.D. dissertation work. The final assignment of students to specific labs will be based on the decision of the faculty members. Students will be required to write and orally defend their major research proposal within one year after the course work ends. Students carry out their work under the supervision of their mentor and the advice of a four-member doctoral committee. Participation in research seminars and submission of yearly progress reports of research work is required. The scholar presents the research work in a comprehensive seminar before the submission of the thesis. Award of Ph.D. by the University of Hyderabad will be based on the recommendation of the doctoral committee.

Course Framework

Coursework Topics