Undergraduate Research

Undergraduate research has grown to levels of sophistication today. Virtually, every university that is active in research has grown to understand the importance of research to be inculcated from the early days. In Mechanical Engineering department, besides teaching our experienced faculty members actively participate in undergraduate research program. Undergraduate research is a pedagogical tool that helps channelize the energy and enthusiasm of students into conceptual-based education, thereby igniting their minds to explore with curiosity the world around them. It can help students to

  1. Abridge the gap between class-room education and real world challenges, and learning the relevance of the curriculum that they undergo at the Institute, and

  2. Internalize and take ownership of the process of learning and education.

Thus, undergraduate research is seen as a vehicle to bring about a change in the approach of addressing the holistic development of undergraduate students at this Institute. It offers valuable experiences and benefits to all sections of the academic environment - students, mentors as well as the Institute.

SURGE Program

Under the Summer Undergraduate Research Grant for Excellence (SURGE) program, undergraduate students from IITK and other participating institutions undertake short duration, but focused research projects and push their intellectual abilities beyond those driven by the classroom.

A quantitative deliverable at the end of the 10 week program is the technical paper written by the student in association with the mentor(s). The acceptance of this paper by a refereed journal is one measure of the success of the undergraduate research. More valuable outcome, but difficult to quantify, is the personal and professional development of student. They also develop specific laboratory skills and research methodology. The impact of participation in undergraduate research will become obvious at a subsequent occasion, e.g., when the student chooses to go for graduate studies. Students will find themselves better prepared and equipped to make conscious career choices, because self-discovery during undergraduate research helps students realize one's strengths and choices.

SURGE overseas program for IITK students:

In this program, IITK students are given a unique opportunity to spend eight weeks of the summer at a prestigious overseas university. Interested students need to complete an online application form. In addition, two letters of recommendation are needed. For more details, follow the url:  www.iitk.ac.in/surge

SURGE program for IITK students at IIT Kanpur:

In this program, IITK students are given an opportunity to work with a chosen mentor at IITK. In order to complete the application, it is necessary for the student to identify a professor who agrees to be his/her mentor during the summer period, and a suitable project to pursue for the eight weeks in summer.
 

Student Placement

Career options for aspiring mechanical engineers


Practically every company that designs and produces a product employs a mechanical engineer. But mechanical engineers can also be found in research labs, the military, government, and in other professions such as management, finance.

Diverse Job Profiles of our Graduates

Most mechanical engineering jobs require design experience. A second major area of employment for mechanical engineers is manufacturing. Manufacturing jobs cover nearly everything involved in developing a product, from selecting the appropriate materials to choosing the correct machinery to manufacture the product. Most mechanical engineers in this industry work for equipment manufacturers, aerospace companies, utilities, material processing plants, transportation companies, and petroleum companies.
Specific assignments might involve research and development, design of equipment or systems, supervision of production, plant engineering, administration, sales engineering, the testing and evaluation of machines and entire plants. Mechanical Engineers are needed in automobile, biomedical, cement, chemical, mining and metallurgy, nuclear, power plant, robotics, heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) industries.
Mechanical engineers can find employment at virtually any institute where innovation takes place. They commonly work in the government, research, industry, military, teaching, management or consulting sectors. With a degree in mechanical engineering, diversity is the key. You can wind up working in a laboratory or an outdoor construction site. Remember, nearly every mechanical device was created by a mechanical engineer so the possibilities for employment are virtually endless!

We have an excellent student placement statistics.


Year (2009 - 2010 )

Program

Registered

Placed

Percentage

B. Tech.

40

36

90%

Dual Degree

16

16

100%

 

Year (2010 - 2011)

Program

Registered

Placed

Percentage

B. Tech.

30

29

97%

Dual Degree

21

19

90%

 

Year (2011 - 2012 )

Program

Registered

Placed

Percentage

B. Tech.

44

33

75%

Dual Degree

22

22

100%

 

Year (2012 - 2013 )

 

Program

Registered

Placed

Percentage

B. Tech.

39

32

87%

Dual Degree

23

21

91

 

Year (2013 - 2014 )

 Will be updated soon...

Program

Registered

Placed

Percentage

B. Tech.

      

Dual Degree

 

  

 
 

Postgraduate Students

The Mechanical Engineering department at IIT Kanpur has a strong flavor of core disciplinary and multi-disciplinary approach to research and learning that strikes a unique balance of trend-setting research, challenging coursework and real-world impact that is highly respected around the world.

The department of Mechanical Engineering offers Master of Technology (M. Tech.) and Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) at the postgraduate level.

Academic Excellence

Here are just a few of the benefits of studying for a postgraduate degree in the School of Mechanical Engineering:

  • We offer a broad range of advanced level courses across the breadth of Mechanical Engineering.

  • Our research feeds directly into our teaching, which means you will be supervised and taught by world class academics on courses that are at the leading edge of thinking in the field.

  • You will be working in our world-class research laboratories, which will enable you to learn, engage and deliver research outputs under able guidance of our experienced faculties

  • Our strong links with industry ensures that our courses meet employer needs, one of the many reasons why our graduates are highly sought after by employers.

We pride ourselves on our friendly and supportive atmosphere.

Specializations

The postgraduate degree programs have the following broad streams:

  • Solid Mechanics and Design

  • Fluid Mechanics and Thermal Sciences

  • Manufacturing Science

  • Robotics and Automation

Students & Research

The institute encourages active learning to help build critical thinking skills of its students and prepare them for research. Quality research needs committed students to move the research agenda forward. Therefore a student at IITK gets a world class education and gets to participate in great research work.

For the students it is an ideal place to learn how high quality research is done. Being a science intensive engineering education, the students are more future ready and are able to adapt to new technologies. And thanks to the big emerging opportunities for new technologies, more and more students are today choosing a research oriented job over a job that does not involve formal research. IITK prepares its students well for such jobs.

Enrollment

  • 82 and 148 students are currently enrolled in our M. Tech. and PhD degree programs, respectively.

  • 51 M. Tech. students are admitted during the 2014-2015 academic year.

  • 31 M. Tech. students graduated during the 2014-2015 academic year.
 

Program Objectives

The objectives of the postgraduate programs are:

  • To provide fundamental and advanced knowledge and expertise in order to produce competent, creative and imaginative engineers with a strong scientific acumen.

  • To practice mechanical engineering in support of the design of engineering systems through the application of the acquired knowledge, skills, and tools pertinent to mechanical engineering.

  • To promote independent and collaborative work, while demonstrating the professional and ethical responsibilities of the engineering profession.

  • To promote development of intellectual property by publishing articles in high impact factor journals, conference proceedings, patents.