IISc leads engg institutions in India in research faculty: Zinnov report

IISc was followed by IIT Kanpur, IIT Delhi

Indian Institute of Science (IISc) followed by IIT Kanpur and IIT Delhi have emerged as the top institutes for faculty research competence in India, said a report.

 

The faculty in these institutes has the highest number of industry and government research grants (around five-six per faculty), international and national journal references, conference publications and patents (around 90 per faculty) to their credit, said the study titles ‘Top Research Faculty in Tier-1 Engineering Institutions in India released by Zinnov, an advisory firm.

 

The study also unveiled that majority of faculty members in the top institutes have good international exposure both in terms of research and teaching. 

 

The faculty at IIT Kanpur has the highest foreign university experience with around15% of them having taught abroad and two-thirds qualified with foreign post doctoral/PhD experience. The increased research focus and exposure was reflected in the number of awards and honors won by the faculty in these institutes. 

 

IIT Madras emerged as the overall leader in this space with around 15coveted achievements and awards (IEEE fellowship, Bhatnagar Awards etc.), 60 plus international awards/ fellowships (Humboldt fellowship, MNC grants) and 40 plus national awards/fellowships (e.g. Boyscast, INSA, INAE fellows). 

 

The results of the department level analysis revealed that, the faculty scores of Computer Science Engineering department of IIT Delhi were the highest, backed by strong research expertise, high overall experience and good connects with the industry. This is reflected in the high volume of projects handled by the faculty of CSE dept. of IIT Delhi, of which (26%) of projects was done for MNC clients.

 

In the Electrical & Electronics Engineering and in Aerospace discipline, IISc is the leader, driven by strong research focus and overall faculty experience. Some industry relevant innovations in EEE include, ‘NAVA’–High speed Internet technology and ‘Aakash 4’ - ultra low-cost tablet. Similarly in the aerospace segment, there are several notable innovations including including ‘PRATHAM’ – IIT Bombay student satellite initiative, Solar powered miniature aircraft among others.

 

“The quality of education that the next generation receives is significantly dependent on the exposure and knowledge that faculty can bring. Even as innovation-focused corporates look to expand their ecosystem and leverage the research expertise of India’s top engineering institutions, the study has brought out the impact that international exposure and industry collaboration can have on the nature of education imparted to our students. For India to build momentum in the engineering discipline, we must focus on creating a system where innovation is driven by a combination of industry and academia,” said Pari Natarajan, CEO, Zinnov.

Key Findings

IISc, followed by IIT Kanpur and IIT Delhi emerged as the top engineering institutes in India for faculty research competence

Computer Science Engineering Department- IIT Delhi emerges as the top institute

Mechanical Engineering Department - IIT Kanpur emerges as the top institute

Electrical & Electronics Engineering Department and Aero Department- IISc emerges as the top institute