IIT-KGP, Canadian varsity ink MoU on academic partnerships

IIT-Kharagpur has signed a pact with Carleton University of Canada to support research collaboration, capacity building and other academic partnerships.

Under the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), both institutions will focus on opportunities in student and faculty exchanges and professional development programmes, IIT-Kharagpur said in a statement here on Wednesday.

The two institutions will also explore the possibilities of collaborative master's programmes and jointly supervised Ph.D students.

The MoU will cover interaction among faculty on joint research projects and research visits and, when necessary, joint applications for research funding from external agencies.

"We are happy to sign the MoU with Carleton University. We look forward to a long and fruitful collaboration," IIT-Kharagpur Deputy Director Sriman Kumar Bhattacharyya said.

Carleton is focussing in areas such as autonomous vehicles and technology enablers for smart cities. IIT-Kharagpur has similar research focus on intelligent transportation, future of cities, digital convergence and centre of excellence in artificial intelligence.

"This new partnership is a beginning of a long-term collaboration with students exchanges and launch of exciting professional development programmes," said Karen Schwartz, Associate Vice-President, Research and International, Carleton University.

Discussions are on between the Department of Systems and Computer Engineering at Carleton University and Department of Electronics and Electrical Communications Engineering at IIT-Kharagpur for dual-degree programs for master's and doctoral students.

Plans are also in place for distance education offerings in data analytics, cybersecurity and management leadership, which will be jointly taught by experts from both institutions.

--IANS

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