IISc - Indian Institute of Science - seems like a different world. There are many elite institutions and universities in India, but IISc is one of its kind.

The first thing every student feels after entering the serene and green campus of IISc is belongingness. Every student immediately connects to this beautiful campus. The vision of Jamsedji Tata and the advice of Swami Vivekananda, combined with the generosity of Maharaja of Mysore state Shri Krishnaraja Wodeyar lead to the formation of IISc. There is a statue of Jamsedji Tata that overlooks the main building of the institute.

Most of the students join IISc owing to a genuine interest in their respective subjects and fields. Being mainly a research institution, IISc attracts post-graduate and doctoral students across numerous fields of science and engineering streams. There are over 25 departments that belong to either pure sciences, applied sciences, or engineering streams.

The atmosphere is very calm and ideal for academics. There is hostel accommodation inside the campus. The food provided in the hostel is hygienic and is also food joints near the campus.

Students enjoy academic freedom thoroughly here. It is not uncommon to find a student of electrical engineering sitting in a class of advanced mathematics. Even professors do that. They attend classes and take notes along with the students. Students are free to sit in any lecture (though, with the permission of the advisor, who generally obliges). One can see students from different departments discussing their work, sharing ideas, and even collaborating. There are also public lectures that students can attend.

There is a placement cell, but several students, including Masters degree holders, opt to go for jobs that are inclined towards research, and not the usual high-paying corporate jobs.

Apart from research, a lot of campus activities are there. There are plenty of student clubs, such as Literary Club, IISc Cycling Club, IISc Gymkhana, etc. The institute organizes a technical and cultural fest, Pravega.

The machine learning course conducted by IISc is one of the best courses mentored by Professor Chiranjiv Bhattacharjee. The course is offered by the computer science department and is organized on the NPTEL platform. It is a rigorous course involving about 80% mathematical concepts that requires visualization. At least 3 hours of self-study is required after each lecture in order to grasp the concepts. However, things taught by Professor Chiranjiv Bhattacharjee in the video lecture are hard to find in any books. Moreover, the examples and proofs cited by him are extraordinary. The prerequisite of the course is knowledge of Probability and Statistics. Background knowledge in linear algebra and optimization will be helpful.

Every student has their own different schedule. However, a general day for an MS student at IISc Bangalore can be summed up in the following points given below.

• Breakfast is provided every morning from 7.30 AM to 9.30 A.M. Some of the students have classes from 8 A.M., so they have to get up before that, have breakfast, and go to class. For those who don’t have classes, they have to attend labs for their research work.

• Lunchtime is from around 1 P.M. to 2 P.M. After having lunch the students again have to go to their labs to continue the work.

• Students generally take evening breaks for snacks and tea in IISC canteen- Prakruti. Sometimes you will find professors accompanying the students for tea. Many students play some outdoor games during this time.

• Then again students go to their labs and work until dinner time. After dinner, many students hang out with their friends or watch movies or go for a walk. Sometimes if the workload is high, they have to work even after dinner.

MS students spend most of the time in their labs. They also have to adjust their T.A. work in this hectic schedule whenever required. This is how the day of an MS student looks like from Monday to Saturday. On Sundays, they relax in their rooms or go to movies, spend their day with their friends.

The Indian Institute of Science (IISC) Bangalore offers various programs that are listed below.

1. Bachelor of Science ( Research) Undergraduate Program- (Master of Science is only offered to those who wish to continue after 4 years of UG programs)
2. M.Tech/M.Des/ M.Mgt
3. Integrated Ph.D. programs
4. Research Program- M.Tech (Research)/ Ph.D

The following table has the annual fee structure for the various programs offered at IISc Bangalore.

The fee structure for General/OBC students (INR for annum)

* to be paid in the first year.

**for the 1st two years and thereafter on per with PhD

Fee structure for SC/ST category (INR per annum)

*to be paid in the first year

There are many scholarships or fellowships available for student in need of financial assistant at IISC Bangalore.

Since the main focus of IISC is on research, the institute does not offer any Bachelor’s degree for technical courses. However, the institute offers B.Sc (Research) in six disciplines- Biology, Chemistry, Earth and Environmental Science, Materials, Mathematics, and Physics. The duration of the B.Sc(Research programs are 4 years. For taking admission into B.Sc research programs students are required to take Vaigyanik Protsahan Yojana (KVPY)/ IIT mains/ IIT advanced/ NEET.

The postgraduate programs include M. Tech and Ph.D. The selection for M. Tech programs is based on the GATE score and the students are also required to go through an interview and aptitude test conducted by the institute in order to get admission.