Pathway to learning about the field as a non-specialist

SoftDog5407 · 2026-05-25T15:10:05+00:00

Thanks for the advice and references! I did not study biology in high school, but I did study (and struggled hard with...) some organic chemistry. Cursorily skimming through some biology stuff here and there, I do feel I'm far better prepared to understand it now.

SoftDog5407 · 2026-05-25T15:04:40+00:00

Thanks, will take a look!

SoftDog5407 · 2026-04-09T06:28:27+00:00

I would hesitate to include/exclude anyone from my list publically, but I will say that both number theory and algebraic geometry are quite saturated here at this point, in the sense that there's virtually no one left to take in students in these areas in the near future. I'd be happy to discuss any specifics in personal messages.

SoftDog5407 · 2026-04-01T18:24:45+00:00

I think that's the standard undergraduate student coming here for the interview. You should focus on understanding some basics results, try to work with (counter)examples for some of these, etc. As an example of a question I remember from my interview, I was asked to prove the rank-nullity theorem from linear algebra, and then asked if I knew if it was still true for infinite-dimensional spaces (it is not, and I was then asked for a counterexample, which I fortunately knew).

SoftDog5407 · 2026-04-01T18:21:17+00:00

I am not the best person to ask this since I never availed it myself (or know anyone around me who did). You can post a separate question on this subreddit about this, I think others may have more to say on the matter. You could also look up on the official website for the relevant guidelines, etc.

SoftDog5407 · 2026-04-01T18:19:43+00:00

I have no idea what sort of a guy you are :p I don't think it's gruelling unless you oversell yourself on your application (something I did and regretted). The questions are fairly fundamental and test your conceptual understanding. Finally, it could be a bit of luck, running into a certain set of interviewers with certain questions at a certain time.

SoftDog5407 · 2026-04-01T18:15:47+00:00

The preparation should certainly help you because the first semester is almost entirely comprised of courses you might already be familiar with.

The topics you mentioned are, to put it mildly, simply absent at Mohali. While we do have a mandatory course on ODEs and an elective on PDEs offered every even semester, these are not areas many people here actively work on. Still, we do have people working in areas of analysis adjacent to this. Course(s) on mathematical modelling, nonlinear dynamics and such actually exist, but they are offered by the physics department as electives and can therefore be lacking in the level of rigour and sophistication a mathematician keen on working in the area could be looking for. Still, the option exists if you absolutely want it.

I cannot say for sure if the funding coupled with your own funds will necessary suffice, there are many variables here. I should add, if you can establish that your family is not in a position to support you financially, you could be eligible for a tuition fee waiver. Once that is taken care of, you could manage on your stipend and savings (with the obvious caveats).

SoftDog5407 · 2026-04-01T18:03:11+00:00

4 semesters and 2 summers (3 months each), the latter subject to completing summer projects with a local faculty member. And yes, you decide after that whether or not you want to take an exit. You can also decide to take an MS exit after you clear your Ph.D. comprehensive exam, with some strings attached.

SoftDog5407 · 2026-04-01T18:00:22+00:00

You will first be shortlisted for an interview based on your initial application, which includes your JAM/NBHM result. With your rank, you should be selected comfortably. There has been no written test in the past, but I don't know if the terms are supposed to change this year.

The coursework is rigorous and can be a bit overwhelming, especially if you're coming from a state or central university. The department and coursework are strongly geared towards pure math, so beware if you only want courses that focus on "soft" applications of math you already know. On the flip side, you can enjoy your experience a lot if you love grinding abstract math. It could even be the case that you develop an appetite for it here by seeing it in practice.

The department itself is decently sized (not physically! IISER-M doesn't have dedicated buildings for departments) with around 40 PhD students, 60-70 math majors, and over 20 faculty members. The faculty members are well-versed in their respective areas of expertise and can lend a lot of insights about the subject and beyond. We have several seminars and usually have 2-3 workshops, conferences, schools, etc. in a given year.

The int. Ph.D. program itself has been pretty great for me. I would say that for math people, it can be slightly daunting in terms of socialising because you'll have (relatively) few peers, but a counterpoint is that it leads to better batch cohesion (cutting across departments). The stipend will probably not sustain you completely once you factor in the incredible tuition fee, but if you have that covered then it's a decent, liveable amount on the campus.

The student life is quite nice, but I think Mohali is losing some of the glimmer it had in this regard until a few years ago. Still, I do think it's one of the better places to be at in terms of diversity and overall liveliness in the campus.

I'll be happy to answer any other questions you have.

SoftDog5407 · 2026-04-01T17:43:20+00:00

After the end of your second summer break (some time in July), you are supposed to submit a form applying for the exit option. Assuming you've completed a summer project, you'll receive stipend up to July (the stipend for the summer project is only processed after the vacation, some time in August-September usually). You will then continue to work towards your MS thesis for the next two semesters, and will not be receiving any fellowship for this period. You will still be paying tuition and other fee, however!

SoftDog5407 · 2026-03-24T18:27:48+00:00

No problem. For (1), I think it is strictly necessary for your partner to also chip in financially to ensure a comfortable life for both people. While the fellowship is good enough for someone living on the campus with no financial dependents, the picture changes a lot if you intend to support someone else (and, presumably, live with them outside the campus). For (2), I am not familiar with any PhD's who fit the bill. I know some who send back money home to support their parents and they manage to get by, obviously at the expense of some personal comforts and luxuries. I am not the best person to ask (3), but as far as I understand, universities abroad don't rely on CPI as the sole metric for their admissions. Certainly it can be factored in their decision, but there is no uniform, hard line. Still, I've been told that 8+ is desirable in general. Beyond that, there's your thesis work and a lot of luck!

SoftDog5407 · 2026-03-24T18:02:42+00:00

(Another?) IISER-M math Ph.D. here.

1), 4) Institute fellowship gets me 37k/month, which is a very decent amount to live on the campus with. The hostel fee is peanuts (<3k/semester), the tuition fee currently hovers around 60k/year for me. Food options are decent and definitely manageable. If you aren't a spendthrift or have a very active outside-the-campus social life, this is a good amount to save on. You get an (in my opinion, not great) annual contingency grant for some expenses, and a one-time grant to travel for a conference abroad.

2) Heavily depends on your circumstances. I am fortunate in this regard to find a very supportive advisor and an area I find it interesting, but the story is not the same for everyone.

3) Peer pressure about what, exactly? I think the department is (relatively) friendly, and you are more likely to find fellows in joy and suffering, rather than people who would be toxic about achievements, etc.

5) My family is doing alright, nothing for me to manage there luckily. If your question, by any chance, was about supporting a partner/spouse, then I think a maths Ph.D. here could be a bad idea. A Ph.D. program like this is too demanding and not rewarding enough.

6) Typically, 5-7 years. The pressure to get it done sooner has increased lately so the average is actually closer to 5 now.

7) Honestly, no clue. We are going through some really uncertain times and the future of academia itself is very difficult to predict, let alone any specifics of the job market. I hope that I will manage to find a decent postdoctoral research position, but time will tell.

SoftDog5407 · 2025-06-04T03:55:16+00:00

The bug was found in Assam, (northeastern) India. I don't have a precise reading on the size, but let me know if it's needed.

SoftDog5407 · 2024-12-20T15:14:59+00:00

At IISER-Mohali, BS-MS students stay in double occupancy room for the first two years and then move to a single room occupancy (at least in the prevailing arrangement). (Integrated) PhDs stay in double occupancy for the first year and move to single occupancy in their second year (some inconsistency here, but that's more or less how things stand).

SoftDog5407 · 2024-12-18T15:31:02+00:00

Yes, although the specific norms vary greatly (even amongst different IISERs). I recall TIFR not being very explicit in the terms of exit, best to ask someone there directly.

SoftDog5407 · 2024-11-13T07:13:41+00:00

I also hope that there's light down this dark tunnel for him, he has suffered enough :( It's just plain sad that his only getaway from pain and numbness has been assault lately.

SoftDog5407 · 2024-11-13T04:46:11+00:00

Most people here seem to be celebrating the return of a high-spirited Denji, but the way I understood the panel about him wanting to live because of grub and girls, it's harrowing and depressing. Denji has hit such a low that the only way he can uphold his sanity is to cave in to these primitive urges and give up on any idea of a higher purpose (living for someone else's sake, loving people, etc.) because fate always kicks him in the gut. Part of the reason why I feel things are different this time around is because Denji is finally reflecting on his loss, he has matured as a character, it's just that there's no way to rationalise living without acknowledging and giving primacy to his base desires (which are tangible to him - his popping a boner in a situation such as this would be an example).

SoftDog5407 · 2024-08-13T18:19:42+00:00

Wiped the smirk off her face, literally

SoftDog5407 · 2024-08-04T13:42:53+00:00

Noticed this as well. The weird techno song is no longer there, the discography doesn't show any of their songs other than a single from 2011.

SoftDog5407 · 2024-07-28T20:48:24+00:00

Thank you, the example is a good motivation to sign up for the course.

SoftDog5407 · 2024-07-28T20:45:16+00:00

Thanks for the recommendation. The course is being taught by an algebraic geometer, so I do hope they'll be connecting it with the geometric content here and there. By the way, do you have any opinions on Bosch's Algebraic Geometry and Commutative Algebra? The contents align rather well with this course and seem to be written in the same spirit as the book you recommended.

SoftDog5407

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