Exchange Diaries  

Asimpunya Mitra | Physics

University of Toronto, Canada

1)While you were in college, what was your motivation to go for higher studies and in which year did
you get the motivation? How did you manage your academics with your preparation?

I was quite interested in physics from the beginning. Initially I was from Exploration Geophysics and
then changed the department after the first year of college to Physics. Going for a PhD came as a
natural step because of interest in research. Did internship in first year itself in NIUS, Mumbai in
physics which is especially designed for undergraduates open for the crowd into physics. They first did
a learning camp and then the students were assigned projects. For getting the internship I showed
them my CGPA and also mentioned about having participated and secured decent rank in physics
olympiad in class 12th. The preparation for Phd and academics is pretty much similar and try
maintaining a good academic profile if you wish to go for Phd.

2)What is the process of interdisciplinary studies?How easy was the switch? What motivated you for the switch?

Have not done interdisciplinary studies but if someone wishes to do then the person can apply for the
relevant courses .

3)What are the factors you considered to apply for selecting the universities you applied for?

I won’t really recommend the procedure that I followed. I only applied to the top tier universities
which had the best research groups. Usually people advise to apply for a few bottom tier universities
as well. It was sort of a gamble for me which ended up being fruitful for me.

4)Did you apply to multiple universities? If yes can you please elaborate on the selection procedure of the universities? In the universities you were not selected can you please share what you felt you
lacked and what could’ve been done better?

I applied for colleges which had the best research groups in my field of interest which also happened
to be the top universities in the QS ranking. All the places were in the top 25. Maintain a decent to a
good CGPA throughout your college. Participate in research projects, 2 or 3 letters of recommendation
which varies from university to university. Always maintained a CGPA above 9 since the first year at
college. I think the places I was not selected in the people could not relate well to my letter of
recommendations.

5)How are you planning to manage your finances? Have you applied for any scholarships?

University of Toronto is offering me a full scholarship on the tuition fees and also a decent stipend.
The scholarship offer came along with the PhD offer but there’s also an additional scholarship that you
can apply for when you’re done with your first year at the university or maybe after once you’ve
reached there.

6)Is CGPA a factor while considering higher studies in foreign universities?

It is advised to maintain a decent to good CGPA throughout your college. I managed to maintain a
CGPA above 9 around 9.6-9.7 from the first year itself.

7)Have you taken up any research project at your bachelor’s or master’s level under any professor at
IIT KGP? How did you manage your college studies and worked for your research?

Yes I worked on a term paper under a professor at IIT kgp and worked till my thesis. For the last two
years due to the lock down the classes were online so the academic load was comparatively less in
comparison to the offline classes. Hence had more time to work on research and projects at home.

8)What were the other difficulties you faced on taking this path, how to overcome them?

Opting for a PhD adds more uncertainty in comparison to when you typically go for a job. My drive to
go for PhD was the interest in physics.

9)How did IIT KGP benefit in your journey?

The brand name of IIT KGP helped me get internships in the 2nd and the 3rd year. There are people
who hire specifically the IIT people and there were places where I observed the IIT people were given
preference over the non-IIT people.

10)What are the opportunities after the PhD course?

I’ll be specializing in Condensed Matter Theory which involves analytical as well as numerical work. At
this point my aim is to get into the industry as a permanent researcher.

11)What are your suggestions to your juniors who want to pursue higher studies? Could you give a
rough road map to ease their journey?

Start exploring different fields of the subject you want to pursue your higher studies in. Read research
papers and advance level books, Visit websites and read publications. Take up research projects and
focus on academics because that’s what ultimately matters. In the first year ,I’d suggest to just explore
various fields and attending science camps or maybe astronomy camps, basically anything that adds to
your knowledge. From second year students can involve in actual projects that include more practical
work. In third and fourth year the students can process to specialize in a discipline spending on what
they want to pursue their masters in.