Exchange Diaries  

Keshav Bagri | Mechanical Engineering

Ohio State University, United States of America

1. While you were in college, what was your motivation to go for higher studies, and in
which year did you get that motivation? How did you manage your academics with your
preparation?
- “In my first and second year in college, I was interested in the automotive side of
engineering. So, I started off by exploring different area that are there in this
sector by joining TeamKART and such competitions. By the end of my second
year, I had a full idea that my primary interest is in the autonomous driving area.
That was when I realised that I need more experience – both from the
educational perspective and industrial perspective That’s when I decided that I
would like to go for higher studies and started preparing my profile for the same.
The timeline for preparation is completely in your hand. If you start well before
your deadline, preparing SOP, LORs, and resume won’t take too much time.
There might be a problem if start doing everything towards the end because it will
all get piled up and it will all get very hectic with the final year projects and other
things. If one starts early, managing everything won’t be that difficult.”

2. What are the factors that you considered for selecting the universities you are going to
apply for?
- “Initially, I shortlisted around seven to nine universities and finally I sent seven
applications. While shortlisting, I went through the coursework these universities
offer in the domain I am interested in, and whether they allow a conversion from
MS to Ph.D. while remaining a student there. Secondly, I took into account my
finances and also the level of projects on industrial level. I researched about the
professors teaching them and looked through their coursework and had a look at
their projects and research work as well.
Finally, the overall ranking of the university was also a big factor. These are the
parameters that I took into account.”
3. Did you apply to multiple universities? If yes, can you please elaborate on the
differences in the selection process of the universities? In universities in which you
were not selected can you please share what you felt you lacked, and what could you
have done better?
- “I had sent seven applications. There isn’t any primary difference in the
application process. They all ask for the standard documents like your CV, GRE
and TOEFL scores, your undergraduate transcript, SOP, and Letter of
Recommendation from professors. These are the primary documents that are
required. Apart from that, it is also gauged whether what your area of interest is
covered in the courses they offer. There’s no quantitative factor, actually. It’s all
completely subjective. As for the GRE and TOEFL scores, there are benchmarks

listed. However, a low GRE score can be compensated with a high CGPA They
both are perceived as almost interchangeable.
As for the universities where I didn’t get selected, actually I got acceptance mails
from all the universities in which I had applied so I’m not sure if I can answer that
question properly. However, I actually had seven applications but there were two
universities in which I had two applications each. After the application process,
one of them mailed me back explaining that they don’t accept multiple
applications, so I had to cancel one of my applications. So, in the end, I had six
applications and I got admitted in all of them.”
4. How are you planning to manage your finances? Have you applied for any
scholarships? What were their procedures?
- “I have emailed professors for funding as Graduate Research Assistantship and
Graduate Teaching Assistantship. This gets your tuition fee waived and you also
get a monthly stipend which is enough to cover the living expenses. For now, my
primary sources of funds are my family funds and education loan. MS isn’t
funded, but we can contact professors for funding. However, there’s a general
rule that they don’t fund students from the first semester itself, so I’ll have to pay
the tuition fee for the first semester.
There are also on-campus jobs. These are advertised on the webpages of these
universities. You can apply once your visa and everything is sorted. You get an
hourly pay and it can help cover living expenses”
5. Is CGPA a factor while considering higher studies at foreign universities?
- “Irrespective of wherever your university is, CGPA is a considerable factor.
Having a high CGPA helps a lot, but then you can compensate a low CGPA with
a good GRE score.”
6. Have you taken up any research project at your bachelor/ master's level under any
professor here at IIT KGP? How did you manage your college studies and worked for
your research?
- “I have taken up several projects at IIT Kharagpur, IIT Bombay and abroad as
well and I have worked under different professors.
It’s not very difficult to manage college studies with research work if you are
diligent enough. Time management is something that you must learn. It might get
tedious at times, but then you have to get through it. It all actually depends on
how committed you are.”
7. What were the other difficulties you faced on taking this path and how to overcome
them?
- “There was no particular difficulty that I faced as such. I actually sat for
placements as well, to keep them as a backup. The placements and MS
applications have an overlapping timeline. The deadline for MS applications is
usually from December to January in the US. It goes approximately from January

to March in the Europe and Canada. It was difficult because in the seventh
semester there are placements and MS applications along with the academics
and other things. There was a period of three to four months which was
particularly difficult for me.”
8. How did IIT KGP benefit you in your journey?
- “Being a student of IIT Kharagpur was certainly very beneficial for me. In my first
year, I had no experience or idea about what trajectory I should take. I knew my
field of interest, but that was it.
Every interaction at IIT Kharagpur – be it with juniors, batchmates, seniors,
alumni or teachers – it all has helped a lot in shaping me up. I have also been a
part of TeamKART for four years which gave me wonderful exposure and all the
people I met there helped in various ways. I participated in several competitions –
online as well as in person.
Also, the professors were wonderful guides to me both for research and career
perspectives. Overall, IIT Kharagpur has a very important and definite impact on
me.”
9. What are the opportunities after the MS course?
- “The opportunities depend upon your field of interest and your plans. Almost
every field has two options – either you can go to industry or academia. MS is
very helpful if you want to go for industry. In case you are interested in research,
whether in academia or industry, MS gives you a start and you v=can convert to a
Ph.D. at any time
And if you don’t want to remain in the country where you are going for study, you
can always come back to India, and use your knowledge to get a job or do
research over here. There are a lot of opportunities after higher studies and while
it seems too long and tiring, it is surely worth the efforts.”
10. What are the suggestions that you would give your juniors who want to pursue higher
studies? Could you please give a rough roadmap to ease their journey?
- “One thing I’d like to mention is that the entire application and admission process
is approximately ten months long. It is extremely tedious and demands patience.
Secondly, if you’re in the early stages, then try to get as much experience as
possible from projects, internships and other things. In the end, when you show
that you have worked in the particular area, it relays your interest and experience.
Also, start preparing your SOP early. There is no perfect SOP and you’ll have
revisit and edit it several times. It takes a lot of time to finalise the SOP.
Moreover, get in touch with people who have experience with it – maybe alumni
who are doing their MS or Ph.D. in foreign universities – and get the SOP
reviewed by them.
Apart from these, if you also plan to sit for placements, get over with GRE and
TOEFL as early as possible Once the semester starts, it gets extremely difficult to

handle everything and the preparation for GRE and TOEFL requires some time. It
is just better to finish them early.
For the LORs, get in touch with the professors very early. Make sure that you
have at least three to four professors willing to give you and LOR for each of your
applications.”