Exchange Diaries  

Kumar Saurav | Electronics and Electrical Communication Engg.

University of British Columbia,Vancouver (Canada), Canada

Research Area: .

Duration: 2.5 Months

Name of the university and what the work you did there?
I did my summer internship at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver (Canada). I worked on Mixed-Signal Techniques for Machine Learning.

How did you apply for your FT?
The professor that I worked under is an alumnus of IIT Kharagpur. He was invited to take a short course during the winter during which we had few interactions. He invited me to visit his lab during the summers.

Why do you think foreign experience is important?
For making an informed decision about your career, one should have experience in the industry as well as in academia. If someone has an interest and desire to pursue research work in the future, he/she should apply for an FT. Contributing to research works in international labs really opens up your mind towards applying for graduate schools in the future.

How did you manage your expenses?
I was reimbursed for some of my expenses like flight, visa and other formalities of the institute. My accommodation was already paid for and I was provided with stipend on a daily basis. The stipend was enough for all my expenses and weekend travels.

How was the work culture there and how it was different from KGP?
The work culture was very healthy there. We had daily meetings with the professors. There was an emphasis on quality work rather than the amount of work being done. Every student in the lab was very friendly and I had many enlightening discussions with them. The major difference that I noticed there from KGP was the easy access to different resources and an established IT department was present which resolved issues in a few hours.

How was your overall experience there?
The experience was very good there. I had a very enriching experience during my 11-week stay. During the weekdays I devoted my time towards the research. Each weekend I along with other interns explored the beautiful city. Vancouver is one of the most ethnically diverse cities, it’s surrounded by mountains, and also has a thriving art, theatre, and music scenes.

Suggestions for the fellow KGPians who want to apply for FT?
Students should need to explore the different topics or research work going on the campus and identify the topic of their interest. Then they should approach the concerned professor and try to complete a project on the topic of their interest. Quality research experience along with a decent CGPA would go a long way in getting an FT.

Interviewed by Divyanshu