Exchange Diaries  

Abhishek Shukla | Mechanical Engineering

Penn State University, USA

Research Area: Deep Learning with Computer Vision

What was the University and topic of research that was taken up by you during the FT?

I did my research at Penn State University. My topic of research was Monitoring Human-Wildlife Interactions in National Parks with Crowdsourced Data and Deep Learning.

Why is an FT important? How would one compare research in Indian universities and foreign universities?

In my opinion, the work culture and research are different in foreign universities from India. The professors and TAs are very concerned about the project and also very attentive to their work. So compared to the Indian research, in my experience, I found that the foreign university is better than the Indian. The Professor is very supportive and during my time under him in the internship, the professor did not give me hectic work. Hectic as in time is low and you need to do a very large amount of work. Indian research internships are also good but the resources and other things are better compared to Indian, the stipend in a foreign internship is good compared to an Indian internship. The professors are very supportive and every time will tell you whether your direction of work is right or not. The motive of the foreign internship is that you will learn in some other university work procedures and professor’s thinking and resources that are used in other countries and approaches to tackle problems and research paper writing skills.

FT vs corporate internship, what are all the things we are missing out on and what are we gaining more?

A foreign internship is a research internship in which you have to solve or improve previous real world problem solutions. You have to perform certain experiments and read some previous research related to your project. In a foreign internship, the algorithms and data which are to be used are not constrained.But in the corporate sector, the company will decide which algorithm you need to use and the modification and from where you can take data. In my foreign internship, I had the freedom to select the algorithm and data, and the only requirement was that the algorithm and the data is related to our project.

Should BTech students aspiring for higher studies from abroad opt for an FT?

I think for higher studies the letter of recommendation of professors can be used for higher studies. And then after clearing the GRE exam , You will be able to enter or take admission to the University.

What exactly is the application process for the FT? Are there any important documents one must keep?

For the FT process what you first select is your research interest and then after you settle on one research interest, you need to prepare a good CV and resume with a good statement of purpose and then you apply.

How did the process get affected due to the online nature of the applications?

I think in online and in offline mode, every time the interview procedure is online. So I don't think there is any effect of online mode. The effect of online is that you have to work from your home and you can not use some resources of the foreign labs.

Did you have to mail the professor personally for the project? For how much time did you wait for a reply?

No, I did not mail the professor personally I got my internship from the IR Cell Portal. There is an account already made, but you need to log in with your credentials and upload your resume and then upload your photo and then you will see projects available then you apply and then the procedure will start.

When should one start applying for an FT? How long did the procedure last till you got the desired FT?

Like I started in February month and I got the confirmation of the FT on 29th March. But if you want to mail the professor personally then I would suggest that you need to start around the first week of January, because in research the professors are very busy. So he may take the time to reply.

What is the role of CGPA in the selection process?

The CGPA has an effect because the professor will prefer a student whose CGPA is good and Department rank also as they want academically the best student they can.

How did the pandemic affect your application for the project? Did the pandemic have any positive impact on the project?

I mailed some professors personally but I think the pandemic affect negatively because some professors left their project and they replied to me that they are not doing it anymore. I was able to contact the professor, one professor from Oxford university replied to me that he's not doing his project anymore he left due to the pandemic as he has no resources.

Where should a student, who is unaware of the entire application process, look up information about professors and their research work for opportunities?

Students can do some research for the specific University department professor's name in the Department section. The professors mention their research internships and the project on the profile page of their own, so the student can easily get data from there.

How should a first-year student prepare beforehand for his FT application in their subsequent year?

If you have some work experience related to the topic of the project then it's good else start looking out for it and start preparing your CV. The CV is not too long and use the keywords and highlight the things which you want to show the professor. Follow a better cv template and write key points related to your work experience. Mention your courses, skills, other activities. Do not write anything about which you don't have any idea because he may raise questions about that in the interview. Start looking out for FT, you can continue searching through personal mailing, IR Cell if you are a student of KGP, Mitacs, some other platforms.

Does belonging to IITKGP provide any added benefits for getting your FT?

Yes, foreign professors prefer students who are from prestigious universities of the country. Also, they see under which professor I worked in the past also affects.