Exchange Diaries  

Triparna Mahata | Mechanical Engineering

University of Tokyo, Japan and Sorbonne University, France

Research Area: Mechanics of Composites

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

I had two research internships. One was through a program and another one was through personal mailing. The one through personal mailing was at Sorbonne University in France. The second one I got through ESEP 2021 at the University of Tokyo. My research interest lies in Mechanics of Solids and during my undergraduate studies I have projects in Mechanics of Composites in KGP. Research topics for both research universities were on composites. The topic of research at Sorbonne University was the Study of Effective behavior of 2D composites with IDD Model and the topic for the University of Tokyo internship was Carbon Fiber reinforced polymer -needs, trends, and predictions.

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

As I am a dual degree student, I didn’t have a compulsory internship in my third year, but since my third year, I have been very clear about my future goals to go for higher studies. So, I didn’t even try applying for a corporate internship. I was only focused on getting an FT. Research internships are very helpful when applying for higher studies. So, anyone planning to go for higher studies FT is recommended. [Text Wrapping Break]Firstly, in terms of research at Indian University, I just have projects in IIT KGP. I have not done any research internship in Indian Universities so it's not fair for me to comment on that. But speaking about my experience there in both French University and Japanese University, everyone was very cooperative, there was some difference in work culture but it was very satisfactory.

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

One basic difference is in most research internships, the frequency of meetings is very less. My meetings were happening once a week. I had the flexibility that if I have some doubt, I can contact them immediately and they arrange a call immediately or within a day or two. So, the point of contact was always there, but I had to report once a week. My friends who did technical job roles in corporate, they had daily meetings as they were working on a live project. Whereas my work at Sorbonne University was independent research work which will be carried forward by Post Doc students later. There is a drastic amount of flexibility, sometimes you start with a specific topic and while you are working you realize there is this specific part of it that seems very interesting to you. Professors are very nice, if you want to explore that part you can deviate and then you come back and see what dots are joining again.

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

If someone has decided that they want to go for higher studies, then what I feel is that CV would require projects, but if someone has a software role or a role in FMCG Companies won’t be adding much value in context for higher studies. FT shows that you have invested in a research topic, in Bachelor it's very hard to get results, but if you have results, a proper report, or publication, then it shows that you have the ability to start with something and navigate through it and conclude it properly. When someone applies for higher studies they require LORs, so if you have at least one LOR from a professor in a foreign university that will give a major boost to your Ph.D. application as it shows you are dynamic in the sense that you can adjust with different cultures and working groups.

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

For programs, you should check their website from September as most of them have a proper application process. The application process for ESEP, a two-month internship at the University of Tokyo: CV is the first thing required then an SOP answering the questions in two-page long para. In terms of documents, you will need your transcript that you can get from ERP. ESEP also requires a bonafide certificate. Apart from this, it's better that people have a passport, because while applying they require the first page of the passport. In the case of personal mailing, it's very flexible, you research about the professor a bit and you write the body of the mail which is also called a cover letter. Attach your CV, and one should go through the professor’s website thoroughly as some of them mention that you should attach a LOR.

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

Yes, for ESEP in January they were talking about having an offline internship. The application process started and ended at its usual time. But before the results, they mentioned on the website that if the situation is not normal by March they will shift it to online mode, and when it was shifted to online mode, a lot of projects got scraped out because it's not feasible to do it in online, fortunately, my project wasn’t one of them. In personal mailing, I was in touch with that professor for a month. In December we were talking about accommodation in France, as we thought that internship could happen offline, but Sorbonne University stopped taking in international students that’s why we shifted to online mode. Another thing I faced was, in general programs have scholarship money for covering expenses. ESEP had already mentioned that if the student is taking up the online internship, then there won’t be any scholarship. Even for France as I wasn’t going so the fund which the lab was providing was cut off.

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

For this case, it took four to five days for him to reply. He thoroughly went through my profile and then he also had a project proposal, he directly set up a meeting to understand my research area and my expectations and talk about it. After that, I got the reply in three to four days. According to me, a follow-up mail should be sent after a week, as sometimes the professor sees a profile if they like it then they keep it in the back of their mind and discuss it with their colleagues as well. My professor recently joined in 2019 so when replied back he said that he discussed it with his senior colleagues and he liked my profile and he thought of projects that he can offer. So, he took his time and I got a reply within three to four days.

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

In the case of personal mailing ideal time is September mid. My offer for Sorbonne University was finalized on 26th January, by the first week of February he sent me the topic proposal and documents. The final signing of the documents happened till March. In the case of programs, it takes more time. ESEP results were out in March. If someone is applying for programs it is also advisable that they should also mail some professors through personal mailing as programs can take a lot of time and programs aren’t very predictive.

What is the role of CGPA in the selection process?

In my opinion, CGPA does play a role. Programs have a CGPA cutoff, but I would say a safe CGPA for ESEP would be 8.5. And then for personal mailing, it's like the tradeoff between projects and CGPA, if you have good projects then the professor interested in them will mail you back but in general, I would say an 8.5 plus is a safe margin. But if someone is thinking of going for higher studies, a 9 above is advisable in terms of application.

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

Personal mailing takes a lot of work, there’s no shortcut for that. One has to go through different universities, lookout for labs that interest that person, and go through the professor’s profile. One should start making a database if one is determined about FT as early as maybe May/June. Then by September, mid-one should start mailing I would say. About programs, I would say I got to know about all these programs through seniors so being in touch with seniors would be helpful. Common ones can be searched through the internet also doing a basic google search of Scholarship Programs for Indian Students will come up.

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

For a first-year, I would say maintain their CG, decent enough CG would give them a fair chance. Because as a first-year you won’t have any research experience you would have just completed the basic topics. In the second year when your department studies start, choose one field that you want to try out so you know whether you like it or not. Start taking up projects and be proactive then you will get to know what you want to do early on. I started with CP and Data in my second year, as I was a dual degree student, I had that time of thinking and trying out things, I wasn’t much interested in it so I shifted to the core. In core, I started out with a Robotics Project, I started but it wasn’t that appealing to me. Once I had Mechanics of Solids in my fifth semester, I got to know that this stuff really interests me.

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

In terms of the programs, ESEP has two parts: ESEP India and ESEP Global. ESEP India accepts applications from selected five or six IITs, so obviously you can see students of other colleges can’t apply. ESEP Global takes an application from everywhere. So, you can see you have a privilege in terms of competition. Even in personal mailing, it gives you slight benefit as the name holds a value. But it still comes to the point that if you have good projects and the professor finds it appealing and sees you as an asset to their team, then college won't matter. But again, CGPA does matter as it shows how determined you were in academics, especially if you are applying for core projects then it's very relevant to care about the numbers (CGPA).