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IIT Council Signs Off on MTech, PhD and JEE Advanced Overhaul

Freshly released minutes set pilots, expert review, timelines to shift the reforms from approval to action.

Overview

  • MTech changes include mandatory industry internships, a dual industry–research track, and institute-specific curriculum redesigns targeted within a year.
  • PhD programmes will move to a project-first model with structured timelines, outcome metrics such as patents and startups, and proposals for Doctoral Academies and networked PhDs.
  • An expert committee led by the Joint Admission Board with IIT Kanpur will evaluate adaptive testing for JEE Advanced, with a pilot mock test and a phased roadmap to be drafted in six months.
  • Governance steps approved include external peer reviews, 10-year visioning cycles linked to funding decisions, and a central MIS led by IIT Kanpur for real-time academic and research dashboards.
  • The Council directed IITs to build AI/ML core competencies across curricula and to create dedicated mental-health cadres, with the reforms responding to persistent vacancies in MTech and PhD seats.