Admission to space science courses in India

Q. I am very keen to make a career in space sciences. Could you please suggest a good course I could pursue — preferably straight after Class XII. I have got a good rank in JEE Advanced and my folks are very keen that I opt for Computer Science, but space is what truly fascinates me.

— Samarth Chawla

A. If stuff like GSAT and GTO (Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit) sets your pulse racing… I’d strongly urge you to look at the Indian Institute of Space Science & Technology (IIST), Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala) — Asia’s first Space University and the only one in the world to offer courses in Space Science & Technology — right from the undergraduate to the doctoral level

A Deemed to be University, IIST is an autonomous body under the D/o Space, GoI which has been set up to address the need for high quality manpower for ISRO, one of world’s leading scientific organizations engaged in space research and space applications.

Since you’re so keen to make a career in this field, you should specifically aim for any of the three courses on offer:

• 4-year BTech (Aerospace Engg)
• 4-year BTech (Avionics)
• 5-year Dual Degree (BTech MSc/MTech)

Admission to BTech. Programmes in IIST is based on the JEE Advanced scores.

Interested students can apply on www.iist.ac.in or www.admission.iist.ac.in  .

Based on the scores, IIST has created its own merit list.

Incidentally, students will receive performance-based DoS financial assistance for every semester.

The five-year programme leads to BTech in Engineering Physics and a PG specialisation in any of the following:

MSc (Astronomy & Astrophysics) (ii) MTech (Earth System Science) (iii) MSc (Solid State Physics) (iv) MTech (Optical Engg) (There’s no exit option at the end of four years).

 — The writer is Director, Career Guidance India (CARING) (098111 050920) www.facebook.com/PervinMalhotra