UPES Prof wins prestigious grant for Ph.D.

Bikram Pratim Bhuyan, Assistant Professor, Informatics, UPES School of Computer Science, has won the Cotutelle Doctoral Grant to complete his PhD work at the University of Paris-Saclay, France. He shares his insights on the preparations that go into the pursuit of a doctoral degree

Starting a doctorate degree comes with several questions and apprehensions. The journey is arduous. However, academicians, desirous of becoming subject matter experts and resolving societal challenges, often have to undertake the tough path for a fulfilling career.

Recently, Bikram Pratim Bhuyan, Assistant Professor, Informatics, UPES School of Computer Science, won the prestigious Cotutelle Doctoral grant to complete his PhD work at the University of Paris-Saclay, France. In a Cotutelle program, a doctoral student is co-supervised by two supervisors from different universities, and the student spends time at each of these institutions.

Bhuyan’s topic was approved by the research council at Paris-Saclay. He will receive funds to stay for one year of his PhD program in Paris from 2022 to 2023, and subsequently, he will spend two years at UPES to earn a joint PhD degree.

A public research university, Paris-Saclay is ranked 1st in France and 13th in the world in the Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU) ranking, and 46th in the QS subject rank of Computer Science and Information Systems.

Elaborating on the process of getting a grant for PhD, Bhuyan emphasises that choosing a proper guide for research work is an integral step. “Start mailing them by looking at their research interests and papers published in that field,” he advised students aspiring to pursue the coveted degree.

Bhuyan adds, “Once there is a proper understanding with the guide and he/she too wants to recruit in the post, start the process with writing a research proposal with the guide. The proposal will be placed in a portal ‘ADUM’. All selected proposals will go through the Lab Supervisors and the Director of the research pole. Lab Supervisors will have a meeting concerning the application. The Director will proceed to take an interview for the same. Now if it gets selected, various stages of interview (three in my case) will be taken for the grant of the proposal.”

Stressing on the preparation required for performing cutting-edge research as part of PhD, Bhuyan says that striking the right balance between theory and practice is crucial. “A proper balance between theoretical and implementation work is necessary. The studies provided should be proved in a mathematical sense so that a formal platform is created for the implementation work. Keeping oneself updated about the developments in the respective field of study is also important. Being a faculty helped me in this area,” he informs.

Talking about his expectations from the Cotutelle Doctoral Program, Bhuyan says he was looking for a joint PhD collaborative research in the field of Knowledge Representation in Smart Urban Agriculture. “I want to have a proper understanding and work with cutting-edge technologies from the top University in France.”