tcs.com Research Fellowship Scheme : Tata Consultancy Services

Organisation : Tata Consultancy Services Limited
Announcement : TCS Research Fellowship Scheme

Home Page : http://www.tcs.com/about/tcs_difference/innovation/network/Pages/TCS_Research_Fellowship_Scheme.aspx

TCS Research Fellowship Scheme :
The TCS Research Fellowship Scheme, announced by N Chandrasekaran, TCS’ CEO & MD, at Sangam 2009, the TCS Annual Academic Meet, seeks to enhance the talent base in India.

TCS will annually sponsor 40 research students for a PhD program in computing science, across India, for five years, beginning 2010–2011 (making it a total of 200 in the plan period).

Fellowship Details :
Duration: For a maximum period of four years or the submission of the PhD thesis, whichever is earlier. TCS may grant an extension of the fellowship to the fifth year at its discretion, under exceptional circumstances.

Stipend: Rs.18,000 per month for the first two years and Rs. 20,000 per month for the next two years (the stipend amount could be revised at a later date, at TCS’ discretion, in order to maintain the stature of the Scheme, among the other schemes in the country).

Other incentives :
Support for the TCS Research Scholar to participate in one International Refereed Conference, held outside India, during the four-year period, where he/she has a paper to present, and he/she is one of the authors of the paper. The grant would cover travel, conference registration, accommodation and living allowance as per TCS’ norms.

Support for the guide of the TCS Research Scholar to participate in one International Refereed Conference, held outside India, during the four-year period, where the guide has a paper to present, with the Scholar being a coauthor, but not a participant in the conference. The grant would cover travel, conference registration, accommodation and living allowance as per TCS’ norms.

Support for the scholar to participate in two International / National Refereed Conferences, held in India, during the four-year period, where he/she has a paper to present, and he/she is one of the authors of the paper. The grant would cover travel, conference registration, accommodation and living allowance as per TCS’ norms.

A one-time contingency grant of Rs. 1,00,000 to the institute for every student enrolled as a TCS Research Scholar in order to meet any incidental expenses related to the student’s project, as approved by his research guide.

Visit(s) and interaction(s) of the Scholars to TCS Innovation Laboratories depending on their project needs, as judged by the concerned TCS Innovation Laboratory.

Conditions :
Upper age limit: 28 years when admitted into the fellowship program

The student should have secured a first class in all examinations since school.

The scheme is only applicable for the following study areas:
Computer Engineering
Computer Science
Information Systems
Information Technology
Software Engineering

The scheme is open for those students who are eligible for a PhD, and it is only valid for those students applying for a fresh PhD program and not for those who have already been admitted.

Students have to be registered as full-time students in the institute/college where the PhD admission is being sought.

TCS can terminate the fellowship, with a one-month notice, on the basis of the performance review report and also for the violation of any operational rules applicable to all the research students of the institute.

TCS reserves the first right of refusal to be an exclusive licensee for a period of two years, for any patent filed by the academic institution resulting out of the research work. If TCS does not exercise the right, the institution can go ahead on its own. TCS reserves the exclusive right to market & sublicense to its customers the outcome of the research work carried out under this scheme.

The CTO organization / TCS Innovation Laboratory will seek opportunities to collaborate with the scholar(s)/institute, even beyond the period of the internship.

Applications must be submitted in the following format:
Letter of application from the student
Letter of support by the institute
The research area write-up, which should include a short review, broad problem statement, proposed scope and focus
Student’s CV: Education, grades obtained, honors, publication list, work experience (if any)
CV of the proposed guide

Applications will be received twice every year, the Last Dates being July 15 and December 15. The results will be announced within one month.

This fellowship may be taken in addition to the PhD scholarship that the student receives from other sources, provided that there is no violation of rules.

Candidate Selection :
The key elements for selection:
Candidate’s credentials
Institute’s credentials for the selected field of study
TCS’ interest in the selected field of study
Academic research guide’s credentials

While the institute should select the students for this program, TCS reserves the right to admit some or none of the students recommended by the institute. Further, TCS reserves the right to conduct an interview of a student(s), if it deems necessary for the selection for the scheme. In such cases, the interviews will be conducted in one of the Innovation Labs of TCS and candidates must travel to the designated Lab for the interview. To-and-fro 2nd A/C rail fare from the institute to the place of interview will be paid to each candidate called for the interview.