IIT Roorkee & Niigata University Launch Double Ph.D. Program to Strengthen India-Japan Academic Ties

Roorkee, Uttarakhand, March 05, 2025: The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Roorkee and the Niigata University, Japan, have established a Double Ph.D. Program, marking a new era of international academic collaboration between India and Japan. Prof. K.K. Pant, Director of IIT Roorkee, and Prof. Matsuo Masayuki, Dean of the Graduate School of Science and Technology, Niigata University, signed the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to formalize this partnership.

This pioneering program enables doctoral students to pursue and earn degrees from IIT Roorkee and Niigata University, offering unparalleled academic and research excellence opportunities. The initiative facilitates the exchange of students and researchers, providing access to diverse educational resources, world-class mentorship, and a global perspective while fostering holistic development among scholars. Collaborative research areas span cutting-edge fields, including artificial intelligence and machine learning, energy systems and renewable technologies, sustainability and climate change, advanced materials and nanotechnology, earthquake engineering, water resources and hydrology, information and communication engineering, biosciences and biotechnology, robotics and automation, disaster resilience and mitigation, and earth and environmental sciences, addressing critical global challenges through joint efforts.

The MoU discussion was started by the visit of Prof. Tatsuo Ushiki, President of Niigata University, to IIT Roorkee, where discussions with IIT Roorkee leadership underscored a shared commitment to advancing academic ties. Additionally, a delegation from IIT Roorkee, including Prof. K.K. Pant (Director, IIT Roorkee), Prof. Vimal Chandra Srivastava (Dean, International Relations), Prof. Akshay Dvivedi (Dean, Sponsored Research & Industrial Consultancy), Prof. Sandeep Singh (Department of Earth Sciences), and Prof. P. Gopinath (Department of Biosciences & Bioengineering), visited Niigata University to engage in strategic dialogues, explore avenues for deeper collaboration, and lay a robust foundation for this transformative partnership.

Prof. K.K. Pant, Director of IIT Roorkee, remarked, “This collaboration reflects our commitment to global academic engagement. The Double Degree Program will enhance students’ research capabilities and further strengthen our academic and research ties with Niigata University.”

Prof. Matsuo Masayuki, Dean of the Graduate School of Science and Technology, Niigata University, stated, “We are excited to work with IIT Roorkee on this program, which will nurture talented researchers and contribute to addressing global challenges through joint efforts.”

The Double Degree Program opens new pathways for students to engage in high-impact research and contribute to both nations' academic and scientific communities of India and Japan.