IITM Project Research Scientist Non-Medical Advt 192/2026

IIT Madras Project Research Scientist (Non-Medical) Recruitment 2026: Overview

The Office of Industrial Consultancy and Sponsored Research (IC&SR) at Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT Madras) is hiring a Project Research Scientist I (Non-Medical) for a sponsored project in the Department of Engineering Design at its Chennai campus, under the coordination of Prof. Kavitha Arunachalam. This is the engineering seat on a hyperthermia programme — the team builds a device that heats tumour tissue to support cancer treatment, and it wants an engineer who has already worked on medical device development to take the hardware from a lab prototype to something that can be used in a clinic. The engagement is purely on contract and runs for one year to begin with, extendable up to three years or the life of the project depending on how you perform. Advertisement ICSR/PR/Advt.192/2026 is the non-medical half of the drive; a companion advertisement in the same department covers the medical side of the same work.

Service Conditions and Caveats

• Purely on contract: finishing the contract gives you no claim to an extension, to regularisation or to a permanent post at the Institute.
• Tenure: one year first, then extension up to three years or whatever is left of the project, decided on your performance.
• Eligibility cut-off: every eligibility condition is judged as on the closing date for the online application, and being called for a test only means you look suitable on paper — it is no assurance of selection.
• Qualifications are a floor, not a ceiling: the prescribed qualification is the minimum, and holding something higher does not by itself earn you an interview call. Only experience gained after the minimum qualifying degree is counted.
• Shortlisting: IIT Madras can set the bar above the advertised minimum and limit how many people it calls for the written test, skill test or interview, and it can reject any or all applications without giving a reason.
• NOC: if you already work on a project at IIT Madras you have to apply through proper channel, or carry a No-Objection Certificate. Candidates without an NOC are not allowed to appear for the test or interview.
• Citizenship: you must be an Indian citizen. People who migrated from Pakistan to settle permanently in India, and subjects of Nepal, can also apply, but they need an eligibility certificate from the Ministry of Home Affairs.
• Referees: you may send testimonials from people who know your work and character well. If you are employed, get one from your present employer or immediate superior.
• Right not to fill: the Institute decides the mode of screening and testing, and it can leave the post unfilled without assigning a reason. Only shortlisted applicants are contacted, and no correspondence about results or about not being called is entertained.
• Women candidates: IIT Madras says it wants a workforce that reflects gender balance and encourages women to apply.
• Changes: any corrigendum or clarification goes up on the IC&SR careers website only — no separate letter or email is sent.

Application Submission Notes

Applications are taken online only, through the IC&SR current openings page. Register with an active email address, look for Advt.192/2026 in the list of openings and submit against that advertisement. The form cannot be edited or taken back once you submit it, and the system accepts a single application per registered login for one advertisement — so if you want to be considered for more than one position, select them all before submitting. A separate application is needed for each post, and sending two applications for the same post can get your candidature rejected.

Keep a printout of the submitted form. You have to bring it for document verification, the test or the interview, but do not post the hard copy to the Institute. All correspondence happens by email, so give an address you actually check. If the portal gives you trouble, IC&SR handles technical queries at icsrrecruitment@icsrpis.iitm.ac.in and icsrrecruitment6@icsrpis.iitm.ac.in and on 044-2257 8843, between 9.00 am and 5.30 pm from Monday to Friday. Questions about the selection process itself will not be answered there.

• Contribute to the development of the hyperthermia device at the Department of Engineering Design
• Apply your electronics, instrumentation, control or electrical engineering training to the device hardware
• Build the clinical version of the device so it can be used on patients
• Test the device in the laboratory to check that it performs as designed
• Run the animal study work needed to establish the safety of the device
• Help prepare the clinical study plan for the device