MTech at IIT-Delhi’s Abu Dhabi campus to start in February

IIT will offer 25 seats for the programme, with 15-18 candidates selected from a United Arab Emirates (UAE) corporate entity

The Abu Dhabi campus of Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi (IIT-Delhi) has received more than 200 applications for its first programme on offer — MTech in Energy Transition and Sustainability — officials aware of the matter said on Wednesday, adding that the Master’s course is scheduled to begin in early February.

The Abu Dhabi campus will function out of Zayed University — a public university — till a new campus building is ready, and IIT will begin gradually introducing more courses at the institute. (Bloomberg)

IIT will offer 25 seats for the programme, with 15-18 candidates selected from a United Arab Emirates (UAE) corporate entity, the officials said. After appearing for a selection test and interview in December, seven candidates were shortlisted for this programme. They have received offers and are currently in the process of fulfilling documentation and visa requirements, they said.

The eligibility criteria for the programme included a four-year Bachelor’s degree, or a three-years Bachelor’s degree with a 2-year Master’s in related disciplines.

In addition, the Abu Dhabi campus will also offer BTech programmes from September. Regarding the eligibility criteria for the course, IIT-D director Rangan Banerjee said, “We are in the process of working out these details and will announce them in the coming months.”

IIT-Delhi is the second IIT with an offshore campus (an IIT-Madras campus in Tanzania was the first), and the Abu Dhabi campus was set up following a memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the UAE in July 2023.

The Abu Dhabi campus will function out of Zayed University — a public university — till a new campus building is ready, and IIT will begin gradually introducing more courses at the institute.

An IIT official, on condition of anonymity, said, “A part of Zayed University had been dedicated to us... It is a separate campus in itself. We will be able to function there for the next five years, and then will relocate to the new campus once the construction is complete. We have tentatively identified a location for the new campus.”

Last year, Banerjee said that the Abu Dhabi campus has been envisioned as a research-centric campus that will contribute to the research and academic ecosystems of the UAE, and in the process, contribute to IIT-Delhi’s growth and strengthen linkages between the two countries.