The first batch of students to take the International Joint MTech degree in Food Science and Technology (IMDFST) at IIT Guwahati are graduating this year. The International MTech degree comprises a mutually participating curriculum from IIT Guwahati’s Departments of Chemical Engineering, Biosciences and Bio-engineering, Chemistry and the School of Agro and Rural Technology and the United Graduate School of Agricultural Science of Gifu University, Japan. The first batch consists of eight students (four from each country).
The course enables students to earn credits from both universities and views food science and technology through the lens of chemistry and engineering. The programme has been coordinated by the Department of Chemical Engineering, IIT Guwahati. The course pedagogy advocates high-end research through practical application of basic and applied principles of food science and technology. The curriculum imparts practical skills associated with research methodology and design thinking, global internship for the smarter evolution of localised food technologies for global markets.
The admission at IIT Guwahati is based on the candidate’s GATE score, their research proposal, and an interview. The programme received significant attention from undergraduate students in the Agricultural Engineering, Biotechnology, Chemical Engineering, Food Technology disciplines, and allied disciplines. Speaking about the efficacy of the programme, Course Coordinator Prof Vaibhav V Goud said, “A pragmatic curriculum design oversaw the smooth transition to a translational research-based paradigm in the rapid advances associated with Food Science and Technology.”
Prof Goud also spoke on the emphasis that Japanese higher education lays on laboratory-based instructions and theory, and how it has coupled with the Indian system of sound fundamentals grounded in research. The curriculum spans four semesters in which an Indian student would do out a semester at IIT Guwahati followed by an incubation trimester of research activity. Then, the student would enroll in the Gifu University to complete a semester of coursework. Finally, the student would return to IIT Guwahati to carry out research for two semesters.
