Dual Degree Conversion @IITB

Introduction

IIT Bombay offers a fascinating option to its undergraduate students where they can convert their Bachelor’s degrees to a Master’s one with just one additional year of study. This is made possible by the integrated Dual Degree (B.Tech. + M.Tech.) programmes offered by many departments, where students can earn both a Bachelor’s and a Master’s degree upon completion of the five-year course. They have the option to convert to a Dual Degree (DD) programme within their own (parent) department, where they will receive an M.Tech degree in the same discipline or they can pursue an interdisciplinary path through the Inter-Disciplinary Dual Degree Programme (IDDDP), allowing them to obtain an M.Tech or MBA degree in a different discipline.

This blog will focus on the first option, but many of the points discussed here are also relevant to the IDDDP, with the exception of the application process, which is slightly more detailed for the interdisciplinary route.

A big thank you to our guest author Wrath, who will be sharing his experiences along with me.

We both joined IIT Bombay as B.Tech. students in Electrical Engineering (EE) and utilised the option to convert to the DD programme offered by our department. While I chose Electronic Systems (ES) as my specialisation, Param chose Control and Computing (CC).

This post is divided into four sections: the first section explores the motivations and our reasons to convert, while the second section examines the pros and cons of this decision. If you’re considering making the conversion then the third section outlines the logistics involved in the conversion process and discusses some potential quirks that are not deal-breakers, but are often overlooked.

Motivation

Why I chose Electronic Systems

The decision of choosing Electronic Systems over other specialisations was quite natural for me. Up until my 7^th semester, I had spent a good amount of time pursuing research in the field of computer architecture. Additionally, I had taken up various digital and analog VLSI courses as my electives. This meant that I had already completed half of the specialisation requirements of ES and it felt natural for me to go ahead with Electronic Systems as my specialisation of choice.
— Anubhav Bhatla

Why I chose Control and Computing

For me, the turning point came after the final lecture of the EE302 (Control Systems) course, when all but two students had left the class. We had an amazing discussion on system realisations and transfer functions that completely blew my little mind. While the course had felt boring for most of its run, I found myself falling in love with it towards the end, especially when we delved into State-space theory, which perfectly complemented my learnings of linear algebra through EE636 (Matrix Computations) course that I was also taking at the same time.
Then, in my 3^rd year, I went on to take more courses related to control theory / applied mathematics, which further increased my appreciation of the topic and by the end of that year, I realised that I have completed many electives (even some core courses) related to Control and Computing specialisation. It was during this time that I started contemplating about converting to DD, I noticed that I can complete all my courses till 4^th year and then I will get a chance to devote one complete year to have a go at research.
— Param Rathour

Verdict

Pros

A time saver

Quite obviously, the primary objective behind a DD programme is to obtain both a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree within a span of 5 years, saving a whole year compared to if one chooses to pursue a Master’s separately. This is a good motivation for students who wish to obtain a graduate degree from the most renowned institute in the country while saving a year of their time.

Focus on research/projects

The DD programme at IITB provides a great opportunity for students to specialise in a specific domain. As mentioned in section 2.4 of the official UG rulebook ¹, on top of the regular B.Tech. requirements, a DD programme involves completing a B.Tech Honours of 24 credits, an additional 24 credits worth of masters level courses and most importantly dedicating the whole fifth-year to the dual-degree project (DDP). For most students, this year-long project becomes the highlight of their resume and plays a critical role in shaping future opportunities.

More time for exploration

The additional year of project work and courses offers another great opportunity to optimise their academic profile. They can not only strengthen their grip on their specialisation / project by taking advanced courses in those areas, but also explore courses outside of their specialisation due to all the extra time. For example, this could translate to pursuing a minor (or a second minor ;) in a field of interest outside EE.

Specialising helps in placement/research opportunities

As highlighted before, pursuing a year-long project in a EE specialisation can help open various placement/research opportunities for students who are looking for such opportunities which are related to their specialisation of choice.

Improves CPI^{*T&C Apply}

The additional year in the DD programme provides a student with the opportunity to take up more electives to improve their CPI (yes, CPI is important)². Additionally, the DDP is a 72-credit project, and with sufficient time and effort, there is a strong likelihood of earning an AA grade :)

Significantly less fees than abroad

One of the major problems with pursuing a Masters abroad is the massive fees for the two years (why is higher education so expensive in US?). In contrast, the fees for the final year at IITB is much lower than even the B.Tech. fees. This is a great motivation for students who wish to obtain a Master’s degree from a prestigious institute without the burden of student loans. In fact, by the end, there is a net financial profit thanks to the stipends 💸.

Another year at IITB (is this really an advantage?)

Remember when we all went through the gruesome JEE process to have the honour of calling themselves a proud EE student at IIT Bombay. What if you had the chance to enjoy the extra-curricular activities such as events, competitions (inter-hostel/inter-IIT) and facilities like gymkhana, library, hostel and messing at IITB for another year? Converting to a DD enables this and helps one remain an active part of IITB for another year.

Cons

The age-old problem of the 4^th-year internship

According to the IITB curriculum, a DD student is expected to start working on their project from the start of the 4^th year summer break. This means many professors do not allow their students to pursue a 4^th year internship and instead focus is on the DDP. However, some professors may be comfortable with you starting on your DDP earlier/later/work on it side-by-side with your internship.
The good thing is that the EE Office does not ask for any attendance during this break, leaving the fate of your internship dreams in the hands of your guide. So, choose your guide wisely.

An unexpected issue with campus placements

Well, this one is sad and unexpected. According to the statistics of the last few placement seasons, there have been various instances of JAFs being opened for only B.Techs and M.Techs and not DD students. Even though some of these are later opened for DD students, it is still a frustrating experience and something to keep in mind.
On the plus side, DDs and M.Techs are preferred for core jobs.

Significant time commitment towards DDP and TAship

This one should be quite expected. The project and the TAships during the final year can be extremely rewarding, but, they come with a significant time commitment. Not being able to put in satisfactory efforts into one’s DDP or TA duties may result in a poor DDP grade or even a reduction in TA stipend.
The EE office is also notorious for allotting TAship duties outside of your preferences, which may become a hassle sometimes.

Very boring another year at IITB

Well, you are going to be in for a very boring final year. Your B.Tech. friends would’ve already graduated and the probably the only thing for you to do during your final year would be to work on your DDP, sitting in your guide’s lab or grade your tutees assignments/exams.

Prejudice towards DD students

This one is more about what others think of DD students than it being a con, sometimes, I found it hard to explain this decision to people who were heavily prejudiced against it because of JEE rank cut-offs.

Logistics

Before conversion

Choosing the Specialisation

The first step is to choose a specialisation (usually done after the 5th semester for regular DD students). Since each specialisation has a cap on the number of students (based on your CPI), you may not be able to pursue a specialisation of your choice.

It is also recommended to discuss this aspect with your guide if you are already doing research work with them. Sometimes, an IDDDP option might be more attractive.

Application Process

The second step is the application process which is relatively simpler as the department encourages DD conversion, you will essentially need to do following things

• preparation of course plan which will include
  • a short motivation for DD conversion
  • academic performance like CPI, category and backlogs if any
  • an overview of the courses you have completed so far, and the plan of re-tagging them to match the programme requirements (check the official EE site for programme requirements³)
  • a semester-wise plan to demonstrate that you can complete the remaining course requirements (if any) during the remainder of the five-year programme without violating any credit restrictions⁴
  • check an example template of the course plan
• approval of your faculty advisor
• approval of your parents/guardian

Once these steps are done, just send your application to the EE office and now your proposal will be discussed in the next DUGC meeting for approval.

After Conversion

If your proposal is approved then the EE office will take care of updating your academic details on ASC and the changes will reflect before the start of a new semester. Congrats!

Little Things

You will still need to do few things by your own like

• updating your ID-card
  • visit the security section, fill up a form and click a picture (take care that the shirt colour should not match the background)
• redo your biometric authentication on the new ID-card
  • visiting the operator’s room at the top floor of LHC-3
  • this will come handy as you will be required to put daily attendance at EE office
• renewing library card access
  • visit library and tell them to update your details
• managing hostel accommodation for the 4^th year summers
  • since you were initially a B.Tech student, it can cause problems with hostel records and you might need to change your room/hostel

Apart from these little things, here are some more details that will be useful.

Tagging

• At IITB, students can re-tag courses twice during their undergraduate programme: once at the start of the 7^th semester and again before convocation. Normally DD students utilise their first re-tagging window either during the vacations after 8^th semester or during the 9^th semester.
  However, students who re-tagged courses before converting to a DD cannot do so again until the final window before convocation.
• For B.Tech. students, Honours Electives (O) count only towards the Honours CPI, not the primary CPI. But the DD programmes treat Honours Electives as regular Department Electives (D), and so contributing to the primary CPI.
  Re-tagging of such courses can lead to changes in SPI and CPI after conversion to a DD programme.

Degree

After converting to DD, you might wonder about the end result; i.e., the degrees that you will get (yes, you get 2 degrees) and when you will get them. The degrees that you get are as follows

• The first degree is about your B.Tech and it will mention any minors/honours⁵ that you have completed.
• The second one is the M.Tech degree which mentions your specialisation and the successful completion of your dissertation.

Though, there are two degrees, you can only get them after completion of entire integrated DD curriculum and the fact that you were a part of the DD programme will be mentioned in both of your degrees.

Conclusion

And that’s a wrap! I hope this has provided you with more clarity, ultimately the decision depends on what you value more. Anyway, we wish you all the best in making the most of your academic journey at IITB.
For more questions, you can either comment down below or reach out to me/Param via any of the platforms mentioned on my homepage or at his website.

External Links