The journey to becoming a faculty member at IIT Kanpur is a rigorous and merit-driven process. It begins with the academic profile. A PhD in a relevant field is the foundational requirement, but the institute seeks much more than formal qualifications. Candidates are expected to demonstrate high-quality research, a record of impactful publications, and the ability to pursue independent and innovative work. Postdoctoral experience, teaching exposure, and recognition through awards or funded projects further strengthen an application.

Applications are submitted through IIT Kanpur’s rolling portal, which allows candidates to apply throughout the year. This system provides flexibility and ensures that recruitment is responsive to departmental needs. Applicants can also express their interest in multiple departments if their research spans more than one area of focus. 

Once submitted, applications are carefully reviewed at the departmental level. Committees comprising the Head of Department (HoD), senior faculty, and representatives from the Dean of Faculty Affairs (DoFA) examine each profile, weighing the relevance of expertise to departmental priorities, quality and impact of research publications and Post-PhD research contributions.

Shortlisted candidates are invited for the first round of interactions, which typically includes a Job Talk – a one-hour presentation of their research, followed by a Q&A session. This stage also evaluates communication skills, depth of knowledge, and ability to engage both specialists and non-specialists.

The feedback from the Job Talk and departmental discussions is then considered by the Department Faculty Affairs Committee (DFAC), which forwards recommendations to the Institute Faculty Affairs Committee (IFAC). It reviews candidates across departments to maintain consistent standards and ensure a balanced distribution of expertise throughout the institute. Even a strong candidate may not advance if their specialisation closely overlaps with that of existing faculty.

Finally, candidates recommended by IFAC meet the Selection Committee which is chaired by the Director and includes senior faculty and external experts. For senior appointments, nominees from the Academic Senate or the Board of Governors may also participate. This stage evaluates research vision, long-term academic plans, and fits with the institute’s broader goals.

While the institute’s stance isn’t written into policy, a widely observed rule of thumb evolved over the years, as mentioned by most professors from many departments, is that Ph.D. graduates of IITK must spend at least five years outside the institute before being considered for a faculty role. The idea is to ensure they gain broader exposure and new perspectives before returning.

While the overall recruitment framework remains uniform across the institute, individual departments often introduce subtle variations in their evaluation process and eligibility criteria.

Prof. Vimal Kumar from the Economic Sciences Department (ECO) mentioned that, unlike core disciplines, publications in Economics are less frequent due to the nature of the field and the limited number of journals considered reputed. Therefore, publication count is not the primary hiring criterion: a single publication in a top-tier journal is considered sufficient for entry-level positions.

Prof. Sayak R. C. from the Department of Computer Science and Engineering (CSE) explained that high-quality research is the central focus of faculty recruitment in the department. The selection committees, he said, place greater emphasis on the quality and impact of publications rather than their sheer number, which comes into play only as a tiebreaker when candidates are otherwise evenly matched.

When it comes to hiring alumni, Prof. Sayak noted that only those who have demonstrated exceptional academic or research achievements are considered. “There are three such faculty members in our department, all of whom are extremely accomplished and widely recognized in their fields,” he said.

Unlike some other departments, CSE conducts only a job talk during the selection process, where candidates present their research before faculty members. Departments like Mathematics and Statistics (MTH), he mentioned, often include a Teaching Talk as well, to assess how effectively a candidate can communicate and engage with an audience.

Research productivity continues to hold the highest weightage in CSE’s evaluation process. New faculty are given a cushion in terms of teaching and can take a break from teaching in the first semester they join, and then from the second semester, design their own course at PG/PhD level/DE, then only shift to core courses.  “This approach allows new hires to gain confidence and teaching experience gradually,” Prof. Sayak added.

Prof. Amitabha Bandopadhyay, from the Biological Sciences and Bioengineering (BSBE) department, explained that applications are primarily shortlisted in their department based on a candidate’s overall academic trajectory rather than marks alone. Greater weight is given to the quality of the PhD research, the significance of published papers, and postdoctoral research productivity. In some cases, applications are also shared with external experts working in similar domains to ensure a fair and informed evaluation.

A faculty member is recruited for the potential of what they will bring to the academics of the Institute. The credentials are evidence of technical capabilities, but the future plan is what is evaluated most critically, as that’s the proposed deliverables of the candidate.

He noted that a candidate’s chances improve significantly if their research aligns with the department’s current areas of interest. “Relevance plays a big role,” he said. “If the department is actively exploring a certain field, a strong candidate in that area naturally stands out.”

He also emphasised that a professor’s responsibilities extend well beyond research and teaching. Administrative contributions form an integral part of the role. “Evaluating how a candidate will fit into all three aspects, research, teaching, and administration, is crucial during the hiring process,” he added.

Prof. Mini Chandran from the Humanities and Social Sciences (HSS) department mentioned that consistent academic performance and at least two publications in international journals are essential criteria for shortlisting candidates. The selection process involves several committee meetings before a final decision is made. She further added that teaching engineering undergraduate students is not easy for HSS instructors. They have to remember that the students are not specialising in subjects like Literature or Psychology, so the challenge is to capture and sustain their interest.

Thus, we can observe that each department caters to its needs differently. To gain insights into the fact that many professors are alumni, we analysed faculty across some departments to quantify our observations.