The Planning Unit offers a two-year program in Master of Science in Quantitative Economics (M.S.Q.E.).

A detailed description of the M.S.Q.E. program can be found in the brochure: [Download].

Course Structure: Courses are taught in four semesters over two years. Students take about four to five courses each semester. There are ten compulsory courses, nine of which are taken in the first two semesters. In addition, students take about ten optional courses. The compulsory courses include sequences in Microeconomics, Macroeconomics, Statistics and Econometrics, Game Theory, Mathematics for Economists, and Economic Development. Among the many optional courses, the following have been offered by the Unit in the recent past: Advanced Game Theory, Macro Dynamics, International Economics, Finance, Industrial Organization, Dynamic Programming, Applied Econometrics, Time Series Econometrics, Social Choice and Political Economy, Public Economics, Intertemporal Economics, and Environmental Economics. More details regarding the course structure is available in the M.S.Q.E. Brochure published by the Institute.

Admission: Students with a 3-year Bachelor's degree with Honours in Economics, Mathematics, Statistics, Engineering or Physics, are eligible to apply for the M.S.Q.E. program. Selection of students is based on past academic record, and performance in entrance tests (in Economics and Mathematics) and in an interview. Information regarding the admission process is advertised in major Indian newspapers and on our website in February of each year. The entrance tests are held in early May, and interviews are held in early July. Detailed information about this is mailed to candidates who apply for the program. A new session starts in late July.

Some sample question papers with syllabus can be found here:

• Sample question paper 2004: [Download]
• Sample question paper 2005: [Download]
• Sample question paper 2006: [Download]
• Sample question paper 2007: [Download]

Hostel Facilities and Scholarships: Hostel facility will be given on a merit-cum-need basis. However, the hostel is available to all admitted students at the current time. Currently, a stipend is being offered to all admitted students. The stipend is valid initially for the first semester. The amount of stipend for subsequent semesters depends on academic performance and conduct.

Note: that the information given here is not exhaustive. This is only an overview of the program and requirements. For detailed information, contact our student affairs contact Tridip Ray (tridip [at] isid.ac.in).

Placement: Our M.S.Q.E. students get placed in industry in India and abrorad. Some of the companies which recruited M.S.Q.E. students last year are D.E. Shaw, Genpact, Indian School of Business, ICICI Bank, HP Analytics. Some of our M.S.Q.E. students go abroad for doctoral studies. Over the last two years, our students have got scholarships from NYU, Columbia, CalTech, U. of British Columbia, U. of Texas at Austin, and other US universities for their doctoral studies. Visit our placement website for further details on campus recruitments.

Our doctoral program is a five year program with two years of course work followed by three years of dissertation research. The course work is usually the a selection of courses from the list of courses offered to our M.S.Q.E. students. Sometimes, special courses are also offered for doctoral students. We expect at least two journal quality papers from a doctoral student's dissertation. In past, our doctoral students have found placement in industry and acadmia in India and abroad. Some of our former doctoral students are faculty at North American and European universities.

Admission: We look for students in our doctoral program who are analytically sound with a strong inclinination for research. Requirements for Ph.D. applicants are:

1. The candidate should possess any one of the following degrees or diplomas awarded by ISI (M. Stat., M. Math., M.S. (Q.E.), M. Tech. (CS), M. Tech. (QR or OR); Post Graduate Diploma, Two/Three year Advanced Statistician Diploma, Senior Diploma in Statistics) OR a masters degree of a recognized university/instituion in a relevant subject. [Note: For outstanding candidates, the above criteria may be relaxed to either a four-year technological degree of a recognized university/institution or a bachelors degree of a recognized university/institution in a relevant subject.]
2. A Junior Research Fellow (JRF) selection test is conducted annually by the ISI for all Ph.D. aspirants. This is mandatory for those requiring financial support from the institute. For those not requiring financial support from the institute there is an additional option of admission through the research fellow advisory committee (RFAC) in the relevant area.

Courses: Doctoral students have to take some courses during the first two years of study. In some cases, the students may be allowed to take waiver examiations for the courses. For details refer to the following documents.

• Course Structure.
• Rules and Regulations for JRF/SRF Fellowships.

Note: The information given here is not exhaustive. This is only an overview of the program and requirements. For detailed information, contact our JRF coordinator Chetan Ghate (cghate [at] isid.ac.in).