IIT Guwahati PhD Admission December 2026: Last Date 28 October

IIT Guwahati PhD admission for the December 2026 session is open: the application portal went live on 8 October 2026 and closes at 5:00 pm on 28 October 2026, as per the official notification. Selections run from 24 November to 5 December 2026, and new scholars register on 4 January 2027.

This page covers only IIT Guwahati's December 2026 PhD round, using its official December 2026 notification and selection schedule, with last year's round as a comparison. For every January 2027 intake deadline side by side, see our January 2027 PhD last-dates tracker.

What are the key dates for IIT Guwahati PhD December 2026?

IIT Guwahati's December 2026 notification gives every key date. The portal opened on 8 October 2026 and closes at 5:00 pm on 28 October 2026. Selections run from 24 November to 5 December 2026, registration and orientation are on 4 January 2027, and instruction begins on 5 January 2027.

Status as of 9 October 2026: the portal is open (announcement dated 7 October 2026). The notification and the department-wise selection schedule are posted; the seat matrix link still says "To be updated shortly".

So although IIT Guwahati calls it the "December session", you actually join in January 2027. That is why it sits alongside the other January 2027 intakes.

The window is only three weeks. Register once on the portal, but pay a separate fee for each discipline. Applications that do not complete all three steps, including online payment, are not processed.

Department-wise selection dates

The official selection schedule lists dates for each unit. A few examples are below; check the full PDF for your department, because some units also hold an offline written test for non-GATE candidates.

Who can apply for IIT Guwahati PhD in December 2026?

You need a 4- or 5-year bachelor's degree or a master's degree in a relevant discipline, with CPI 6.0 on a 10-point scale or 60% marks. SC, ST and PwD candidates get a relaxation to 5.5 CPI or 55%. Each department then decides whether your degree fits its research areas.

The minimum marks are only the first filter. To get institute assistantship under the Regular category, you also need one of these:

• Valid GATE or CEED score: required for B.Tech, M.Sc, MA, MCA and MBA holders.
• IIT degree with CPI 8.0 or more: for regular, on-campus IIT graduates.
• UGC-CSIR NET (Assistant Professorship): accepted for arts backgrounds.
• External fellowship: NET-JRF (CSIR, UGC, DST, DBT, ICMR, ICAR), NBHM, DAE graduate fellowship or similar.

M.Tech, M.Des and MS (Research) holders who never qualified GATE or CEED can take the Institute Assistantship Test for MTech Level Applicants (IATMLA). It is an offline written test on campus, 2-3 hours long. The qualifying mark was 40% for GEN and GEN-EWS, 36% for OBC-NCL and 26% for SC, ST and PwD in the last notification.

Non-regular routes exist too: sponsored, employed part-time, project staff, external (part-time), self-financed and industry-sponsored. These do not get institute assistantship and need work experience, from one year for some routes to three years for self-financed.

Also readPhD Admission January 2027: Last Dates at IITs, IISc, IISERs

Which departments and seats are open this round?

The December 2026 notification lists 21 academic units, from the core engineering departments to schools such as Data Science and AI, Business, and Health Sciences. The seat matrix is not out yet. In December 2025, the tentative matrix listed 293 regular PhD seats across 25 units, plus 45 special seats for JRF holders.

In this round, Biosciences and Bioengineering, Physics and Chemistry also advertise the CSIR/UGC special scheme. The Manekshaw Centre of Excellence for National Security Studies offers all its seats under the employed part-time category. The December 2025 numbers below are only a guide.

In December 2025, the 45 JRF special seats were in Chemistry (20), Physics (15) and Biosciences and Bioengineering (10). Five per cent of all seats are reserved for PwD candidates. Check the December 2026 matrix the day it is posted.

What is the IIT Guwahati PhD application fee?

The December 2026 notification sets the fee at Rs 300 for all female, transgender, SC, ST and PwD candidates and Rs 600 for everyone else. You pay it online for each application, so two disciplines cost double. Applications without successful payment are rejected.

If you are selected, the fee page lists a total of Rs 90,250 payable at admission for the Regular category. Tuition is Rs 15,000 a semester for General, GEN-EWS and OBC-NCL students, nil for SC, ST and PwD, and Rs 30,000 for non-regular categories. Confirm these figures on the fee page when you get an offer, as they can be revised.

How does IIT Guwahati select PhD scholars?

Each department first removes applicants who miss the minimum criteria, then shortlists using GATE, NET or CEED scores and marks from Class 10 onwards. Shortlisted candidates face a written test, an interview or both. The mode can be online, offline or hybrid, decided by each unit.

Results appear only on the application portal. They show whether you qualified, whether a seat is offered, and your wait-list number if not. You must accept an offer by paying the fee before the given date, or the seat moves to the next person. IIT Guwahati does not post letters. For general PhD interview preparation, see our IIT PhD eligibility and selection explained.

Also readIISER PhD Admission January 2027: Last Dates at Every IISER

How much fellowship does an IIT Guwahati PhD scholar get?

Regular-category scholars with a valid GATE, CEED or qualifying fellowship get institute assistantship, but IIT Guwahati's admission pages do not print the monthly amount. JRF holders are paid by their funding agency. Sponsored, part-time, external and self-financed scholars get no institute assistantship.

For comparison, IIT Bombay, IIT Madras and IIT Kharagpur list Rs 37,000 a month for the first two years and Rs 42,000 after that in their 2026-27 brochures. Treat that as a reference only and confirm IIT Guwahati's figure with the Academic Affairs office (acad_admission@iitg.ac.in).

How do you apply for IIT Guwahati PhD December 2026?

Apply only on the portal at iitg.ac.in/admission between 8 October and 28 October 2026 (5:00 pm). Register once, then submit a separate application for each discipline. An application counts only when all three steps are complete.

1. Step 1: personal details and educational qualifications.
2. Step 2: choose the programme and discipline.
3. Step 3: pay the fee online. Repeat steps 2 and 3 for each extra discipline.

Keep your GATE or NET scorecard, marksheets and category certificate ready as PDFs. If you are also writing GATE 2027 for a later round, note that GATE 2027 regular registration closed on 5 October 2026 and the late-fee window runs till 12 October; see our GATE 2027 registration extension update.

Final checklist before the 28 October deadline

IIT Guwahati PhD admission for December 2026 is open now and closes at 5:00 pm on 28 October 2026. Selections follow from 24 November to 5 December, and you join on 4 January 2027 if selected.

• Confirm your route: GATE/CEED, IIT CPI 8.0, NET-JRF, IATMLA (M.Tech without GATE) or a non-regular category.
• Check the December 2026 seat matrix the day it is posted; small units may have only a few seats.
• Budget Rs 600 (or Rs 300) per discipline.
• Note your department's selection date from the official schedule and keep it free.
• Apply in deadline order: IIT Bombay (17 October), IIT Roorkee (20 October), IISc (26 October), IIT Guwahati (28 October), IIT Delhi (29 October) and IIT Madras (30 October). IIT Kharagpur's rolling portal has no fixed deadline.

An IIT PhD is open to graduates of many colleges, not only the top ones. If you are still choosing a B.Tech college, our guide to engineering colleges for a low JEE Main rank can help.