Melbourne India Postgraduate Academy (MIPA)

Join a collaborative research project between Melbourne and an elite Indian research university.

Receive joint recognition from the University of Melbourne and one of India’s elite research universities through the MIPA joint PhD program.

The Melbourne India Postgraduate Academy (MIPA) is a joint initiative consisting of established researchers and joint PhD candidates from the University of Melbourne and a group of India’s elite research universities. Collaborative research teams from Melbourne and India are engaging in projects that address key issues in science and technology.

The MIPA joint PhD candidates working on these projects benefit from being part of a collaborative international research community. They will receive mentorship from global experts, learn how to adapt to new cultural and research environments, and gain access to the best facilities and resources from two universities. The MIPA bi-annual conference provides further opportunities for researchers to network, share knowledge and partake in professional development opportunities.

Collage of photos from MIPAC events

MIPAC-23: 16-17 November 2023 in Melbourne and online. Registrations opening soon.

The 4th MIPA Conference – MIPAC-23 – will take place on 16-17 November 2023, with delegates attending in-person at the University of Melbourne and online from our Indian partner institutions.

The two-day conference is an excellent platform to expand your academic network and share your research with the elite research community from the University of Melbourne and the collaborating Indian Institutes of Technology: Kharagpur (IIT-KGP), Kanpur (IIT-K), Madras (IIT-M), the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore (IISc) and the Indian Institute of Education and Research Tirupati (IISERT). This diversity offers an enriching environment for the exchange of ideas and sparks multi-disciplinary collaborations.

Registrations open June.

MIPA has presented me with a satisfying and wholesome research experience. My supervisors’ encouragement and inputs have helped me excel in my research.Dibbendu Roy, MIPA joint PhD candidate

Meenakshi Arora wins India Australia Business and Community Alliance Australia India Impact Award

We are delighted to announce that the Director of MIPA, Associate Professor Meenakshi Arora, has been awarded the India Australia Business and Community Alliance (IABCA) Australia India Impact Award (Individual). IABCA is the largest platform that exists to strengthen the India-Australia relationship and contribute to its development through its people-people links. The award acknowledges Associate Professor Arora’s work in developing collaborations between the University and India through her position as MIPA Director.

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Meenakshi Arora with her trophy

Project spotlight story: Transport phenomenon of surface modified bimetallic nanoparticles

Nanoparticles are solid particles engineered to be the size of a molecule or an atom. They are useful in the field of nanotechnology, an advanced field of technology with many real-life applications. A bimetallic nanoparticle is a nanoparticle created from two different types of metals. This project examines the movement of bimetallic nanoparticles thorough porous media.  Research outcomes will help scientists apply nanotechnology to environmental remediation, generating a tangible impact on our society.

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Joint PhD Opportunity: Extracting the semantics of places from natural language descriptions

The ability of artificial intelligence like Siri and Alexa to extract information from human speech has progressed tremendously in the last decades. However, challenges still remain. One such challenge is the difficulty for AI to process spatial language and contextualised language about places. For example, the phrase "at the back of the store" may appear clear to a human listener, but to an AI, such language is ambiguous. This project aims to investigate conversational patterns about places and represent them in a database so that we can ultimately further the development of artificial intelligence. To view this joint PhD opportunity (and others) in detail, click on the button below.

View all MIPA opportunities

Our partner universities

There are currently five Indian universities partnering with the University of Melbourne to operate the Melbourne India Postgraduate Academy. Learn more about each university by following the links below.

Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IITM)
Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur (IITK)
Indian Institute of Science Bangalore (IISC)
Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur (IITKGP)
Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Tirupati (IISER Tirupati)
Associate Professor Meenakshi Arora

Meet our Directors

Associate Professor Meenakshi Arora is the current Director of the Melbourne India Postgraduate Academy. Her main research interests relate to urban water cycle modelling, water quality, contaminant transport modelling, and groundwater remediation. Associate professor Arora has made significant contributions in the area of water resource management, including the development of a cost-effective defluoridation plant to provide safe drinking water to communities in rural India. As a faculty member of the Department of Infrastructure Engineering at the University of Melbourne, she teaches a variety of subjects and supervises Masters and PhD candidates.

Dr Surinder Singh Chauhan is the Deputy Director of MIPA. Dr Chauhan has multinational experience in teaching and research in Veterinary and Animal Sciences, and has delivered his services successfully in Australia, India and USA. His research program strives to deliver solutions to promote sustainable, and efficient livestock production systems (cattle, sheep, goat, and pigs) capable of producing quality animal protein for the consumers.

Surinder Singh Chuhaun

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