IIT Delhi hosted the second “Transformative Leadership in STEMM (TLS) Workshop,” an annual national-level mentoring program for advanced-stage Ph.D. scholars from the SC/ST community.
The initiative is aimed at encouraging and empowering Ph.D scholars from the SC/ST community to apply for faculty positions at prestigious institutions like IITs, NITs, and other higher educational institutions (HEIs).
Furthermore, the program also seeks to address the under-representation of the SC/ST community in the scientific domain, particularly in the faculty positions, IIT Delhi informed in a press statement.
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Notably, the latest edition of the workshop was conducted from January 28 to 30, 202, wherein it focused on the fields of Electrical Engineering, Computer Science and Engineering, Mathematics, and Biological Sciences.
The three-day event also included select participants from the previous batch of the workshop. The TLS workshop is jointly organized by the Initiative for Caste Equity (ICE), the Office of Diversity & Inclusion (ODI), and the SC/ST Cell at IIT Delhi.
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As informed by IIT Delhi, the convener and co-convener for the workshop were Prof. Yashpal Jogdand from the Department of Humanities and Social Sciences and Faculty Advisor, Initiative for Caste Equity (ICE), Office of Diversity and Inclusion, IIT Delhi, and Prof. Pravin P. Ingole, from the Department of Chemistry and Chairperson, SC/ST Cell, IIT Delhi,
Both highlighted that there was an overwhelming response for the TLS workshop from PhD scholars.
Notably, the competition for limited seats was particularly stiff this year. A cohort of 50 students from various institutions across the country was selected by a scientific advisory committee chaired by Prof. Narayanan Kurur (Dean Academics, IIT Delhi) and consisting of HoDs and expert faculty.
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The students also included ten select candidates from last year’s batch for continuous mentoring.
About the workshop:
The workshop activities and sessions focused on various aspects that distinguish faculty at premier institutions, such as high-quality research and teaching, scientific and professional skills, and interface with industry and society through incubation and commercialization initiatives.
Participants presented their ongoing research and gave teaching demonstrations along with receiving feedback and mentoring from expert faculty, a press statement informed.
Additionally, participants also engaged in an incubation-based group activity led by I-Hub Foundation for Cobotics (IHFC) over three days.
The workshop also focused on key aspects such as confidence building of the participants.
Prof. Sonajharia Minz and Prof. D. K. Lobiyal, Computer Science Department, JNU, delivered a session on strategies for protecting one’s self-respect and enhancing confidence in a challenging environment.
In another session, Prof. Divya Dwivedi, IIT Delhi, highlighted nuanced aspects of social and cultural capital required to successfully engage in the academic interaction and to overcome English language barriers.
Likewise, the sessions delivered by Prof. Dipak Pinjari, ICT, Mumbai, focused on preparing research proposals and teaching statements, whereas Prof. Shyama Rath, DU, shared useful insights from her editorial experience of scientific journals.
Prof. Rahul Rondiya of IISc Bangalore, delivered an engaging session on scientific writing and publication strategies to build a strong faculty profile.
Prof. Krishna Achuta Rao (Dean Faculty, IIT Delhi) guided participants through the faculty application process at IITs and addressed their queries.
Meanwhile, another important highlight was the banquet dinner for the TLS participants, chaired by Ramdas Athawale, Union Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment, Government of India, and attended by other dignitaries from IIT Delhi and various institutions.
