Archive · 23 Aug 2026
IIT Bombay Caps New PhDs at Eight Years
IIT Bombay is changing how long new PhD students can take to finish.
From now on, new PhD registrations will have an eight-year limit.
The institute found that some PhD programmes had stayed unfinished for more than 10 years.
It reviewed these long-running programmes to find out what was causing delays.
The review also helped clear many pending PhDs.
As a result, IIT Bombay awarded a record 620 PhD degrees in the 2025-26 academic year.
The institute says no other IIT has crossed 600 PhD degrees in one year.
Its director said the goal is to solve delays and help students finish sooner.
IIT Bombay will limit newly registered PhD programmes to eight years.
An internal review found some doctoral programmes had remained pending for more than 10 years.
The review helped clear a backlog, producing a record 620 PhD degrees in 2025-26.
IIT Bombay says this is the first time an IIT has awarded more than 600 PhDs in one year.
At its 64th convocation, the institute awarded 3,763 degrees to 3,442 students.
- Who
- IIT Bombay, led by director Shireesh Kedare, is changing the duration of new PhD programmes.
- What
- The institute has introduced an eight-year limit for all newly registered PhD programmes and reviewed older pending programmes.
- When
- The limit applies to new registrations; the record total was reported for the 2025-26 academic year, with the 64th convocation held over the weekend.
- Where
- IIT Bombay.
- Why
- An internal review found that some PhD programmes had remained pending for more than 10 years, prompting efforts to address delays and encourage faster completion.
- New PhD duration limit
- Eight years
- Record PhD degrees
- 620 in the 2025-26 academic year
- Previous delays identified
- Some PhD programmes had remained pending for more than 10 years
- Convocation
- 64th convocation
- Degrees awarded
- 3,763 degrees to 3,442 students
- Director
- Shireesh Kedare
- Reported distinction
- IIT Bombay says it is the first IIT to cross 600 PhD degrees in one year