JRF in Autonomous Driving Sim2Real Research (ANRF Project) at IIT Roorkee

Job Description

IIT Roorkee’s Department of Computer Science and Engineering invites applications from Indian nationals for one Junior Research Fellow (JRF) post on an ANRF-sponsored project building an autonomous-driving testbed that uses simulation-to-reality (Sim2Real) methods to study safety-critical and partially observed scenarios. The post pays Rs 37,000 a month plus HRA for one year, and the selected candidate may get an opportunity for PhD admission.

At a glance

• Post: Junior Research Fellow (1)
• Project: S2R-SPOAD: Sim2Real-hallucinated Safety-critical and Partially Observed-scenario based Autonomous Driving Testbed
• Sponsor: ANRF
• Principal Investigator: Prof. Neetesh Kumar, Computer Science and Engineering
• Pay: Rs 37,000 per month + HRA
• Apply by: 20 September 2026 (see the note on the time below)

Self-driving vehicles have to cope with rare, dangerous situations and with sensors that see only part of the scene. Testing such cases on real roads is slow and risky, so researchers create them in simulation and then check that what works in simulation also works on real robotic vehicles; closing that gap is what Sim2Real research is about. The notice is dated 27 August 2026 and is open to Indian nationals only.

What the JRF will work on

• Designing computer vision models
• Running sim-to-real experiments on robotic vehicles
• Designing reinforcement learning algorithms
• Integrating transformer models
• Writing research papers

Eligibility

• M.E./M.Tech in Information Technology, Computer Science and Engineering, Software Engineering, or AI and Data Science, or equivalent; or
• M.Tech/M.E. in Electrical Engineering or Electronics and Communication Engineering, or equivalent; or
• B.E./B.Tech in Computer Science and Engineering, Information Technology, or Mathematics and Computing, or equivalent; or
• A five-year integrated BS-MS in mathematics and computing, or equivalent
• For the routes above, the notice states that the GATE paper qualification is in CS/EC
• Alternative route for B.Tech graduates without an M.Tech (CSE or equivalent branches): graduates of CFTIs with a CGPA of at least 8.5 are exempt from GATE, while graduates of non-CFTI institutions need a CGPA of at least 7.5 and a valid GATE score

Desirable: research or development experience in autonomous vehicles, embedded systems, robotics, sensor integration, autonomous driving or Sim2Real experiments, and familiarity with Python, C++ or ROS. The notice also looks for good problem-solving skills, a research-oriented mindset and interest in building intelligent autonomous-vehicle solutions. SC/ST candidates get preference when qualifications and experience are equal, and candidates must confirm their own eligibility before the interview.

Pay and duration

• Rs 37,000 per month plus HRA
• Duration: 1 year
• No TA/DA for attending the interview
• The selected candidate may get an opportunity for PhD admission

How to apply

Email your CV, degree certificates and experience certificates to iccnjobs@gmail.com, the submission address printed on the official notice (the Principal Investigator’s institute address on the notice is neetesh@cs.iitr.ac.in). Bring the originals for verification if called for interview. The interview mode (online or offline) and date will be emailed to shortlisted candidates.

Key dates

• Notice dated 27 August 2026
• Last date to apply: 20 September 2026. Item 10 of the notice says by 5 PM, while the line below it says by 11:59 PM, so aim to send your application before 5 PM
• Interview: mode and date to be emailed to shortlisted candidates

Please read the official IIT Roorkee advertisement (PDF) before applying, and browse more artificial intelligence jobs on ResearchJobs.in.