University alums, Raja Sundar Chandran and Vishnu Saseendran, recently returned to Amrita to shed light on the process of conducting research and writing a research paper at the Amritapuri campus on December 30th and 31st, 2015. Their presentation titled, Research Methodologies and Tools- A Pragmatic Approach, focused on providing ideas and techniques to properly organize and document research work and subsequently translate investigation processes and key findings into a structured and impactful journal paper. The two day event, hosted by the Amrita Center for International Programs, was attended by a large audience of faculty, staff, and students.
The presentation was divided into two halves with each speaker taking the respective half. The first part discussed project planning and methodologies used to frame research goals. The second half focused on documentation, stressing the structure of the paper and production of a well written manuscript. Tools used in organizing references and citations and the nuances of actual writing were also presented. The session was followed by an engaging and active question and answer session.
According to Mr. Chandran, a PhD thesis “Invariably revolves around cracking a problem or bringing in a novel concept into reality and irrespective of the subject area, pursuit of the research goal and further documentation of research findings are paramount.” Mr. Vishnu said that he hopes the presentation“sets the wheel in motion” for other Amrita alumni to come back and share their knowledge with the University community, thereby increasing cooperation between international institutions and Amrita.
Mr. Raja Sundar Chandran is currently a PhD Fellow at Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne (EPFL), Switzerland. He graduated from Amrita with honors in 2010 with a B.Tech. in Polymer Engineering. Mr. Vishnu Saseendran is currently a PhD Fellow at the Technical University of Denmark (DTU). He graduated from Amrita with honors in 2010 with a B.Tech. in Mechanical Engineering.
