Dr. Nikhil Gupta, a professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering and a member of the Center for Cybersecurity at the NYU Tandon School of Engineering, has received a National Science Foundation (NSF) International Research Experience for Students (IRES) grant to establish a US-India internship program in the area of additive manufacturing (AM). The grant, which funds a partnership between NYU,  New York City College of Technology (CityTech), and the National Institute of Technology – Karnataka (NITK), and the Indian Institute of Technology – Kanpur (IIT-K), will not only give students experience in both laboratory scale research and industrial scale manufacturing, but also opportunities for cultural interactions.

Beginning in the summer of 2021, six U.S. students will spend eight weeks at NITK labs, a location Gupta notes will allow the interns to “benefit from the strong, global manufacturing base in India.” NTIK is located in the southwestern Indian state of Karnataka, which Gupta describes as ” a major science and technology research hub,” and home to research laboratories and manufacturing facilities for many U.S. companies, including General Motors, IBM, GE, Caterpillar, Boeing, Ford Motor, and Lockheed Martin. Thus, the project will give students valuable “real-world industry experience.”

The program has received a fair amount of coverage in such publications as The Times of India, The Hindu, and Daiji World.

Applications for the program will open in November 2020.