Chennai math institute invites applications for new 4-year BS degree

Chennai: To improve students' prospects in campus placements, Chennai Mathematical Institute (CMI) launched a four-year BS (honours) degree in mathematics from the 2026-27 academic year.Many students from the existing three-year BSc Maths course have joined prestigious institutions across the world. "However, when students want to sit for campus placements, companies prefer those with four-year degrees. So, we have updated our BSc course into a four-year BS programme with a strong research focus," said professor Madhavan Mukund, director.In the fourth year, students will receive a minor degree in data science, he added. The course has an intake of 50 seats. For admissions, students have to clear an entrance test scheduled on May 2. "If these students pursue a postgraduate course after the BS at CMI, they can complete it in one instead of two years," Mukund said.Applications are open and can be submitted on cmi.ac.in. The last date is April 4. The entrance test will be conducted at 30 centres across the country, including Chennai, Madurai, Trichy and Coimbatore. Last year, 4,000 students appeared for the entrance test for this undergraduate programme.Students with exceptionally good performance in the national Olympiads in mathematics and physics conducted by Homi Bhabha Centre for Science Education (HBSCE) and the Indian computing Olympiad conducted by the Indian Association for Research in Computing Science (IARCS) may be exempted from writing the entrance exam. The admissions committee will decide on this.All 50 students will undergo the same core set of basic and advanced undergraduate courses in maths for the first two years. After the second year, students have to choose a focus subject among mathematics, computer science and physics. A student has to complete a minimum of 144 credits to earn a BS degree.