Mentors are renowned researchers in an area relevant to the team. They are an integral part of a team proposal and are thus involved from the time of the inception of the team. They are entrusted with and duly credited and rewarded for enhancing the team’s performance.
Types of Interactions between a Mentor and ITRA Teams
- Co-supervision of PhD/Master’s student theses
- Co-authorship of papersCo-teaching of courses
- Co-development and conduct of labs
- Co-planning and steering of research agenda and formulating proposals
- Giving seminars and short courses
- Working with team collaborators and other stake holdersHosting ITRA faculty and students at mentor’s institution for short (~a few weeks) or long periods (~a semester)
- Help with outreach efforts
- Guide teams to contribute to national and international professional organizations and activities involving conferences, journals, contests, standards, multinational initiatives, professional societies, etc.
- Be a member of team feedback panels
- Be a member of team evaluation panels
Modes of Interaction
- Visits to teams
- Hosting visits of team members
- Remote interaction via video conferencing, etc.
Modes 1 and 2 involve traditional face-to-face interactions. However, remote engagement of the mentors with the teams is highly desirable, particularly for mentors that are located far off. This is because most mentors tend to be renowned researchers with limited time. Given that they hold regular jobs elsewhere, they will be able to spend only a small number of weeks per year visiting the teams. This time will not be adequate for many mentoring activities. For example, discussions on research problems, writing papers, etc. happen over time and cannot be rushed in a short period of intense activity. The required sustained engagement is, however, possible through remote interactions wherein the mentors may contribute smaller chunks of time more frequently. Indeed, this would be a very effective practical way of making speedy progress towards ITRA objectives under the current constraints on faculty availability in India. This is the reason for having Mode 3. It would apply to most of the activities listed in Sec. A, with exceptions being the last two where physical presence of the panel members is required.
The limit on the number of international mentors per team is 1. The number of domestic mentors may also be up to 1.
Mode 1 Interactions: Mentor Visiting Team
- Each domestic mentor should visit ITRA/teams for a total of at least 3 weeks per year, with no visit of less than 3 days. The honorarium given to them will be Rs. 15K/week. A maximum of 3 visits per year will be supported by ITRA.
- The teams will also be leveraging the expertise (ideas/best practices/resources) of International mentors who are of relevance and importance to research projects addressing domestic needs. International mentors will visit for at least 3 weeks, over at most 2 trips, with no trip of less than a week. The honorarium paid for a trip will be equivalent of US $1000 in Indian rupees for the first week’s stay in India, and equivalent of US $250 in Indian Rupees for each subsequent additional week’s stay, up to a maximum of 4 weeks’ stay in India for execution of the joint project in India. When the international travel of a mentor is not supported by ITRA, s/he will be treated as a domestic mentor.
- Air travel will be as per MLAsia air travel rules.
- Local hospitality including boarding, lodging and local travel will be provided by the host institution.
Mode 2 Interactions: Team Member Visiting International Mentor
Visits of up to 2 student researchers per institution per year, each for up to 1 semester (up to 135 days), may be supported by ITRA.
Visiting a Domestic Mentor:
- Living and travel expenses to be given as per team member’s parent institution’s norms.
- Compensation to Mentor: Since this activity involves engagement of the mentors without going to the mentored institutions, it is comparable to the remote activities under Mode 3. The compensation for Mode 2 is therefore discussed under Mode 3.
Visiting an International Mentor:
- Per diem Allowances, Accommodation charges and Local Transport: $1750 per month (all inclusive). This will be limited to DA = $35/day, and Accommodation Charges (on submission of bills) = $700/mo.
- Air travel will be as per MLAsia international air travel rules
- Host Institution Costs = $1000
- Compensation to Mentor = Since this activity involves engagement of the mentors without going to the mentored institutions, it is comparable to the remote activities under Mode 3. The compensation for Mode 2 is therefore discussed under Mode 3.
- Other Expenses (Travel Insurance, medical etc. ) = up to Rs. 15,000
Mode 3 Interactions: Remote Interactions between Team and Mentor
Domestic Mentors:
Based upon time spent on activities involving visiting student researcher(s), the compensation will be Rs. 15K/week, subject to the constraint that the total compensation to a mentor for Modes 1, 2 and 3 activities does not exceed Rs. 1.2 L/year.
International Mentors:
Based upon time spent on activities involving visiting student researcher(s), the compensation will be equivalent of US $1000/week in Indian rupees, subject to the constraint that the total compensation to a mentor for Modes 1, 2 and 3 activities does not exceed US $7,500/year.