PhD Admission-2025-26

The Rajiv Gandhi National Aviation University (RGNAU) was established by an Act of Parliament called the “Rajiv Gandhi National Aviation University (RGNAU) Act, 2013” (No.26 of 2013) having it headquarters at Fursatganj, District Amethi, Uttar Pradesh, India. The University has been envisaged as the premier institution of higher learning within the aviation milieu aimed at providing cutting edge and critical research to enhance the aviation industry in India. The Act of Parliament empowers the University to award Diploma, Undergraduate, Postgraduate and PhD Degrees in the field of aviation and allied disciplines. At the same time collaborations and cooperation with the leading national and international universities/institutions in the aviation domain, are being forged towards offering global knowledge that is customized to local requirements. RGNAU is a student friendly campus to ensure that the students are provided with the best opportunities that are needed to create outstanding pool of human resources to meet the global challenges in all spheres.

Important Date

Event	Date
Opening of Online Application	October 16, 2025
Closing of Online Application	November 30, 2025
Tentative Test / Interview	1st week of December 2025

Available Disciplines

Aerospace Engineering & Aviation Sciences
Electronics & Communication Engineering (Avionics)
Management Studies
Aviation Management

Categories

Regular Assistantship
Individual Fellowship (CSIR/UGC/DBT/INSPIRE/ICMR, etc.)
Sponsored
Project
University Employee
Foreign National

Eligibility Criteria

SN.	Disciplines	Eligibility
1.	Aerospace Engineering	M. Tech. or MS (Research) degree in Aerospace/ Aeronautical, Mechanical or allied disciplines with a minimum of 55% marks in aggregate or its equivalent grade on a 10-point scale grading system with valid GATE score OR B.E./ B.Tech. degree in Aerospace/Aeronautical, Mechanical, or allied disciplines are eligible to apply with a minimum of 75% marks in aggregate or its equivalent grade on a 10-point scale grading system with valid GATE Score.
2.	Electronics & Communication Engineering	M. Tech. / M.E./ MS in Electronics/ Electronics & Communication/ Electronics & Telecommunication/ Electronics & Instrumentation/ Instrumentation/Instrumentation & Control/ Electronics & Electrical Engineering/ Computer Science Engineering/ Information Technology/ Mathematics & Computing/ Artificial Intelligence /Machine Learning or allied areas with a minimum of 55% marks inaggregate or equivalent grade on a 10-point scale with valid GATE Score. OR B. Tech / B.E. or equivalent degree in Electronics/ Electronics & Communication/Electronics & Tele-communication/ Electronics & Instrumentation/ Instrumentation/Instrumentation & Control/ Electronics & Electrical Engineering/ Computer Science Engineering/ Information Technology/ Mathematics and Computing/ Artificial Intelligence/ Machine Learning or allied areas with a minimum of 75% marks in aggregate or equivalent grade on a 10-point scale with valid GATE score. OR M. Sc. in allied area above or allied areas with a minimum of 55% marks in aggregate or equivalent grade on a 10-point scale with valid GATE Score.
2.	Management Studies	Master’s degree or equivalent in Management or in allied discipline/area with a minimum of 55% marks in aggregate or its equivalent grade on a 10-point scale with NET Fellowship or with valid GATE score. OR Bachelor’s degree in Engineering discipline or in allied discipline/area with a minimum of 75% marks or 7.5 CPI with valid GATE score.

Note:

All the degrees should be recognized by the University Grants Commission/All India Council of Technical Education or any Institution of National Importance.
A relaxation of 5% marks or its equivalent grade is allowed for those belonging to SC/ST/OBC (non-creamy layer)/ Differently Abled, Economically Weaker Section (EWS) and other categories of candidates as per the decision of the UGC from time to time.

Sanctioned Seats for Ph.D. Programs

The sanctioned seats for Ph.D. Programs at Rajiv Gandhi National Aviation University (RGNAU) for the Spring Semester 2026 are as under:

Department	Total	GEN	EWS	OBC (NCL)	SC	ST
Aerospace Engineering & Aviation Sciences	25	11	02	07	04	01
Electronics & Communication Engineering – Avionics
Management Studies

Department-wise Research Areas for Ph.D. Programs

The discipline-wise research areas offered at RGNAU for the Academic Session 2025–26 are as under:

SN.	Department	Research Areas
1.	Aerospace Engineering & Aviation Sciences	Structures Experimental Solid Mechanics, Fracture and Fatigue Structural behaviour of natural and bio-inspired composites Composite Materials and smart structures Material Characterization Finite element modelling of stiffened composite structures Uncertainty quantification of composite structures Structural Dynamics Aero elasticity Aerodynamics Experimental Aerodynamics Microfluidics Computational fluid Dynamics Fluid-Structure interactions Propulsion Electro hydrodynamic Thrusters Combustion Liquid atomization and spray combustion Multiphase flows Heat Transfer
2.	Electronics & Communication Engineering- Avionics	Reconfigurable Metamaterials/Meta surfaces for 6G and THz communication, Smart absorbers for secure IoT and wireless nodes, Stealth Technology in Aerospace, Electromagnetics, AI/ML-assisted electromagnetic device design, Frequency-selective surface, and Radar cross-section reduction. Signal Processing, Deep Learning and Machine Learning/AI, and Performance Analysis for Beyond 5G/6G, Wireless Communication: Massive MIMO, Cell-Free Massive MIMO, NOMA, Advanced Channel Modulation (MBM, QCM, OTFS, OTSM etc.), Reconfigurable Intelligent Surfaces (RIS/IRS) for 6G, Quantum Communications, Deep Unfolding, Hyper Parameter-Free and Nature-Inspired Learning for next generation wireless communication. Semiconductor device and Circuit Design modelling and simulation, compact model development for Process Design Kit (PDK) applications, and DC IV, RF, and noise characterization of on-wafer and packaged devices for advanced technologies development. Learning-based Control Systems, Multiagent Systems, Network Control Systems, Time Delay Systems, Control Theory and its Applications. AI, Machine Learning, IoT and Signal Processing, Health Care Analytic, Design of systems and their Application in Biomedical Engineering and Communication and Avionics. RF & Microwave Engineering: Tuneable and Reconfigurable Microstrip Designing, Radio Frequency Matching Network, Energy Harvesting, Reconfigurable Software Defined Radio (SDR), Intelligent Reconfigurable Radio Platforms for UAV and Emergency Communications.
3.	Management Studies	Operations and Decision Sciences Supply Chain Management Pricing and Strategic Negotiations Marketing Management Human Resource Management and Organizational Behavior Other relevant topics related to Aviation Industry

Selection Criteria

Admission to the Ph.D. Programs will be based on Personal Interview, Overall Academic Performance, and/or Written/Computer Test of shortlisted candidates. Candidates qualifying for NET/SET with Fellowship will be exempted from the admission test as per RGNAU Ordinance 2020.

SN.	Particulars	Weightage
1.	Overall Academic Performance	20%
2.	Written/Computer Test	50%
3.	Personal Interview	30%

Reservation Policy

Reservation for various categories shall be as per Government of India norms:

SC	ST	OBC (Non-Creamy Layer)	EWS	PwD (Horizontal)
15%	7.5%	27%	10%	5% (min 40% disability)

All category certificate must be produced at the time of written test/interview in the prescribed form. OBC-NCL certificate must be issued for FY 2024–25 (after March 31, 2025).

Application Fee