BITS Pilani Recruitment 2026: Junior Research Fellow (JRF) Vacancy – DRDO Sponsored Project

BITS Pilani Recruitment 2026: Junior Research Fellow (JRF) Vacancy – DRDO Sponsored Project

Birla Institute of Technology & Science (BITS) Pilani, Pilani Campus invites applications from motivated and eligible candidates for the position of Junior Research Fellow (JRF) under a Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) sponsored research project. This is a contractual research position offering an excellent opportunity to work in the domains of Cyber Security, Artificial Intelligence, Deep Learning, and Encrypted Traffic Analysis.

Position Details

Project Title

Synergistic Approach to Encrypted Traffic Classification Leveraging FlowPic, Data Augmentation and Contrastive Learning

About the Project

The selected Junior Research Fellow will work on an advanced DRDO-funded research project focusing on AI-driven encrypted traffic classification and cybersecurity.

The research involves the development of intelligent machine learning techniques to improve encrypted network traffic analysis using innovative deep learning approaches.

The project includes:

• Encrypted traffic classification using FlowPic-based visual representations.

• Data augmentation and contrastive learning techniques.

• Deep learning model development.

• Dataset collection, preprocessing, and feature engineering.

• Generation of time-series and statistical traffic representations.

• Development of FlowPic and visual traffic representations.

• Implementation and evaluation of CNN, SimCLR, contrastive learning, CNN-LSTM, Attention, and hybrid classification models.

• Model benchmarking against existing encrypted traffic classification techniques.

• Documentation of research progress.

• Publication of research findings in reputed indexed journals.

Principal Investigator

Prof. Ashutosh Bhatia

Department of Computer Science and Information Systems (CSIS)

BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus

Essential Qualifications

Applicants should possess:

• First Class B.E./B.Tech.

• OR M.E./M.Tech.

in one of the following disciplines:

• Computer Science & Engineering

• Artificial Intelligence

• Data Science

• Cyber Security

• Related Engineering disciplines

from a recognized University or Institute.

Preferred Qualification

Preference will be given to candidates possessing:

• GATE Qualification

• NET Qualification

Fellowship

Selected candidates will receive:

• INR 37,000 per month

Ph.D. Registration Opportunity

Selected candidates may be permitted to register for the Ph.D. programme at BITS Pilani, subject to satisfying the institute's Ph.D. admission requirements and regulations.

How to Apply

Interested candidates should email the following documents to:

ashutosh.bhatia@pilani.bits-pilani.ac.in

Email Subject

Application for JRF-DRDO Project

Documents Required

• Updated Curriculum Vitae (CV) mentioning educational qualifications, technical skills, research experience, and publications.

• Copy of NET/GATE/National-level examination scorecard (if applicable).

Selection Process

• Candidates will be shortlisted based on their academic merit, experience, and suitability for the project.

• Shortlisted applicants will be invited for an online interview.

• Meeting the minimum eligibility criteria does not guarantee selection.

• Only qualified and suitable candidates will be contacted for the interview.

Application Deadline

Last Date to Apply: 15 July 2026

Why Join This Project?

This fellowship offers an opportunity to:

• Work on a prestigious DRDO-sponsored research project.

• Gain hands-on experience in Cyber Security, Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, and Deep Learning.

• Conduct research in encrypted traffic analysis and intelligent network security.

• Publish research papers in reputed indexed journals.

• Collaborate with experienced faculty members at BITS Pilani.

• Pursue a Ph.D. at BITS Pilani (subject to institute regulations).

Official Source

Organization: Birla Institute of Technology & Science (BITS) Pilani

Campus: Pilani Campus

Department: Computer Science and Information Systems (CSIS)

Funding Agency: Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO)

Position: Junior Research Fellow (JRF)

Candidates interested in Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Cyber Security, Data Science, Computer Science, and Encrypted Network Traffic Analysis are encouraged to apply before 15 July 2026.

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