One of the two foreign universities to first set up a campus in India, Deakin University, Australia and IIT-Madras joined hands to set up the ‘IIT Madras Deakin University Research Academy’. This academy will nurture nearly 200 graduate research scholars, representing SAARC and ASEAN countries, ready to address and solve pressing global challenges. It will offer a four-year joint PhD programme with the allocation of 30 scholarships in 2024 to scholars from both IIT Madras and Deakin University.