For a true Math lover, the Mathematics and Scientific Computing program at IIT Kanpur is an absolute delight. It satisfies the hunger for mathematical concepts and leaves you with a feeling to explore beyond

Curriculum 

• The curriculum comprises exact Mathematical concepts without any vagueness. You will be introduced to concepts they never knew existed before. Basically, you will be introduced to pure mathematics in the real sense. You will be offered abstract insights into various concepts revealing the structure and properties of the objects that will alter our thinking and might lead to interesting algorithms in computer science and innovative solutions in physics.
• Those who aren’t a fan of abstract concepts can always resort to Applied Mathematics and Statistics that deal with real-life applications. The coursework will make you eligible for finance, consulting, and analytics companies.
• The program also comprises basic computer science courses like Data Structures and Algorithms, and Theory of Computation as compulsory courses.

Prospects

• For those whose long-term goal is to conduct research on their favorite topics, higher education opportunities are in plenty.
•  For job seekers, the knowledge acquired through the program will be more than enough to attract good packages from finance, consulting, and analytics companies right after graduation. 
• You can also go for MBA with your analytical skills making it easier for CAT and MBA studies in general
• With basic knowledge of CS, you can also kickstart a career in Software.

Overall, the course curriculum isn’t very rigid and can be done with regular classes and studies. The faculty too is very cooperative and you will never regret choosing it.

The 3 foundation Physics courses taught to all engineering students in the first year are Introduction to Mechanics, Introduction to Electrodynamics, and Physics Lab. 

• The courses were structured well, and the content was also interesting. 
• While most of the topics covered overlapped with JEE concepts, there were additional pieces of knowledge in between.
• The assignments were intriguing and tested your skills and knowledge well. 
• The exams were quite challenging and evaluated the students to the core. 
• The faculty was very cooperative and was ready to help you with any doubts anytime
• Students that are enthusiastic about projects are given opportunities in theoretical/experimental work to expand their interest in Physics further.
• Decent internship offers are made to the students.
• Also, seniors who are in the Physics department have got good internships in India and abroad. 

However, a BS in Physics is not a good choice if it's the placements you are after. It is a research-oriented program whereas IIT Kanpur provides an Engineering focused environment. So the best choice for a BS in Physics is IISER.

The integrated BS-MS 8’ Physics program offered at IIT Madras is a dual degree in reality. The program is a great success because it is under the umbrella of IIT Madras' excellent Physics department. This department is affiliated with CERN and LIGO and has approachable professors and a friendly ambiance for study.

One has to clear JEE to become eligible for this program. The cutoff keeps changing and this program has a small batch size of around 10-15 students. The small batch size is because the program has been newly launched and is still yet to be made known. 

The peer group has geniuses from every culture and academic background. IMT might be a rank holder in Karnataka CET while the other may be a 98% in class 12th. There are dynamic discussions among the students and it’s more than one can ask for.

Additional features include INSPIRE scholarship of around INR 60000/- year. You even get the golden opportunity to attend the KVPY Vijyoshi camp.

Ultimately, this program is a dream come true for Physics lovers and is a better option than Engineering for them.

Yes, you can prefer IISER Pune over IITs like Madras, Kanpur, or Kharagpur. Although this choice is not that significant. If you are interested in research, your bachelor’s and master’s degree are just baby steps. The difference between IISERs and IITs is the student crowd. Since IISER is more research-oriented, you will get to meet people who are genuinely interested in research. Before choosing any of these institutes, it’s better if you talk to the current students and get to know the faculty and facilities of these institutes.

Some of my friends are pursuing their BS-MS degree from IISER Pune. From them, I got to know about the course fee. The 5-year long course costs around 3.88 lakhs in total. The total course fee for a year including different fees i.e. tuition fees, examination fees, other fees is around INR 77,017. In your first year, you will have to pay an additional amount of INR 3,000 as admission fees. 

There are many reasons I recommend students opt for IISER Pune, especially because of the unique approach it has towards education like no other institution. 

IISER Pune unlike any other Institute doesn't let you choose your major up until the 4th semester. After studying a number of courses spread across various fields during the initial 1.5 years, you get to choose your major until you have to study 5 different subjects. Now this might be a major setback for some, but trust me, it’s one of the best decisions IISER Pune has ever made. The fact that you don’t select your major initially, gives you more than enough time to explore your area of interest rather than making a hasty decision. Many times students who seem interested in Physics, go for its major and later realize that it’s not their cup of tea. You cannot truly know if you are interested in a particular field until you try your hands at it. IISER also gives you enough freedom to choose what you want to study from an ocean of courses. 

IIT Kanpur and most other engineering colleges, provide education through a core curriculum that is more engineering oriented. It lacks the disciplinary element of IISER. You have to choose a major at IIT Kanpur irrespective of the fact if you are sure about your inclination or not. Whereas in IISER you can keep doing interdisciplinary courses till the end.

So basically, I am not claiming IISER is better than IIT Kanpur. All I am saying is that the approach it has adopted is new and should be considered especially by those who aren’t sure of their passion yet.