Hello Nikki,

What is Astrobiology?

Astrobiology is about understanding the origin, evolution, distribution and future of life in the Universe. The origin of life is still one of the biggest mysteries of Science and probably would require help from every field to crack this.

Eligibility for the course:

• At least science is necessary for 12th with physics and biology. One physical subject is essential as astrobiology deals with the origin of the universe.
• A bachelor’s degree in Biology, Astronomy, Space Science, Chemistry or another appropriate subject from an accredited college or university. This course of study must include at least 20 semester hours of Physical Science, Engineering.

After doing UG in India, you can do post graduation in astrobiology from the USA or any other good university abroad.

Considering your case, it is possible to get into astrobiology after being trained in biotechnology. Astrobiology like Biotechnology is an interdisciplinary course and you will have to decide what field you want to focus on your research. Depending on what field you are interested in, you can choose to do your PhD. in India or go abroad in order to learn how to do research in that field.

Institutes for pursuing Astrobiology courses:

In India, IARC(Indian Astrobiology Research Centre), Mumbai provide a 4 months diploma course in astrobiology which is a distance learning course.

India doesn't have established courses for astrobiology in colleges or institutes. But you can get involved by being part of any space-related research program.

You can refer to the following links for any further information related to Astrobiology:

http://astrobiologyindia.in/

https://www.iarc.res.in/

Thank you and All the best.