IITM BS Minor in VLSI Design and Testing: Courses and Rules

The IITM BS Minor in VLSI Design and Testing needs three Electronic Systems courses: Digital IC Design, Electronic Testing and Measurement, and Semiconductor Devices and VLSI Technology. Both DS and ES students can earn it. DS students also need Digital Systems as a prerequisite. The credits count inside the 142 credits of the BS degree.

Courses in the VLSI Design and Testing minor

The DS handbook added this minor on 4 September 2026. The ES handbook lists it too. Credits and levels come from the ES course tables.

Semiconductor Devices and VLSI Technology has no credit value printed next to it. The ES handbook says the five department electives add up to 20 credits, which is 4 credits each.

The course code problem

The two handbooks disagree on one course:

• The DS handbook gives Electronic Testing and Measurement the code EE2105.
• The ES handbook minor list gives it EE4108.
• In the ES course tables, Electronic Testing and Measurement is EE2105, a diploma level course. EE4108 does not appear in those tables.

ES students complete every diploma course before the degree level, so they already take EE2105. It is not clear whether the ES minor means the same course or a different one. Ask the support team before you plan around it.

For DS students

• Prerequisite: Digital Systems (EE1102). The DS handbook writes it as "Digital System". It is checked when the minor is given, so the order does not matter.
• In the ES tables, Digital Systems has its own prerequisite, but the two tables disagree (one says EE1101, the other CS1101). The DS handbook does not explain how this works for DS students.
• The DS handbook also does not say how DS students register for these ES courses. Ask support first.
• In DS you have about 36 elective credits after the five mandatory BSc level courses. This minor uses 12 of them. The handbook does not say whether Digital Systems itself counts as a DS elective.
• Digital IC Design is also part of the Digital Design minor. One course can count for only one minor.

For ES students

• The ES list shows no prerequisite for this minor.
• Digital IC Design and Semiconductor Devices and VLSI Technology are both on the ES department elective list. The ES degree level asks for five department electives (20 credits), so these two can fill two of those slots.
• The other ES minors are Application Development, Machine Learning and IoT.

Rules that apply to everyone

• The credits count within the 142 credits for the BS degree.
• You get the minor only with the BS degree. DS students who exit with the BSc do not get it.
• IIT Madras issues a separate document for the minor. Your transcript and degree certificate stay the same.
• You can earn more than one minor if you finish every course of each.

See the full list of IITM BS minors for the rest.

Who this minor may suit

The course names point to chip design, semiconductor devices and electronic testing. It may suit a DS student who wants some hardware study, or an ES student who wants to focus on chips.

Common questions

Can a DS student with no electronics background take this minor?

The handbook lists only Digital Systems as the prerequisite. It says nothing about your school subjects or background. Plan for four ES courses in total, counting Digital Systems.

Can I earn both the VLSI and Digital Design minors?

Both lists include Digital IC Design, and it can count for only one minor. The handbook does not name a replacement course, so ask support before you plan both.

Do ES students pay extra for the minor?

The ES handbook does not mention a separate fee for a minor. You pay the normal fee for each course.