The procedure of branch change in IIT Bhubaneswar is the same as in all IITs.The rule called the 10% rule, stipulates that the maximum capacity of students in each branch should not exceed 110% of its actual strength. No branch should have students less than 90% of the actual strength. Students who wished for a branch change should have a CGPA of more than 8.5 (out of 10) at the end of the first semester, without any backlog. If there is a tie between two students in the domain of CGPA, the student attaining better rank in JEE Advanced is preferred for a branch change.

However, there is a specific ruling in the case of Dual Degree programs. The students in such programs can seek for a branch change only to other dual degree programs. The students who lie in the top 1% of the entire branch will be given top priority for branch change. All this requires you to obtain a good CGPA in the first year of your degree. It is not a humongous task to do if you study two to three hours per day and attend all labs.

It must be noted that when you seek a branch change you have severe competition from other students as well. So, if one wishes to make a branch change a success, he/she should adhere to regular studies and a proper time table.

IIT Bhubaneswar is part of new IITs that were established by the government. Even though the Institute is new the placements of IIT Bhubaneswar are good and rising in an exponential manner. In 2019, the placement rate for M-Tech was 69% and for Mechanical Engineering, it was 83%. Maximum placements offer for MTech students were received from Core and PSU sectors. ISRO, NCCBM, IOCL, etc are a few of the PSUs that took part in the placement drive. The average CTC offered was 11.4 LPA. The academics are also good for Mechanical Engineering in IIT Bhubaneswar. The faculty and staff of the mechanical department in IIT Bhubaneswar are excellent and its workshop is well equipped with all modern machines and technical instruments.

Despite being a new IIT, IIT Bhubaneswar stands out in terms of Placement. The average CTC of IIT Bhubaneswar was 11.5 lakh/annum in 2019. Companies like Amazon, Microsoft, Goldman Sachs, Oracle, IBM, etc visited the IIT Bhubaneswar campus for last year’s placement drive. The highest CTC offered was around 39 lakh/annum. Almost 70% of the students got placed from all departments in 2019. 

Apart from studies and placement, IIT Bhubaneswar is also very rich in its culture. A lot of cultural workshops, events are performed on the campus which encourages the students to showcase their talents. The student council arranges various extra-curricular, technical, and other activities around the year to motivate the students further to perform well not only in their activities but in their academics. They preserve great faculties on their campus in all the departments. The hostels are newly constructed with single occupancy. IIT Bhubaneswar is expanding and improving over time.

If we compare IIT Patna with the same then in terms of placement, it is not behind. According to 2019 placement highlights the average package offered was 13.5 LPA. The highest package of 2019 was 38 LPA. When the infrastructure is concerned it cannot be compared with the old IITs but they are well diversified. For all the branches the faculties are really good here. IIT Patna also maintained the culture of IITs by grooming their students for cultural activities or sports. They also conduct different sorts of workshops. Hostels are equipped with basic amenities and all the requirements are within walking distance from the campus whether foods or railway stations. A hospital is also there on the campus for medical emergencies. IIT Patna has a huge library equipped with over 10000 books and journals, and various online resources. 

Both IIT Patna and IIT Bhubaneswar good IITs, so it is hard to pick one institute over the other.