NIT Rourkela is better for a Masters in Geology. It offers better facilities. Geology department has well-equipped labs with latest technologies. The campus has an active research environment. There is cutting-edge ongoing research in the field of Earth and Atmospheric Science.
Although NIT Rourkela is the better option in terms of academics and research culture, IIT Bhubaneswar has a locational advantage. Due to this advantage, it's easier to get projects and placement opportunities.
Very few IITs in India offer Geology and all of them follow the same curriculum. The faculties at IIT Bhubaneswar is well qualified and experienced. Given below are a few advantages of choosing geology at IIT Bhubaneswar:-
The choice of the Institute depends on where your interest lies. If you want to study core Geology, then 3-year MSc(tech) course is an excellent option. Both the institutes have below-average core placements with ISM fairing a tad bit better. Irrespective of the Institute and branch, to secure placements you need to be among the top rankers.
My cousin had to choose between IIT Kharagpur‘s MSc in Geophysics and ISM’s MSc(tech) in Geology. She went for Geophysics eventually as he did not consider it wise to waste 3-years in a post-graduate program. In Fact, many of her batchmates dropped IIT Roorkee’s geology and went for Geophysics at IIT KGP. They did not find the teaching and quality of education at IIT Roorkee’s Geology branch as per IIT standards.
I would suggest you go for ISM. But if you too share the same opinion as mine and don’t want to waste 3 years, go for Roorkee and prepare for GATE from the start.