Sudesh Kaur Khanduja studied at Dev Samaj College for Girls for BA and obtained her MA in Mathematics (1973) from the Panjab University, Chandigarh. She worked on Algebraic Number Theory and obtained her PhD degree (1976) from the Department of Mathematics at Panjab University, Chandigarh, from where she retired as professor in December 2010. In April 2011, she joined IISER Mohali as professor of Mathematics.She became an Emeritus professor in the Department of Mahematics, Panjab University, Chandigarh in September, 2017. Presently she is working as INSA Senior Scientist in IISER Mohali. 

Academic and Research Achievements: Khanduja\\\\\\\'s research is mostly in theory of valuations, function field theory and algebraic number theory. She has applied the theory of valuations to obtain generalizations of the classical Schonemann-Eisenstein irreducibility criterion. She has used prolongations of valuations to generalize well-known Ehrenfeucht-Tverberg irreducibility criterion for difference polynomials. Some theorems of Dedekind have been extended to arbitrary valued fields. Her work is internationally recognized among specialists in the area. She has sixty five research papers in her credit and has guided eight PhD students.

Other Contributions: Khanduja has been Coordinator, Centre for Advanced Study in Mathematics, Panjab University, Chandigarh from April 2004 to April 2010 and was Chairperson of the Mathematics Department (2003-06). She was the zonal Coordinator for M.Sc. and Ph.D. scholarship  tests conducted by National Board for Higher Mathematics from 2003 to 2010. She has  organized Instructional Schools for research students at Panjab University and IISER Mohali. She has been continuously associated with promoting the cause of Mathematics.

Awards and Honours: Professor Khanduja was elected a Fellow of National Academy of Sciences (India), Allahabad in 2004 and a fellow of Indian Academy of Sciences in 2010.