College Guide

National Institute of Technology Kurukshetra (NIT KKR)
Location:
National Institute of Technology, Kurukshetra is located at a small distance from the town of Kurukshetra. Now, the area isn’t exactly developed – in fact, it wouldn’t be unfair to call it a rural setting. But it’s not too bad; there’s a lot of greenery everywhere, and there’s absolutely no noise. Yes, there are almost no places to hang out nearby, no malls, but the serenity makes it a lovely place to bond and study. There are autos available right outside the college campus, which charge about Rs.10 per student to for the 20 minute ride to the ‘city’ of Kurukshetra.



Infrastructure:
It’s not too great, but it’s not terrible either. A lot of construction activity has been going on to ensure that NIT Kurukshetra is able to keep up with the recently increased intake. In the first year and second year, students are accommodated in triple-sharing and double-sharing hostel rooms respectively, while for the third and fourth years, every student has a room to himself or herself. The computers and electronics department buildings are new, and so are quite modern, with excellent laboratories and equipment. The mechanical and civil departments aren’t so well maintained, but they’ll probably have an altogether new look in a couple of years. The college has an Open Air Theatre, which is one of the favourite places around. But undoubtedly the best thing about NIT Kurukshetra’s infrastructure is its fantastic library. There’s ample space and there are more than enough books, both for reading and issuing. Students are allowed to issue up to three books at a time for up to seven days. Also, the excellent book bank provides students up to five books for 6 months, at a highly nominal fee of Rs.30 per book. Impressive.



Courses Offered:
Under Graduate Courses: B.Tech
Electronics & Communication Engineering
Computer Engineering
Information Technology
Mechanical Engineering
Industrial Engineering & Management
Electrical Engineering
Civil Engineering

Post Graduate Courses: M.Tech
Fees:
The fee at NIT Kurukshetra is quite low; about Rs.25,000 per semester inclusive of everything.



Faculty:
The good part about most of the professors is that they’re quite approachable. The not-so-good part is that many of the professors here take their jobs for granted. However, the mechanical and civil faculty is really good; in fact, students say that the civil department in NIT Kurukshetra is comparable to any IIT simply because of their amazing, highly experienced professors. The IT and Comps faculty, though, isn’t that great – many of them work on an ad-hoc basis, and aren’t too interested in teaching.



Attendance:
Although NIT Kurukshetra is generally quite particular about attendance, you’ll find a number of professors in various departments who aren’t at all strict in this respect, but you’re far better off not taking too many chances.



Crowd:
Since NIT Kurukshetra is in Haryana, you wouldn’t expect the most decent of crowds. But surprisingly, it’s not at all bad. Those rowdy fights that you associate with people from these areas are highly uncommon, in fact almost absent. Students get along pretty well with each other, so the college is probably one of the safest places in the state. The boy/girl ratio is about 6:1, which of course isn’t so good.



Placements:
Really good, actually. The salaries range between about 4 lac and 12 lac per year. The core branches have good placements, with companies like Larsen and Toubro, Era Contructions, etc visiting the campus. The placements for computers and IT branches are fantastic; SanDisk, Google, Microsoft, Amazon and Compaq are among the companies recruiting from NIT Kurukshetra. Some more names in the fray are Samsung, Ingersol, Freescale, etc.



Contact Address:
www.nitkkr.ac.in/



Verdict:
It’s not the most straightforward college in the world, so confidence is one of the key to survival, and success at NIT Kurukshetra.

National Institute of Technology Raipur (NITRR)
Location:
NIT Raipur is located in a pretty urban area right in the heart of the city. Just opposite the college you have Pandit Ravishankar University, which is the University of Chattisgarh.



Infrastructure:
NIT Raipur, which was earlier a mining college, s roughly 50 years old, and somehow manages to look even older. The buildings are slightly dilapidated, and the hostels aren't up to the mark either. In fact, ever since the intake has increased, the hostels don't even house all the students - about half the students are made to live in the nearby town of Kota. New hostels are coming up, though, in their defence. The laboratories and classrooms are sufficient, but there's nothing special about them. The library is just about okay, with a very 'first come, first serve' environment, but fortunately has a huge reading room which can accommodate a substantial number of students. There are a couple of grounds for cricket, volleyball, etc but it'll be stupid to expect lush green grass - these grounds are RED. All in all, the infrastructure isn't really something that they're too proud of here at NIT Raipur.



Courses Offered:
Under Graduate Courses: B.Tech
Biomedical Engineering
Biotechnology
Chemical Engineering
Civil Engineering
Computer Science and Engineering
Electrical Engineering
Electronics and Telecom Engineering
Information Technology
Mining Engineering
Metallurgical Engineering
Rankings:
NIT Raipur, which is probably 12th or 13th among the NITs, is ranked about 60 all over India, as far as engineering colleges are concerned. For mining, though, people say that it's better than even the Indian School of Mining (ISM), Dhanbad.



Faculty:
This is where NIT Raipur really takes a hitting. For some reason, there seems to have been a massive clearance sale, where all (or most) of the good professors have left the college. The remaining professors aren't too great; very few are permanent faculty, and those who are, aren't friendly or approachable at all. There's a wide communication gap between students and teachers. One word of advice from the students - don't mess with the professors, you'll regret it. They describe the current scenario as the 'worst possible condition'.



Attendance:
The college expects students to maintain a minimum of 60 percent attendance, which students pretty much ensure that they manage to. Because of they don't, they have to face the wrath of their HODs, and more often than not are made to write long, irritating assignments.



Crowd:
The crowd is quite friendly, although theres nothing exceptional about it. The girl/boy ratio is awfully poor in some branches (in mechanical its about 1:30), while it's better in branches like CS (1:6). Ragging is strictly prohibited.



Hangouts:
There are a few tiny malls nearby, but most students prefer spending quality time with Mother Nature. There are some 'jharnas' a few kilometres away, and a place called Donegarh Ghat that is frequented by students often. Other than that, they also like visiting the Bhilai Steel plant (don't ask us why, we have no clue) and a couple of other industries near the college campus.



Placements:
Like any other NIT, Ranchi has pretty good placements. Especially when it comes to mining, where the placements are said to be better than ISM Dhanbad. More than half the mining students are hired by Coal India for a whopping 10 lpa. Companies like Samsung pick up Electronics students for salaries of about 8 lpa. The average salary here is about Rs. 5 lac.



Contact:
National Institute of Technology Raipur,
G.E. Road, Raipur,
Chhatisgarh - 492010.
Telephone : +91-771-2254200
Website : www.nitrr.ac.in



Verdict:
Not one of the best NITs; a high-ranking private college might be better. Heaven for mining, though.

National Institute of Technology Rourkela (NIT RKL)
Introduction:
Started in 1961, NIT Rourkela (which recently completed its Golden Jubilee year) is an Institute of National Importance. Ranked among the top 6 NITs, Rourkela maybe suffers a little bit because of its location, but all in all is a pretty decent institute.



Location:
National Institute of Technology Rourkela is located in a rural setting, right on the Jharkhand-Orissa border. The nearest city is Jamshedpur, but even that is significantly far. Ranchi and Bhubhaneshwar are somewhat reachable as well, but it takes ages. Connectivity is a major problem for students; the area is quite remote. Also, there’s no airport nearby, and the placements actually suffer a bit because of this fact.



Infrastructure:
NIT Rourkela has recently taken massive leaps in terms of infrastructure. There still is a lot of construction happening, with a number of new hostels and academic wings coming up. Special mention of the excellent biotech and biomed departments must be made, although most of the other departments are also coming up with new buildings. The old hostels aren’t in the best of shapes and aren’t terribly comfortable, but it’s manageable, at least for boys. For girls, though, it’s a different story – as many as FIVE girls need to share one room, because there just aren’t enough hostels for girls. And yes, it can get very ugly indeed.

The infrastructure otherwise is quite good. The library is excellent, and has more books than one can bargain for. There are also facilities for all sports, including a swimming pool. There are a couple of gymnasiums as well. The college also has a doctor-on-call, who treats students free of cost, as well as an Apollo Dispensary which students have free access to.



Faculty:
There’s a very unique thing about NIT Rourkela. While students don’t doubt the quality of the professors, they concede that the faculty ‘isn’t really taken seriously’. Students tend to just ‘hear the professors out’, but not pay too much attention to anything they say. This seems to work just fine with the faculty too, who would much rather waste their time on people who care. Yes, there are those students who suck up to the professors, and in turn get rewarded with better grades.



Attendance:
VERY strict. Even though a number of professors don’t completely agree with the insane attendance rules, the new director has ensured that they are followed to the last word. Students are expected to maintain 85 (yes, eighty five) percent attendance! If you bunk/miss a couple of practicals (labs) or about 4-5 lectures, more often than not you’re given a ‘Back’ in the particular subject. Depressing statistics at NIT Rourkela.



Placements:
Like we mentioned in a section above, the placements do suffer a little due to the lack of a major airport near Rourkela. However, that doesn’t mean that the placements are bad; not at all! NIT Rourkela has a rule that states that no company offering a package of less than 3.2 lacs per annum is allowed to participate in the placement process, and yet it manages to get all of its students placed. The metallurgy department doesn’t have the best of placements, but other departments such as CS and Electronics have average packages of about Rs.5 lpa. About 40% of the offers go higher than 6 lpa.



Crowd:
The one thing that really stands out at NIT Rourkela is the regionalism. Home-students (students from the state of Orissa) tend to mingle only with each other, and almost go out of their way to speak only in Oriya, even with professors! Needless to say, this doesn’t go down too well with the other students, but they come to accept it over a period of time. Also, the girl/boy ratio is awful – about 1:10 in most classes.



Hangouts:
While there isn’t much to do in Rourkela, the college has a number of places to keep the students busy. The Student Activity Centre (SAC) is a common place you’ll find a number of students, while there are also some small restaurants and coffee shops in and around the campus. There’s no multiplex in Rourkela, and even the theatre is in a real mess. There are a few picturesque spots nearby, but be warned – these places aren’t terribly safe. We won’t say much more, but there have been some scary incidents.



Contact Address:
National Institute of Technology Rourkela
Orissa, Pin-769008.
Website : www.nitrkl.ac.in



Verdict:
NIT Rourkela isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, but you’ll realize the value of a degree from here only once you pass out.

National Institute of Technology Warangal (NITW)
Introduction:
The National Institute of Technology Warangal, started in 1959, was previously a Regional Engineering College (REC) but was conferred NIT status in 2002. It is an Institute of National Importance, and is widely regarded to be among the top three NITs in India.



Location:
For all those who, like a few of us, didn't know, Warangal is in Andhra Pradesh. Located about three hours from Hyderabad, NITW is situated just off National Highway 202, on either side of it. Like is the case with many NITs, the college is the heartbeat of Warangal, which is a tiny, semi-rural town. Fortunately, there is good accessibility, especially to Hyderabad. The weather isn't that good, though; it's hot and dry throughout the year, with the only exception being the month of January, when it gets slightly chilly.



Infrastructure:
Since NIT Warangal is one of the older NITs, it would be silly to expect the college to be a paradigm of modern architecture. Efforts are being made to uplift the look of the institute a bit, but these things take time. There are a number of swanky new hostels coming up, and the newer departments have relatively better infrastructure than the others. The girls hostels are slightly lacking in terms of capacity, which means that many girls have to share rooms initially meant to house a single person. Many laboratories are in an abject condition, but students say that the situation is improving. The library is massive and is updated with the latest books on a regular basis. There aren't too many facilities for sports, however; just one terribly muddy ground and a decent badminton court.



Rankings:
NIT-W is said to be among the top three NITs, and among the top 20 engineering colleges in the country.



Faculty:
Although the quality (and quantity) of faculty varies significantly from department to department, the one outstanding feature of all professors is their high level of dedication. The Mechanical and Civil branch professors are singled out for praise by the students, but they also mention that the Biotech faculty isn't completely up to the mark. However, there aren't any complaints because students are very pleased with the rapport they share with their professors. Once in a while, yes, there are cases of teachers holding grudges against (and getting back at) students, but that happens everywhere, doesn't it?



Attendance:
Now, all NITs have a mandatory 75 percent attendance rule. Some follow it to the book, some don't. NIT Warangal is one of those that try implementing it, and manage to do it, to an extent. Some professors are very strict about attendance, but many are on the lenient side, especially if you share good relations with them. It's advisable not to get too presumptuous though, because there HAVE been cases wherein students aren't allowed to write their exams due to low attendance.



Crowd:
Although there's a state-quota of 50 percent, about 75 percent of the crowd here is Andhraite, because they seem to do awfully well in the AIEEE and get into NIT Warangal by national merit anyway. Most of the students are quite friendly and decent. The girl/boy ratio is frankly awful though, at about 1:8.



Placements:
Being one of the top colleges in India, NIT Warangal has fantastic placements. To give you an idea, Facebook, Google and Microsoft have been visiting the campus and offering a select few students brilliant job profiles with mind boggling salaries. You also have your regular recruiters from various sectors coming in. The average package is about Rs.6 lpa.



Festivals:
NIT Warangal hosts it's technical festival Technozion in September, and its cultural fest SpringSpree in March. Both feasts see excellent participation from NITs across the country.



Contact Address:
National Institute of Technology,
Warangal - 506004,
Andhra Pradesh.
Phone: +91-870-2459191
Website : www.nitw.ac.in/nitw



Famous Alumni:
Rao Remala- First Indian employee at Microsoft
S.P.Y.Reddy- MP, India (14th and 15th Lok Sabha)
V.R.Ferose- MD, SAP Labs India
Sunand Sharma- Country President, Alstom India

National Institute of Technology, Durgapur (NIT DGP)
Foreword:
The National Institute of Technology, Durgapur, is one of the more popular NITs. Founded in 1960, it celebrated its fiftieth year of existence in 2010, and has consistently had a history of producing excellent students. It is one of the leading institutes of national importance, which explains why it has such an important place in the heart of every West Bengal resident.



Location:
Durgapur, which is known as Steel City, is the second biggest city in West Bengal after Kolkata. Well connected by Rail and Road, the campus is quite urban, thanks to its excellent location in the heart of Durgapur. Kolkata is 160 kms away from Durgapur, which is not too much if you can tolerate the heat on the way.



Campus and Infrastructure:
NIT Durgapur is one of only a handful of institutes in India to boast of a ‘high voltage laboratory’, and this one is the best of its kind. The library, most of the labs, and all the computer centres are airconditioned. They have 10 hostels here, seven for boys (with another one coming up) and three for girls. The new hostels, of course, have much better facilities, but the old hostels are definitely more popular. Each hostel has a mess and a common room. Final year students normally have a room to themselves, while second and third year students share their rooms with two or three other students. First years are put up in massive halls, and are kept regular tabs on.

The library is excellent – about a lakh volumes and ever-increasing. Students in their respective hostels have LAN access, but while in the departments there is access to WiFi as well.



Courses Offered:
Under Graduate Courses=B.Tech
Biotechnology
Chemical Engineering
Chemistry
Civil Engineering
Computer Application
Computer Centre
Computer Science & Engineering
Electrical Engineering
Electronics & Communication Engineering
Geology
Humanities
Information Technology
Management Studies
Mathematics
Mechanical Engineering
Metallurgical & Materials Engg
Physics
Faculty:
Students are full of praise for the entire faculty. IT, CSE and ECE professors are very friendly and pretty cool too. The professors teaching core courses like EE, Mech, Civil, Metallurgy and Chemical are highly experienced and research work they do is, in the words of a student, ‘awesome!’ IT and BioTech professors are comparatively less experienced, but they are really good too. The college has been transformed by the new director, who has introduced some new rules to make sure discipline is maintained.



Crowd:
The crowd, on an average, is pretty good. But the boy/girl ratio unfortunately isn’t. It depends on the department you’re in, of course, with IT,CSE,ECE having about 4/1 while branches like Mechanical have an appalling ratio of about 20/1! Students from almost all states join the college with preference from North and South India. Also, there are international students from places like Nepal, Bhutan and Dubai.

Students will vouch for the fact that life at NIT Durgapur is amazing. Yes, you’ll have to slog to get your grades, but it all seems worth it, when you take a look at the friends you’ve made and the times you’ve had.

Ragging has comparatively decreased a lot. An introductory session takes place, to get to know the students and juniors always stay in touch with their seniors, to know about departments and Clubs (NITD has Clubs which organize the extracurricular activities).



Rankings:
Although there aren’t really any official rankings available, NIT Durgapur is widely regarded as the 5th best among all NITs, and among the top 30 in all engineering colleges of India. Of course, a lot also depends on the course you select. For example, NITD is the second best Indian college for Metallurgy.

To get into NITD, you need to have a rank of anywhere between 1 and about 5000 in your AIEEE.



Placements and Internships:
The college boasts of nearly-100% placements. Some of the top firms from across India and the world come and recruit here in numbers. Though the average is about Rs.5 lac per annum, Google and Amazon have come once in a while and offered whopping salaries of between 10 and 13 lac. Wow!



Festivals and Activities:
The Biggest fests of the college, which hold some amount of national importance:

'Aarohan' - The annual Techno-Management Fest of the College (February 2nd week)
'Recstacy' - Cultural Fest. (February 3rd week)
Other Fests and student activities, on a comparatively smaller scale:

Verve - Literary Fest (September)
ANK - Knowledge Fest (Math events) (September)
Motor Zundung - Auto Fest. (February 3-5th)
Mukti - Open source fest (February 3-5th)
Seminars and workshops take place from time to time, of course.



Canteen/Mess:
Mess food, as you’d expect, isn’t too great. There are a few canteens in the campus which are quite decent, and the food is pretty affordable. Of course, once you get out there’s a mall called Junction Mall which has BIG Bazaar, KFC, Pizza Hut and an INOX theatre too.



Contact Address:
National Institute of Technology
Durgapur, West Bengal
India. PIN 713209
Phone : +91 343 2546397
Fax : +91 343 2547375
Website: www.nitdgp.ac.in



Verdict:
While the weather can sometimes get to your head, these will definitely be four years of your life which you won’t forget (for the good reasons). Fifth among NITs and pretty close to Kolkata, NIT Durgapur is the East Indians dream.

National Institute of Technology, Hamirpur (NITH)
Location:
Hamirpur is one of the few places in Himachal Pradesh that can qualify (just about) as a 'city'. To quote a student, "by Himachal standards, this is pretty urban." the college is located at a whopping 900m above sea level, so you can imagine how picturesque the surroundings will be. There's a decent amount of civilization around; the marketplace is just 5 minutes away from college, and there are a fair few restaurants nearby as well.



Infrastructure:
Started in 1986, NIT Hamirpur is one of the newer NITs, and that's probably why it has fantastic infrastructure. The facilities available here are better than most, if not all other IITs and NITs. Many of the dormitories and buildings are brand new, and there's one mega hostel (which would house 1400 students) coming up. There are separate buildings for every department, all of which are either new or under construction. The fully wifi campus also has an excellent library as well, with books available whenever required by students.



Courses Offered:




Rankings:
NIT Hamirpur is ranked among the top thirty engineering colleges all over India.



Faculty:
Students are full of praise for all the professors, most of whom are PhDs from respectable institutes. Both, senior as well as junior professors are said to be very approachable, and quite friendly as well. There haven't really been any cases of professors holding grudges and reflecting them in marks, but students warn against taking the faculty for granted.



Attendance:
They're quite strict about attendance here. You're expected to maintain a minimum of 75 percent, failing which you can get into all worts of trouble. If attendance falls below 60 percent in any subject, you'll have to repeat that subject. Of course, all these criteria get a little relaxed if you share a good rapport with the professor in question, but it's always advisable not to take a chance.



Crowd:
Considering that this is an NIT, the crowd is extremely decent. Most of the students are from Himachal Pradesh, which explains the calm, peaceful, friendly atmosphere. The general pleasantness is conducive to learning as well as mingling. The boy/girl ratio is about 5:1, but students say that it's improving every year. There is absolutely no ragging, but that doesn't mean that NIT Hamirpur is a boring place to be.



Hangouts:
Since Hamirpur is a small city, there's not a hell of a lot to do outside campus, apart from visiting a few eateries, some temples, a couple of rivers, and the theatre (a rarity in Himachal). Fortunately, there are enough 'chilling' options within the college campus itself. You'll find a number of joints that serve delicious food (try the paratha!), a few cafes like Indian Coffee House, and a couple of shops like Amul, etc.



Placements:
Although there aren't a terribly high number of core companies as compared to what other NITs see, the placement scenario in general is pretty excellent. NIT Hamirpur comfortably has 100 percent placements, with the average salary being around Rs.5 lac. Apart from the usual suspects like TCS and Accenture, the college is also visited by companies like Ericsson and Samsung on a regular basis.



Festivals:
The cultural fest, Hill 'Ffair and technical fest, Nimbus are major events at NIT Hamirpur and see participation from across the country.



Contact:
National Institute of Technology,
Hamirpur - 177 055
Himachal Pradesh.
Fax: +91-1972-223834
Website : www.nith.ac.in



Verdict:
National Institute of Technology, Hamirpur is certainly a nice place to be in. Lovely weather, a peaceful environment, and decent people around you. The only piece of advice students give is, "don't take it all for granted. Be nice to everyone and have a great our years."

National Institute of Technology, Tiruchirappalli (NIT Trichy)
Foreword:
The National Institute of Technology, Trichy is widely regarded as the best amongst all the NITs. One of the oldest NITs, its original name was Regional Engineering College (REC) Tiruchirapalli. Though Trichy might not be the most hospitable (at least in terms of climate) places, you’ll find a host of students who didn’t make the grade for the top IITs opting for this institute.



Location:
The campus is quite modern and located in close proximity to the cities of Trichy and Tanjavur(along the Trichy-Tanjavur Highway). Trichy is easily accessible through rail, road and air. Chennai is a 7 hour bus ride from the institute.



Campus and Infrastructure:
NIT Trichy boasts of a vast campus with ever-improving infrastructure (new lecture halls, bigger auditoriums, refurbished library, new hostels) to accommodate the increasing number of students. Hostels are just about okay, but fortunately there aren’t any problems with water supply at least. First years share their rooms with three other students, second and third year students with one more, while final year students normally have a room to themselves, although that may change a bit due to the increased intake of NIT Trichy. The entire campus will soon be WiFi enabled, but as of now they have huge computer rooms in each hostel which are open 24 hours a day. Specialised internet labs are also available. Students sometimes complain about the ‘not so great’ library, but that promises to improve too very soon.



Faculty:
The first thing students say about the faculty is that you shouldn’t bother comparing it to the IITs, because well, this isn’t an IIT. Professors are like what you’ll find in any other institution, some are good and some are not. Only one or two in each department are very good, well experienced, learned professors. Most of the time, it’s just like any other college focusing on studying by rote.



Crowd:
The crowd here is very multicultural; you’ll find students from every nook and corner of India. It promises to be an exciting experience for any student, regardless of where he or she is from. It should be noted, though, that like in any other good engineering college, girls are at a premium at NIT Trichy. The Boy/Girl ratio is quite awful, but fortunately other things cure the inevitable frustration. The campus life is really good, the small amount of state-specific ragging can also be opted out, seniors are normally very approachable and friendly, and most students find something (other than slogging) to keep themselves busy.



Rankings:
NIT Trichy is definitely among the top 3 NITs, and has regularly been ranked among the top 10 engineering colleges across the country.

You would need an AIEEE rank of anywhere between 1000 and 4000 to get a popular branch (like ECE, Comps, EEE) while a rank of anything above 14000 should get you a seat in a not-so-popular branch.



Placements and Internships:
The placement scenario is pretty good at NIT Trichy. A large variety of companies visit the campus each year: famous private companies, PSU’s, start ups, etc. Salaries offered are pretty decent, the average is about Rs.5.5 lac. Most favoured branch in this sense, like in any other college, is Computer science.



Festivals and Activities:
College life is filled with activities around the year. The annual cultural festival ('Festember') , Techno-management festival ('Pragyan') are complemented by department symposiums, inter departmental cultural fests, club activities (which include technical and cultural events). Technical and cultural fests are organised on a very large scale and the entire year is spent on making every edition better than the previous one. Individual hostels, inter-hostels, inter year events are conducted by various clubs, and the hostels themselves. Round the year there are sports events, social and cultural activities, technical competitions, workshops, and lectures (on robotics , computing , etc ).



Canteen/Mess:
Admittedly, the mess isn’t too great. This problem is compounded if you’re a North Indian, because it takes some time to get your taste buds used to (or numb to) the South Indian style of cooking. But things are looking up – the catering has recently been outsourced. Also, there is a nice canteen, small Bru, Nascafe, Lipton and Aavin cafes on the campus itself. When you step out of college, there are a number of ‘dhabas’, though the food isn’t terrific there either.



Contact:
National Institute of Technology, Tiruchirappalli.
Tanjore Main Road,National Highway 67,
Tiruchirappalli - 620015.Tamil Nadu, India.
Phone : (0431) 2503000 / 2504000.
Website : www.nitt.edu



Famous Alumni:
Sidin Vadukut - author of famous financial comedy series “Dork”



Verdict:
NIT Trichy is known for its fantastic history and excellent placements, which is why students dream of going to it. And fair enough, because that’s what matters to most students at the end of the day. There’s also an excellent mix of curricular, co-curricular and extra-curricular activity here which adds to one’s personality. That being said, it’s probably not for those who are hell-bent on high-end research, or those who can’t acclimatize to bad weather and worse food. Things are looking up, of course, but change takes time, doesn’t it?

National Institute of Technology, Agartala (NIT Agartala)
Introduction:
The National Institute of Technology, Agartala got upgraded to the status of an NIT only in 2007. Till then, it was known as Tripura Engineering College. Founded in 1965, the institute has been heavily involved in upgradation and reconstruction activity since only recently. NITA still isn’t quite up to the mark of the better NITs, but the management is trying to ensure that it reaches that level sooner rather than later.



Location:
If you know your geography, you’d know that Agartala is the capital city of the very beautiful and picturesque state of Tripura. It’s in North East India, if you’re still wondering. The institute is roughly 20 kms away from the city of Agartala, but is pretty well connected by buses and trains. And you can always hitch a ride with some truck driver, since it’s just 4km off National Highway 44. As for the place, well, it’s lovely! Although the massive amount of construction going on in and around the campus somewhat ruins the natural charm of the place, it’s quite breathtaking anyway.



Campus and Infrastructure:
The huge NIT Agartala campus is ever growing and ever improving. Although it’s fair to say that currently the infrastructure isn’t the best, the college is making vast improvements. As soon as you enter the campus, you can see cranes, cement-mixers and other machinery. Yes, this isn’t pleasing to the eye, but at least it shows the ambition of the college. A number of new buildings with state-of-the-art facilities are coming up and should be completed by 2014.

As for the current infrastructure, it isn’t too bad either. The library is very well maintained, complete with a reading room and a book bank. Lecture halls are well ventilated, and all computer labs are air conditioned. The campus is fully wi-fi enabled. There are 6 hostels for boys, and 2 for girls, all of which are quite comfortable and cosy. The messes are decent too; students don’t normally complain about the quality of food, which isn’t something you see everywhere.



Courses Offered:
Under Graduate Courses: B.Tech
Chemical Engineering
Civil Engineering
Civil and Transportation Engineering
Computer Science and Engineering
Electrical Engineering
Electronics and Communication Engineering
Electronics and Instrumentation Engineering
Mechanical Engineering
Production Engineering

Post Graduate Courses: M.Tech
Post Graduate Courses: Ph.D
Faculty:
Since NIT Agartala isn’t in the most metropolitan of places, it becomes hard to attract the best faculty. New professors are recruited every now and then from the better colleges around the country, so the situation is definitely improving. Old branches like Civil and Mechanical have excellent senior as well as junior professors, but the newer branches such as ECE and CSE (which were introduced here only a handful of years back) have relatively inexperienced and not-very-good professors.



Crowd and Campus Life:
The crowd here is quite decent; of course, there’s a majority of people from North East India, but you can safely say that people from all over the country come her. The Boy/Girl ratio is roughly 3:1, which is really not bad for an engineering college in a somewhat remote area. Many students are actively involved in sports and other extra-curriculars. One thing to be noted is that ragging is strictly prohibited here, and anyone found to be indulging in it is in for some serious trouble.

The mess food is more than edible and is often tasty, in spite of being healthy. And that’s a good thing, since there’s really nothing to do if you are to venture outside campus.



Rankings:
There aren’t any official rankings available, of course, but students rate NIT Agartala among the top 15 NITs.



Placements and Internships:
The placement record here is pretty good at NIT Agartala. Although the usual suspects like TCS, Patni, Capgemini, Accenture, etc visit campus and offer jobs in bulk, there are also a number of unique recruiters, especially for the core departments like Mechanical and Civil. About 90% of students get placed every year, and most of them in jobs of their choice. Regular recruiters, apart from the usual ones, include HCL, Maruti, Tata Motors, Powerwave, IOCL, Renault, Stone India, etc.

Internships are at a premium. Very few are offered, and even they don’t really pay too well. Most companies that pick up students for internships are local firms.



Festivals and Events:
The college doesn’t really host any major fest of its own, but various Hindu festivals are celebrated with great enthusiasm. Durga Puja, Ganesh Puja, Diwali are all done on a grand scale.



Contact Address:
National Institute Technology, Agartala.
Jirania.Tripura-799055
Website: www.nitagartala.in



Verdict:
Since it’s a college that was recently granted NIT status, NIT Agartala is certainly not yet at par with the best in the business. But a fantastic location coupled with its ambitious remodelling process ensures that it’ll definitely come up in the next few years.

Motilal Nehru National Institute of Technology (MNNIT), Allahabad
Introduction:
Consistently ranked among the top 10 technical institutes in India, Motilal Nehru National Institute of Technology (MNNIT) was founded in the year 1961, and just completed its Golden Jubilee. Originally known as the Motilal Nehru Regional Engineering College and affiliated to the University of Allahabad, MNNIT now comes under the Centre. One of the top NITs, you’ll find a huge number of brilliant North Indians here.



Location:
MNNIT Allahabad is located about 5-6 kilometres away from Civil Lines, in the area known as Teliyarganj. While it’s not a huge metropolis, Allahabad is a fast-growing, developing city, so the location of the college is quite excellent. What’s more, the college provides a thrice-a-day bus service to and from Civil Lines at no extra cost to the students. How sweet.



Infrastructure:
In the past few years, MNNIT Allahabad has seen some great improvement with respect to infrastructure. The intake recently increased significantly, and this paved the way for a lot of construction activity, which has seen MNNIT become one of the best-looking government institutes in the country. All the classes are air conditioned, the hostels (seven for boys and one for girls) are well maintained, with a huge new one coming up. The laboratories are excellent as well, especially the mechanical and computer labs; the college has a three storey computer centre! The library, a common place for nerds to hang out, is spacious and extremely rich in terms of books. The college has decent facilities for a number of sports like cricket, football, tennis, badminton, basketball, etc. They also have a few cafes and tiny outlets here and there – a Bikaner outlet provides tasty snacks at subsidised rates, while there’s a nice Rich Cafe in the boys hostel. The best part, most students say, about NIT Allahabad is their internet, which is ‘ultra fast’. No wonder the college is one of the very, very few institutes in India to have a supercomputer of its own.



Courses Offered:
Bio Technology
Chemical Engineering /Technology
Civil Engineering
Computer Science & Engineering
Electronics & Communication Engineering
Electrical Engineering
Information Technology
Mechanical Engineering
Production & Industrial Engineering


Faculty:
Although you cannot possibly doubt the quality of the faculty here, it must be mentioned that an average student at NIT Allahabad doesn’t depend on the professors. Most students take it upon themselves to understand and learn their subjects completely, regardless of who’s teaching them. That said, the faculty as a whole is quite good. The faculty from the mechanical department is singled out for special praise. Most professors are old and very experience, and in spite of this share an excellent rapport with the students.



Attendance:
The college is quite particular about attendance in the first year. Over time, students get used to attending, so they normally don’t even realise that the professors become slightly lenient in the subsequent years.



Placements:
Really really good! Needless to say, Motilal Nehru National Institute of Technology Allahabad has 100% placements, with some of the top companies from all sectors visiting the campus. The minimum salary here is about Rs.3.5 lac, while the highest can go as high as 16 lpa. Even students who have backlogs manage to get placed. To give you an idea of the hirers here, here’s a tiny list – Microsoft, Amazon, Netapp, Oracle, Yahoo, Samsung, Direct-i  for Comps/Elex. For the core branches, the major companies that come in are Pepsi, NTPC, General Steel, Coal India, etc.



Crowd:
The girl/boy ratio is a frankly awful 1:9, but other than this, the crowd at MNNIT Allahabad is like any other college. There is a rather higher percentage of UP-ites than the allotted 50%, because of the simple fact that many get in without the state quota.



Festivals:
The Technical festival, Avishkar, is held in September and is one of the more popular fests in India, which is why it attracts participation even from IITs.

The cultural fest called Culrav is held in January, while a unique literary fest called Gnosiomania is also hosted by MNNIT.



Contact Address:
Motilal Nehru National Institute of Technology (MNNIT)
Allahabad - 211004
Website: www.mnnit.ac.in



Famous Alumni:
Saurabh Babu - IAS topper 1991 batch
S.C.Saxena - Ex-Director, IIT Roorkee
BC Tripathi - Chairman and MD, GAIL India
Saurabh Tripathi – DIG, CBI


Verdict:
“The best thing about MNNIT Allahabad”, in a students’ words, “is the versatility”. It’s a great platform for just about everything.

Sardar Vallabhbhai National Institute of Technology (SVNIT) – Surat
Introduction:
Sardar Vallabhbhai National Institute Of Technology, inaugurated in 1961, Surat was one of the 17 Regional Engineering Colleges (RECs) that were established as a joint venture between the Government of India and the Government of Gujarat. In 2002 it was elevated to the status of an NIT, and thus is now termed an ‘institute of national importance’. Just like almost everything else in the state of Gujarat, SVNIT Surat has also come up really quickly and is constantly rising up the ranks.



Location:
If you consider the NITs and IITs, most of them are located in the outskirts of cities. But this is not the case wit NIT Surat. SVNIT is located in a well developed area of the city, and is very easily accessible by autos and busses. It is located at Icchanath, at a distance of about 10kms from both, the domestic airport and the railways station. The location at the heart of the city gives students access to a number of restaurants and clubs, but unfortunately not bars (Gujarat is a dry state, remember?).



Campus and Infrastructure:
The huge 100 acre campus of SVNIT houses a sports center, the department buildings, a few small gardens and 14 hostels, the last four of which are newly constructed. Although the older hostels might show some signs of dilapidation, they have all basic facilities. What’s more, they’re going to be torn down and reconstructed very soon, and will then have all sorts of cool amenities. Work on a few of them has already started, and is going forward at a fantastic pace. A maximum of two students live quite comfortably in each room. All the hostels, departments and canteens are completely wi-fi enabled, and other parts of the campus are connected with high speed LAN. The laboratories in various departments are very well maintained, with ample amount of working equipments. The computerized central library has more than enough books, and is air conditioned. They have an excellent sports center where you’ll also find a hi-tech gymnasium; the college encourages all sorts of indoor and outdoor sports.



Faculty:
Of course, it would be unfair to pass a verdict on the faculty as a whole. The reviews from students vary from department to department. SVNIT has excellent faculty in their Mechanical, Civil and Electrical departments – a healthy mix of senior and junior professors ensures that students are happy. The other departments lag far behind in this respect; while the professors are no doubt quite qualified, some of them may not be experienced enough. But one thing is common among all professors – they are all sympathetic to students needs and are very helpful. Some of the deans can be slightly harsh and uncooperative, but they ensure that students are never suppressed.



Crowd and Campus Life:
As you would expect in any popular engineering college, the boy/girl ratio is prohibitively high. But not all is too bad; you see a very, very multicultural crowd at NIT Surat. The intake here is based purely on AIEEE, and the State Quota has also been scrapped, so what you get to see here is people from nearly every nook and corner of the country. Not just that – there are a number of students from neighbouring countries like Nepal, Afghanistan, etc. Students here, in spite of their varying cultural and socio-economic backgrounds, get along really well. SVNIT has been announced as a zero ragging institute and strict punishments are imposed on guilty students caught by the anti-ragging committee.

Students are heavily involved in various activities and sports the entire year. It’s a lovely place to be, really. The mess, well, is like any other mess – the food keeps you alive, but it’s certainly not a reason to be alive. Fortunately, though, Surat is known for its (vegetarian) food, and you can rest assured that you’ll never go hungry. There’s ISCON Mall, BIG Bazaar right in front of the campus gate, and a couple of malls with multiplexes just a short ride away. There’s also a small beach called Dumas at a fifteen minute ride.



Rankings:
SVNIT is ranked among top 50 Universities in India and it comes in Top 15 NITs.



Placements:
The placement scenario at NIT Surat is quite excellent. Every year, the institute has 100% placements. Most students have at least a couple of jobs to choose from. The average salary is about Rs.4 lac, but the highest salary offered goes as high as Rs.16 lac! Companies visiting the campus include the usual suspects like TCS, Accenture, Wipro, L&T, and also specialized firms like Crisil, CitiBank, etc (clearly Finance is the new IT).



Festivals and Events:
The major Technical festival of SVNIT is 'Mindbend' and is very popular in west zone, particularly in Gujarat. Along with this, the college also hosted 'Autofest', a fest mainly concentrating on automobiles, but it won’t take place henceforth. The main Cultural Festival is 'Sparsh' and this is also quite popular. Every year, hostel days are also celebrated by each individual hostel, organized by their respective hostel committees.



Contact:
S. V. National Institute of Technology (SVNIT),
Ichchhanath, SURAT-395 007.
Gujarat.
Office : 0261-2259571, 2259582.
Website: www.svnit.ac.in



Verdict:
Being an NITian is a big enough achievement for most students, but at SVNIT you get a chance to be a part of something which has the potential to be much much bigger than just another NIT. You also get excellent exposure, and remember that living in a metropolitan environment will always give you an edge over a student who’s from a college in a remote area.

Visvesvaraya National Institute of Technology Nagpur (VNIT)
Location:
When it was founded in 1960, Visvesvaraya National Institute of Technology was located in a then very remote area on the outskirts of Nagpur. The location is still the same, but the surroundings have improved significantly. The city is now easily accessible from the college, though it still isn’t really nearby.



Infrastructure:
Visvesvaraya NIT is built on a nice 235 acre campus. It isn’t a high-tech or flashy campus, but it’s quite optimum. The department buildings, some of which are new, are pretty good and well maintained. The labs in general, and especially in the mechanical department, are great. The residential buildings are decent as well, though they aren’t extraordinary. In the first and second year, a student shares his room with three more students, but housing for third and fourth year students is single-seater rooms. The classrooms are just about okay; sometimes the fans don’t work and it becomes tremendously hot. There isn’t much the VNIT has to offer in terms of sports infrastructure; they have a couple of grounds and a few courts here and there, but there’s no swimming pool and the facilities in place aren’t much to be too proud of either.



Faculty:
The reviews about the professors have been, in a word, mixed. While all the professors are certainly qualified, students sometimes complain about their willingness to teach, and their experience, or the lack of it. The mechanical department faculty is excellent, but the students from the electronics department are full of complaints about their staff.



Placements:
This is probably why so many students flock to NIT Nagpur. The placements are excellent, with the college recording 100% placements on a regular basis. A number of students get what is called a ‘Dream Job’, and even those who don’t are normally quite happy at the end of the placement session. The average package is about 5-6 lac per annum. HPCL, IOCL, NTPC, Accenture, Infosys, Microsoft, Amazon, Samsung, etc are all regular hirers at VNIT.



Crowd:
The crowd is a decent mix of the highly nerdy and the rather useless. There is obviously a higher percentage of Maharashtrians, though you’ll not find too many Mumbaikars. There are a large number of clubs that students are heavily involved in, so there’s a good level of interaction between them.



Canteen/Mess:
The quality of food is surprisingly good, but some students just aren’t ever satisfied. There’s an all-night canteen on the campus, which is also a very common hangout for many students.



Contact Address:
Visvesvaraya National Institute of Technology,
South Ambazari Road,
Nagpur - Pin 440010
Maharashtra.
Website : www.vnit.ac.in



Famous Alumni:
Samir Barua- Former director of IIM-A
Hemant Karkare- Former chief of ATS, Mumbai and martyr on 26/11
Dinesh Keskar- President of Boeing India
Pradeep Kar- Chairman and Founder of Microland


Verdict:
One of the better NITs across the country, VNITs legacy and location will ensure that you have a good four years here.

Birla Institute of Technology & Science (BITS Pilani), Hyderabad Campus, Shamirpet.
Location:
Located in Shamirpet, BITS Pilani's Hyderabad Campus is far disconnected from the major urban areas of Hyderabad. There’s wilderness around, with the terrain consisting of hillocks, and is about 5Km from the Nehru Ring Road. Once on that road, there are enough sign boards to guide you to the college.  And if you lose track of where you are, all you can do is hope to find a villager around, to guide you through. We had a tough time reaching the college, and it took us a 4-5km ride around hillocks, and tiny Ghats to get here through a village. So basically, it’s cut out from the world. Only one RTC route – 212 plies here from Secunderabad station, so students can use this when going to the city. 211 series of RTC Routes drop you around the college in a radius of about 1Km.
Being a completely residential course, everyone is supposed to stay in the college hostel, so students really do not have to worry about the daily commute. The campus seems isolated from the world, but in fact is a complete world in itself, and indeed a beautiful one.

 Infrastructure:
The sprawling 200 acre campus, welcomes you with its magnificent huge gates, and a couple of modern shinny glassy buildings. With the campus not landscaped into a flat piece of land, but rather left in its natural state amidst the rocks, and the hillocks. With the educational blocks (A to G) taking the higher ground, and the residential blocks downhill. The road leading towards the college blocks from the hostel is beautiful with a rock garden leading into the stairs carved into the rocks that must have existed there. Of course there are cement roads for the vehicles too, but none as beautiful as the one meant to walk.
The infrastructure of the academic block is absolutely world class, well furnished and well planned. All classes are air-conditioned. Blocks for various departments, libraries, the SAC (student activity centre) are all separated. An auditorium is under construction, and you can expect it to have the same standards. Library is mainly used for studying, peaceful reading, and using reference books. And as a trend, most buy books used by seniors, so that they get books which are reliable. Apart from that PDF’s and PPT’s are provided by teachers or seniors, which in a way are better resources than textbooks also. Literary work is also available at the library. Wi-Fi connectivity and internet is available in the main campus, for other places, there are LAN ports, for wired connections. Running at about 10Mbps, internet is fast and reliable.
Hostel: The hostels are also good, and are pretty well maintained. Single rooms are provided to everyone, from the 1st to the 4th year. The hostels again are planned in different blocks. Rooms are nice, and bathrooms hygienic. Solar water heaters are setup to utilize the free energy and provide students without hurting the environment additionally. Water coolers are installed at regular intervals around in the hostels. SAC (students activity centre) is a separate building, where students laze around, discuss things, plan events, and enjoy time with friends. At the far end of the campus are the football ground, basketball and tennis courts, all of them pretty decent. The hostel internet is comparatively slower, because of higher sharing. With regards to timings, the latest you need to get back to the college campus is 10 P.M.  Evenings are cooler, and strolling in the campus is enjoyable. Hostel food is good, and hygienic, but over time students have got bored, but there’s a student mess council which manages the menu, and tries to get in variety regularly. There’s a State Bank of Hyderabad branch on campus in CP. Connaught Place (CP) which is a small market place for the students, with a restaurant, laundry service, beauty parlours, a medical store, and a supermarket – MORE. A medical centre next to the CP block takes care of primary treatment and medication of the students.

Fees:
Rs.80,000 per semester not including the mess. But students say, it goes up to a lakh per sem including everything, the mess, the laundry, and the other random expenses.

Faculty:
Although BITS Pilani is a reputed institute, the Hyderabad campus is relatively new. Currently, there’s a combination of junior and senior professors. And essentially the senior professors take the core subjects that come in the later years. Senior Profs re experienced and good teachers. The less important subjects are taken by junior professors. But the issue here is that the college has very few senior profs, only 3 out of 10 would be senior. But luckily, there’s a system of course rotation in BITS, that ensures one teacher doesn’t keep teaching the same subject all his life, thus this system ensures the bad teachers are get better or thrown out. Qualification wise all of them are Ph.D. and masters’ and even have a few patents under their hoods, but when it comes to teaching a course, students are not totally convinced. But it’s also understood, that the IIT’s score above BITS in this case, here may be its comparable with the newer NIT’s. Technical knowledge and exposure might be more at the IIT’s but at BITS; the overall development is much remarkable. Students nevertheless study hard, and learning stays unaffected. Even projects that students take up are pretty interesting.

Attendance:
There is absolute freedom and choice left upon the students in this aspect. The college doesn’t believe in forcing the students to take lectures, and rather believe that they can decide what’s best for them. The college has provided for everything. People make a call on the courses and teachers, for the good subjects everyone attends, and there have been empty classes too. So technically even at zero percent attendance, the college will not really harass you. Although there are surprise tests (as an alternative to attendance), but students know about it pre-hand, so that also not an issue, that too only for some courses there are surprise tests, so it’s no tension.

Crowd:
A majority of the crowd hails from Hyderabad, and other surrounding districts of Andhra Pradesh, and about 60% of people from all parts of the country put together. There is absolutely no reservation of any kind, and every student has to take the BITSAT to be here. The crowd is quite diverse though, and people mix well. Student driven clubs are very active, and people are a part of a club that most interests them. Seniors and junior interact well. Most students, even if are not regular at attending lectures, are sincere, and hard working. The boy to girl ratio is about 3 : 1. In the hostel students mix well and group-ism or regional-ism is not observed, which makes it pretty cool for all the students.

Canteen:
There’s a nice and big cafeteria in the academic block, with decent variety of snack and meals available. This is popular with students during class hours, and while they’re studying in the library. Food at the cafeteria is tasty, and samosas, particularly are a favourite. At the CP, there’s a nice little restaurant also.

Hangouts:
By now, you must have realized that, the campus is an entire world in itself, unlike other city colleges. So there’s not really much to hangout around. But when students want to venture out, there’s Viceroy Family Dhaba. There are a few resorts around; Alankrit Resort, people go to celebrate birthdays, but it’s a little expensive to visit regularly though. On a day-to-day basis, walking in the campus after dinner is pleasant, and CP is busy in the evenings.

Festivals:
‘Pearl’ is the college’s national level festival, conducted in the month of February every year. Students say it’s the biggest fest of Hyderabad, and sees a massive participation. The entire campus is bubbling with activity during the entire festival. The college stays off for 3 days of the festival, and 2 more days of holiday follows. Students don’t look at it as a 5 day holiday to go home, but participate with enthusiasm. Pearl also hosts technical events since last year, and is a popular festival all over the country. BITS, Pilani hosts a popular sports festival, and students are equally enthusiastic about the sports fest too.

Placements:
Established in 2008, only one batch has been out yet, and the placements have been good in the first season. But this year on, students expect it only to get better over time.  Campus placement is the best for CSE departments, and about 80% placements overall. With a whole host of companies visiting the campus, from different sectors; like Financial Analysis, Software/ IT, Electronics, and big players including Google, Microsoft, Nvidia, Samsung, Morgan Stanley and many more. EPIC Systems offered 58 Lakh Rupees job to 5 students. Microsoft offered 10 students an offer of 16 Lakh a year. Qualcomm also recruits a few students. Mass recruiters, like TCS and Infosys came towards the end of the season. An area where it can work harder is; attracting more core companies for non software/IT branches, like ECE, and Mechanical Engineering. Although students say Honda and Shell had visited the campus, and hired a few students, but for a lesser salary. The trend that’s observed here, that almost 90% of the people take up jobs, and only about 10% people opt for higher studies.

Contact:
BITS, Pilani - Hyderabad Campus
Jawahar Nagar,
Shameerpet Mandal,
Hyderabad, 500078, Andhra Pradesh.
Telphone: +91-040 66303999
Website: www.bits-pilani.ac.in

Verdict:
BITS, Pilani has a big name, when it comes to technology studies in India, and Hyderabad campus inherits the same focus, and direction. BITS gives students’ freedom and opportunities, at the same time, and in the words of a student, “make use of it, or just keep sleeping” no one would really care expect for your own self. Environment is good, and facilities all up-to-date. Those students who want to take up jobs, would gets jobs here, and prospect of high paying jobs is also bright. Life is good and education better. Research opportunities and infrastructure is first class.

College of Engineering, Guindy (CEG), Anna University Campus
Location:
CEG is located in Guindy campus of Anna University. Anna University is well located when commuting is considered. There are many buses connecting Guindy to many other parts of the city. The campus has many other education governing bodies as its neighbours. Nearest railway station is Guindy but not many use it.



Infrastructure:
Anna University campus is huge and beautiful. The campus is well maintained with aesthetic beauty added by the lawns. There is a lot of open space in the campus which is marked with students almost all the time of the day.

The college labs are not the best and don’t live up to the Anna University brand. The equipment doesn’t work many times. The library is good with all the floors having AC. Book renewal process is easy and much appreciated by students.

University is Wi-Fi enabled including the hostels. Hostels are not very much liked by the students. Hostel charges are Rs 15,000 per semester including the mess charges.



Fees:
Rs 15,000 per year



Faculty:
Students have no complains about the faculty. They are very well experienced and highly qualified. The EEE faculty is said to be the best. Core branches have a better faculty compared to the newer branches. Many of the faculty members are alumni of the institute itself.

Although being so qualified, the professors are approachable and students do go to them with their doubts.



Attendance and Discipline:
Attendance is very strict. Students are expected to maintain 75% and when they say this they mean it. The defaulters are not allowed to take the exams. 2 days in a week students have labs where they are expected to wear only formals. ID has to be worn all the time.



Crowd:
Majority of the students are from Tamil Nadu, of which students from Chennai form a majority. Surprisingly, girls outnumber the boys. Students don’t have a problem getting along; they do have a good junior senior interaction. Although the college gets the top scorers of the state, they are not bookworms. They are into other extra-curricular activities.



Canteen:
Anna university campus has 3 canteens. Students usually go to the CEG one which is spacious and the food is good. A variety of juices are available which are hot favourites among the students.



Festivals:
There are many festivals happening on the campus. The intra-college cultural festival is called Agni, whereas Techofes is the inter-college festival. Each department conducts its own symposium.



Placements:
Great placements. CEG is one of the few engineering colleges in Chennai who could boast of 100% placements. Most of the students go for IT companies. Mining branch has only core companies coming and has great placements.

Some of the renowned companies visiting the campus are Microsoft, Qualcomm, Amazon and Caterpillar. Microsoft is said to have offered 12 LPA.


Contact Address:
College of Engineering Guindy (CEG),
Anna University Campus, Sardar Patel Road,
Chennai - 600025.
Phone: 44-2235 1579
Website: www.annauniv.edu



Famous Alumni:
Kris Srikkanth - Former Cricketer
Nagarjuna - Telugu film actor
Mendu Rammohan Rao - Dean Emeritus of Indian School of Business
Ravi Ruia - Vice Chairman of Essar Group



Verdict:
Great place to do your engineering. You may call this the best college in Anna Univ. The college will help you in developing your overall personality along with good academic performance. Rural students will benefit the most.

College of Engineering, Pune (COEP)
Note: College of Engineering, Pune (COEP) is an autonomous institute affiliated to the University of Pune

Location:
College of Engineering, Pune fondly known as COEP requires no landmark, the college itself is a well known place throughout Pune. It is located on the Pune station road in Shivajinagar. Nothing needs to be said about its accessibility, its absolutely fantastic.



Infrastructure:
The campus is never-ending. It stretches on both sides of the main road and can be estimated to be as big as 5 football fields on each side. There are ten buildings in the hostel campus and host about 1000 boys and 400 girls. Fees for the hostel are about Rs. 8000/- per year. Labs are well-equipped.



Fees:
B.Tech Fee: Rs. 51,000/- per annum

M.Tech Fee: Rs. 48,150/- per annum



Placements:
Probably the best placements amongst all engineering colleges in Pune. 100% placements, or even more than 100% if you consider the multiple offers that some students get. Companies like Google (19.95 lac) IOCL, BPCL, Barclays finance also visit the campus, athough they pick up just a few students. TCS  as well other IT companies are the major recruiters.



Faculty:
The teaching is very good. English communication is good and the students have a comfortable learning experience. However, the Dean is said to be very strict and reminds one of Viru Sahastrabudhhe (Virus) of the 3 Idiots fame. But not all others are the same “Our director deserves a good amount of appreciation, and we all love him.” quotes a group of students.



Attendance:
Very very strict. 75% is an absolute necessity. Defaulters are detained straightaway, even at 74.9% attendance!!



Crowd:
Crowd at COEP is more study oriented and the students get engrossed in technical matters. They love their college and cannot hear a word against it. But it’s a “ Ladkiyon ka registaan, hardly anyone worth giving a second look” says one student.



Hangouts:
FC road, JM road for varieties of food and E-Square, Mangla talkies for movies.  “Anna ki tapri” is one of the local favourites and many COEP students can be found lingering there. His speciality is that he doesn’t forget your favourite order and serves it to you as soon as he sees you approaching. Lake-side-seating or boating are another option.



Canteen:
The COEP campus hosts 2 canteens one on each side of the road. Cafe house is better than the boat club cafe. Chaat and missal is excellent. Food is decent and affordable.



Festivals:
Zest is the inter college sports festival of College of Engineering, Pune (COEP). It is held in Jan-end.  Mindspark is the technical festival which is held in mid-October.



Contact:
College Of Engineering Pune (COEP),
Wellesley Road, Shivajinagar,
Pune - 411005.
Website : www.coep.org.in



Famous Alumni:
Rajiv Bajaj- MD of Bajaj Auto
Sir Mokshagundam Visvesvarayya- Bharat Ratna, eminent engineer and statesman
Vijay Kelkar- Advisor to the Finance Minister, Chairman NSE,India
Venugopal Dhoot- Chairman at Videocon


Verdict:
Definitely among the top colleges in Pune, with excellent opportunities for co-curricular activities. The college has affiliations with numerous organizations for technical benefits of the students. A HAM radio club, satellite launching system, E-cell are worth mentioning. “Aawaz konacha??... COEP cha” shouts everyone in chorus to end our conversation.

College of Engineering, SRM University, Kattankulathur Campus
  NOTE: SRM University is a private university. It conducts its own admission based on SRMEEE score.

Location:
SRM University is located in Kattankulanthur area of Kanchipuram District. Nearest local railway station is Potteri which is at a walkable distance. The college is very far from the Chennai city. There are many students travelling by their own vehicles and some of them do use the college bus. Majority of students though use public transport.



Infrastructure:
The infra here is amazing. The campus is spread over 300 acres. Yes you can imagine its expanse. There are 38 blocks in the campus. Even though it is so big, it is maintained very well. There is a lake on the campus where rowing facility is available. The classrooms are spacious and air-conditioned. There are projector and LCDs also available during teaching.

The hostels are very good here and consequently quiet expensive. Students can choose the kind of rooms they want and the number of people in a room; of course different pricing applicable.



Fees:
Fees for most undergrad courses are between Rs 1.5 to 2 lakh a year except for Aerospace & Nanotechnology for which it is Rs 350,000 a year.

Additional books fees are also collected.

Detailed FEE STRUCTURE for Year 2013-14
Sl No Degree Branch Description Tuition fees for the year 2013 - 14
1 B.Arch Architecture 200000
2 B.Des Interior Design 150000
3 B.Tech. Computer Science and Engineering 200000
4 B.Tech. Electrical and Electronics Engineering 200000
5 B.Tech. Electronics & Communication Engineering 200000
6 B.Tech. Mechanical Engineering 200000
7 B.Tech. Chemical Engineering 200000
8 B.Tech. Civil Engineering 200000
9 B.Tech. Biotechnology 200000
10 B.Tech. Information Technology 200000
11 B.Tech. Automobile Engineering 200000
12 B.Tech. Genetic Engineering 200000
13 B.Tech. Bioinformatics 200000
14 B.Tech. Mechatronics 200000
15 B.Tech. Electronics & Instrumentation Engineering 200000
16 B.Tech. Instrumentation and Control Engineering 200000
17 B.Tech. Aerospace Engineering 350000
18 B.Tech. Information & Telecommunication Engineering 200000
19 B.Tech. Software Engineering 200000
20 B.Tech. Biomedical Engineering 200000
21 B.Tech. Nanotechnology 350000
22 M.Tech. VLSI Design   150000
23 M.Tech. Computer Science & Engineering 150000
24 M.Tech. Structural Engineering 150000
25 M.Tech. Computer Aided Design 150000
26 M.Tech. Power Electronics and Drives 150000
27 M.Tech. Power Systems 150000
28 M.Tech. Chemical Engineering 150000
29 M.Tech. Software Engineering 150000
30 M.Tech. Information Technology 150000
31 M.Tech. Biotechnology 150000
32 M.Tech. Environmental Engineering 150000
33 M.Tech. Communication Systems 150000
34 M.Tech. Computer Integrated Manufacturing 150000
35 M.Tech. Construction Engineering & Management 150000
36 M.Tech. Embedded System And Technology 150000
37 M.Tech. Water Resourses and Management 150000
38 M.Tech. Biomedical Engineering 150000
39 M.Tech. Remote Sensing and GIS 150000
40 M.Tech. Robotics 150000
41 M.Tech. Geo Technical Engineering 150000
42 M.Tech. Information Security & Computer Forensics 150000
43 M.Tech. Multimedia Technology 150000
44 M.Tech. Database Systems 150000
45 M.Tech. Electronics and Control Engineering 150000
46 M.Tech. Food and Nutritional Biotechnology 150000
47 M.Tech. Knowledge Engineering 150000
48 M.Tech. Genetic Engineering 150000
49 M.Tech. Bioinformatics 150000
50 M.Tech. Telecommunication Networks 150000
51 M.Tech. Solar Energy 150000
52 M.Tech. Nanotechnology 150000
53 M.Tech. Cloud Computing 150000
54 M.Tech. Food Safety and Quality Management 150000
55 M.Arch. Architecture 100000


Faculty:
The faculty is experienced and well qualified. They do know their stuff pretty well. They are open to teach those interested in learning and really not bothered about uninterested ones. The faculty will not push you into studying; you need to cultivate interest for the subject yourself.



Attendance and Discipline:
Attendance norm of 75% is taken seriously. Students do bunk but calculatedly and make sure that they don’t exceed the limit. Here there is no restriction on the kind of attire you adorn as opposed to Anna University affiliated colleges. Formals are not compulsory. You will a see a striking change in the ambience and overall feel of the campus here compared to other Chennai colleges.



Crowd:
You can see from the fees that only kids from well to do families come to SRM. There are many North Indians here, almost half the batch comprises of them. It isn’t surprising to find students here wearing expensive brands or carrying expensive gadgets. You don’t really find many studious people here as most of the students are fun loving.



Canteen:
The whole campus has around 20 canteens. Yes it isn’t a mistake, it is 20! Techpark (CS & IT departments) seems to have one of the best canteens. There is also a food court where you will find a lot of options and it is always crowded. You will find almost all cuisine foods here.



Festivals:
'Milan' is the main cultural festival held in the month of January. 'Aarush' is the inter-college fest for all the colleges under the SRM University. These are quite a big festival and you see a good participation from students of SRM and other colleges too.



Placements:
Placements are very good here. The college does have good record for placements and claiming 100% for some batches. The average package got by students here is around 3- 4 Lakh per annum. Few of the students do manage to bag bigger and very high paying offers too.



Contact Address:
SRM University
SRM Nagar, Kattankulathur,
Kancheepuram District - 603203.
Phone: 44-2741 7100
Email: president@srmuniv.ac.in
Website: http://www.srmuniv.ac.in/SRM/



Verdict:
SRM University is one of the best private universities in Chennai. If cosmopolitan crowd, an air of freedom and good overall development is what you are looking at, then SRM should be your call. However fees and locations might be deterrents.

Delhi Technological University (DTU), Rithala
NOTE: Formerly called Delhi College of Engineering which has been accorded University Status as Delhi Technological University

Location:
Delhi Technological University (DTU), formerly known as Delhi College of Engineering (DCE), is located in far Northwest of Delhi in the region of Rohini. The accessibility to the college is quite good as the nearest Metro station is Rithala on the Red Line and Metro Feeders or Gramin Seva (shuttles) charge a nominal amount till the college gate from the station. There are college buses till metro station and thus connectivity is quite up to the mark. Some students prefer DTC buses which has an average frequency while most of the students stay in the college hostel.



Infrastructure:
Spread across 250 acres, the DCE campus is lush green with hundreds of trees and plants surrounding the buildings. This huge campus is excellently maintained and cleaned regularly. The air conditioned classrooms have comfortable benches and projectors. The 3 storey library, which is air-conditioned and have abudant books in stock, is open at odd hours as well. The campus is not wifi enabled, though the management is looking into the matter. LAN internet is going to be provided everywhere across the campus.

There are 3 hostels for both boys and girls (although one is still being constructed). First year students get the hostel near the college gate due to safety reasons. Students have to share the room for the first two years while third year onwards single seaters are available. The rental is roughly around 8,000 per annum which is quite affordable looking at the standard of rooms you get. Mess charges are separate and the food is above average with good variations in the food items. Students rarely complain about the taste and variety.



Fees:
Rs. 75,000 per year



Faculty:
Previously, the college was under the Delhi University board and hence had an amazing teaching staff. After getting the autonomous tag, DTU has hired some new teachers which are freshers and need enough experience. Having said that, most of the faculties are still the same and highly knowledgeable. Core branches like Electrical, Mechanical and Civil have a great set of professors who are thoroughly masters in their field. The faculty for Computers and IT are not that great compared to the core branches. Senior professors are highly experienced and very friendly. Most of the lectures are conducted in English.



Attendance:
Delhi Technological University (DTU) is quite strict during the first two years of engineering. Students have to maintain 75% compulsorily failing which loads of assignments are burdened on their shoulders. In extreme cases, a student gets a semester drop. Some are lenient while some are strict (like Math professors, says a student). Attendance at DCE is based on your rapport with the teacher.



Crowd:
As the college is an autonomous body now, students from various parts of India are seen at DCE, though Delhi-ites lead the list (85% seats reserved for students from Delhi and NCR). Some are from the NCR region as well. Ragging is reduced to a considerable level and freshers feel a lot safer with seniors around. The crowd is pretty much urban and from decent backgrounds, hence you don’t see any rowdiness within or outside the college.



Hangouts:
One of the drawbacks of being at DTU is the lack of any classy hangouts. Located really far from the main city, students don’t get enough time to bunk and reach the happening Connaught Place. Thus, some local malls near Rithala metro like G3S and City Centre are the standard places where you see college students loitering their time muching at local food stalls and watching movies. Adventure Island, the amusement park right outside Rithala metro station is one of the common hangouts in that area.



Canteen:
There are around 3 canteens in the DCE campus. Not all are as famous as the "MechC" (pronounced as Mexi), the canteen of the Mechanical department. It serves some awesome delicious food items at a nominal cost. The quality and the quantity of the food items is definitely something to look for. The canteen provides ideal breakfast, lunch, snacks and dinner food and thus students always feel at home. Medu Wada and Maggi are a huge hit among the students.



Festivals:
Engi Fest and Renaissance are the cultural and technical festivals celebrated in the Delhi Technological University (DTU) respectively. There’s an E-summit (Entrepreneurship) held every year and famous personalities like Kiran Bedi and Chetan Bhagat are a part of the same.



Placements:
Computer and IT students get a whopping salary of around 6-7 lakhs per annum while core branch students get paid 5 lakhs per annum on an average. Accenture, TCS, Wipro, Birla are the standard recruiters during the placement season. Big and famous companies like Microsoft, Google, IBM also chip in during the placement week and offer a pay package of around 10-15 lakhs per annum. Rated as the best engineering college in Delhi after IIT, DTU has a record of 100% placements. Moreover, most of the students are offered multiple jobs and thus you’ve plethora of options to choose your domain after graduation. GREAT, isn’t it?



Contact:
Delhi Technological University (DTU),
Shahbad Daulatpur, Main Bawana Road,
Delhi - 42,
Tel: +91-11-27871018
Website: www.dce.edu



Famous Alumni:
Vinod Dham - Leader of Pentium project at Intel
Ashok Puri - Chairman and MD, BHEL
Ashok Baweja - Chairman, HAL
Anil Kumar Sardana - MD, Tata Power


Verdict:
In one word, BEST! Consistently ranked as one of the top engineering colleges in India (and Delhi, of course), Delhi Technological University (DTU) has all the elements that suits a students need. The reputed name and legacy will continue for years to come.