St Joseph's Degree and PG College B.Com Review By Madan Gopal Rathi

St. Joseph was started by the Hyderabad Archdiocese Educational Society in the year 1997. I passed out in 2009 and was a part of the college when it was still finding ground. The college today has become the 1st choice college for various courses in Hyderabad but the things were not the same back then. The main cause the college has reached the top is because the college focus was always on academics. The students who were a part of this college were of diverse backgrounds. Mostly or should I say all the students who were studying in St. Joseph were from Hyderabad or Andhra itself. The campus is small but was refreshing for us then and even though the college hasn’t changed much as it still looks the same. The day started with a prayer at the college and at all events, the Joseph theme was sung by all the students. For some, we were a laughing stock but those are advantages or for some disadvantages studying in a Christian College. As a Josephite, I lived my college life to the fullest as St. Joseph was one of those colleges that started fests at a large scale and giving exposure to the students with industrial training and all.

Academics at St. Joseph was a different level. B.Com (Hons) looked like a superior course because we had practicals and compulsory industrial training in the final year. In Joseph, studies are a must but the college believes in building all-rounders. Various clubs were started by ex-students and we all were approached to be a part of them. From drama to sports they were all part of the decorated curriculum of St. Joseph. Academics' legitimacy was the biggest highlight of the college and they have stuck to that even after being an established name.

The faculty was determined and trained us to be professionals. It was their teaching that most of us took higher studies because B.Com will not land us anywhere in life. In 2009, the recession was at its peak and how to survive a recession was the thesis some of our faculty members were working on. All of them were Ph.D. holders and possessed knowledge that they believed in sharing. Not just the study-related problems but they heard us out on our personal problems as well. Their polite nature helped us have a healthy and friendly relation with them.

In case you don’t know 2009 was the worst year economic-wise. The job cutting was happening in every sector and even after trying their best the college couldn’t make it happen. Even in tough times, we got an industrial internship for 3 months and also got a certificate of the same. That was the only consolation that we could get as forget about the B.Com graduates even the engineers couldn’t find themselves a job then. The efforts that the college made to get us placed were enough as there were no jobs in the market then.

The college doesn’t have a hostel facility as the campus has admin blocks that make up the entire campus. Many students from nearby cities and small and big towns of Andhra and Telangana came to study in the college but managed on their own. The college location had many PGs and private hostels nearby. Ananya Men’s Hostel is a good enough option for students coming from distant places.

The 2-acre campus always had chaos around as the students had to line up themselves for something or the other. The main building is a pistachio coloured building and has the deity of Jesus Christ on it. The lecture building is huge as all the department's lectures are conducted there. A separate block that has a gymnasium, indoor sports facilities, and a music room. In the name of the outdoor sports basketball court is the only facility that the college had. The auditorium had the feeling of a church as there are chairs and the stage where the father or the Bishop will start the proceeding in the name of the Lord. The hall was used every year as guest lectures for career planning happened twice or thrice every year during our batch. The campus, on the whole, was fantastic but definitely not as big as one would have liked and therefore the facilities are also limited. However, there’s no shortage of basic facilities.

If one has to enjoy campus life then there’s no better place than St. Joseph. If I continue with the events that were held I can go on till my lungs have the energy to suck air. Go green was one of the most active clubs and us as a Josephite traveled to various parts of the city for tree plantation was one of the biggest events during our batch. Ragging which has completely been eliminated now but in those days we used to have anti-ragging events as well. Another event that made me sink my future in capital markets was the workshops on capital markets that held almost every 3 months. The cultural event Josephista was introduced a year before I joined the college and the talent pool that it has generated is amazing to see. Many artists in the Telugu film industry have performed at St. Jospeh or should I say many Telugu film industry stars started their journey with St. Joseph.