The Tamil Nadu Dr. M.G.R. Medical University M.Pharm Review By Karthik Chandramouli

The MGR Medical University or TNMGRMU was established in 1987. Since then, the college has gained a reputation as one of the top medical universities in India. Today, it stands apart from the rest, be it its various UG streams or PG streams. I had applied for the PG specialization in Medical Sciences in 2018. And unlike the UG courses, I discovered that I had to appear for entrance exams. Basically, I downloaded the forms online, paid the requisite fees, and sat for the entrance tests. These are generally held each year, at various test centers. I was lucky enough to face the same. And post-interview with the university authorities, I managed to gain admission to my PG stream. I found that the Dr MGR University fees to be a bit on the high side. But that said, it offers state-of-the-art infrastructure, coupled with an awesome faculty and a curriculum that's kept updated.

Personally, I had always wanted to specialize in medical sciences, and thanks to DR MGR university, I was able to do so. What I found interesting was that the college offers internships. These internships may not pay well, but the experience is just invaluable. Between state-of-the-art labs, updated curriculum, skilled professors, tons of industrial exposure, it's no wonder that Dr. MGR University happens to be in the top 2%. I would rank it 9/10 on academics.

I found the faculty to be experts in their respective fields. They certainly ensured that we got in-depth knowledge, with enough practical exposure. The professors here are quite strict as far as the assignments and grade point average is concerned. The professors ensure that we have all got the requisite exposure. What's more, the college organizes several events through which, as students, we can display our know-how.

As far as placements are concerned, the college ranks a tad low as far as on-campus placements are concerned. A job worth 10-12 Lakhs per annum was the average at the university and some students even bagged a job worth over 20 lakhs per annum. You need to be lucky to get such jobs because they did nothing exceptional but were lucky I guess.

The hostel facilities are quite good and happen to be reasonably priced. There are about 1500 rooms, for both boys and girls. I found the hostel rooms to be clean, well maintained at all times. Furthermore, the power supply to the hostel was uninterrupted and it came with Wi-Fi as well. The University itself arranged the bus services for the hostel students. The hostel also provided amazing food. All 7 days we had a new menu and that made sure that we don’t have to find food elsewhere.

The university is located right in the middle of a sprawling campus, in Chennai. I certainly found it to have the latest in terms of infrastructure - from state-of-the-art labs to auditoriums, clubs, and play centers. The university also comes with greenery and well-covered pathways. They certainly help protect you from the harsh sun, which is the norm here in Chennai. The campus is spread over 300 acres and comes with well-ventilated classrooms, a well-stocked library, auditoriums, and much more. I found the labs to be extremely well stocked with kits and ventilated. The university has over 64 general labs, with specialized labs as well, and all of them happen to be well furnished. In addition, the library is well stocked, with the latest books, magazines and more. It has a collection of over 1.5 lakhs books. The library comes with the latest 3 M security systems, and the e-library is available 24 hrs and all week long.

As I had mentioned, the campus is widespread with nearly one million sq.ft. of built-up space. Apart from this, the college conducts an annual fest. The annual fest is open to the student body alone, and it generally brings everyone together.