Anna University B.Tech Review By Hrutvik Rane

Anna University, established in 1978, happens to be a premier educational institution. It's located in Chennai, right in the midst of a sprawling campus. It offers several professional courses and I sure was lucky enough to be granted admission to the civil engineering stream, based on my higher secondary marks. They did have a common entrance exam, but that's all changed since 2006. These days, only the post-graduate courses come with an entrance exam, such as TANCET and GATE. Lucky me, I managed to get my seat based on my 12th board exam results as there was no entrance for graduation courses then and finally graduated from the Anna University Chennai by 2016.

On joining the Civil engineering stream, I was a little anxious, but that was just an overreaction on my part. The curriculum is spread over 8 semesters for the duration of the course. But as far as I'm concerned, the fact I was given oodles of practical work, allowed requisite lab time certainly went a long way to helping me graduate in the top 10% in my stream. Apart from the core curriculum, we are also asked to take on a few electives as well. On the whole, Anna University happens to be one of the best engineering colleges in Chennai.

The faculty here happens to be one of the best, they are all professionals and have the requisite experience. My professors ensured that I understood the topic and got industrial exposure, practical know-how. It's because of the faculty that I excelled in my field. The only downside I faced was that I was given lots of assignments and the faculty were strict, regarding the same. They had a soft side too but kept it away so that students don’t get carried away by the same. They balanced both the angles so that they don’t look harsh than what they really were. I would rate the faculty quite high as the quality was unreal.

Anna University placement has a high record with nearly 90% placement. I suppose the fact that some of the top MNCs have a presence on campus accounts for the high placement record. And what's more, with a good record, any student should be able to receive an 8-10 Lakhs pay package. That's what I got and have never since looked back.

The Anna University hostel has exquisite facilities for both men and women. I thought the hostel fees were slightly on the high side, but it’s worth it. Since I am from Maharashtra, I got the preference to stay on campus, for a pittance of what it'll cost elsewhere. Moreover, if you opted to stay outside the campus, you'll have to use public transportation to get to the campus daily. What's more, staying in the hostel is safer and comes with a strict night curfew. And regarding the hostel itself, the rooms are large, clean and so are the washrooms. They are cleaned periodically. The food did bother me till, I developed the taste bud for south Indian food. Once that was done, I even took my parents to mess for food whenever they came to meet me. The hostels are definitely worth it.

The campus is extensive, with modern buildings all around. The best part for me was that I could access 24/7 internet on most parts of the campus. Yes, Anna University campus comes with Wi-Fi. On the whole, the institute comes with well-maintained washrooms, spruced up labs, state-of-the-art classrooms, and more facilities including sports grounds, game centers, auditoriums etc. The canteens here are quite good. I certainly loved the food and the best part is that the institute is located near the city center, which is quite handy. The connectivity to any part of the city from institute was great as we had bus stations and metro stations at walking distance from the University.

The first time I entered the campus to submit my application, I was anxious and a bit scared as well. I was such an idiot but I guess that's a natural reaction on anyone's part. The whole campus looked pleasant with lush greenery everywhere. What's more, the campus has more facilities like labs, auditoriums, and even on-campus cafes and department shops. It also has nearly 15 clubs. I certainly found the whole experience surreal. Anna University is the institute to attend, no doubt about it. The only downside I found was that I was fully occupied with my assignments and hardly had time to understand the culture or the people over here. I desired to explore the new areas that brought me to Chennai and I am glad that I didn't just choose Chennai but also Anna University for my exploration adventure. But now that I have graduated, I can honestly tell that South India has a flare in education that is much different from other states. Many questioned my choice when I came from Maharashtra to Chennai but Anna University has students from almost all the Indian states and one will never feel out of place at Anna University.