National Institute of Fashion Technology Review By Gadha Meena Selvan

I joined NIFT Hyderabad in 2021 for the course bachelors of fashion technology (BFT). I chose the course and it was something that is not known by a lot of people and also because I wanted to lean to something that was engineering related, but not literally that. Upon research, I found that the field was something that had a lot of scope and was something that was expanding tremendously over the last few years, which means more job opportunities and better salary packages. I had also taken PCM as my major subjects for my 11th and 12th and wanted to move on with some course that had the same basic requirements. Fashion is something that is really interesting to study and research about and I would urge everyone interested in fashion to consider this course without the need of drawing or artistic skills. For every person who has dire interest in fashion and is not able to study as it has restrictions (can be because of lack of artistic skills or any creative skills for that matter) can choose this to stay in the same field. For people who are not necessarily interested in fashion, but have interest in marketing, merchandising, or even engineering, they can opt for this course. That is how diverse this course is.

So the basic requirement to get into BFT course is to have Physics, Chemistry, and Math (PCM) as your major after Class 10. With just a basic requirement as this, you can apply for BFT in NIFT. Eligibility criterion is to have 10+ 2 pass from any recognized institute. You can also join in after a diploma from a recognized AICTE or SBTE. If you are a student interested to work in any field which is fashion related, can be in the form of a designer, buyer, retailer, manager, etc., BFT can be the option for you. There are different ways through which you can go through it, like, technology, production, management, merchandising, quality check, planning, and a lot more. These are some fields graduates of BFT generally work in. You can also go into fields like, fashion counsellor, fashion show manager, retail buyer, etc.

One of the best strengths of NIFT Hyderabad is the faculty. A major group of faculties have Ph.Ds and over 20-25 years of experience which makes them the best source to give knowledge on the subjects. The classes are pretty effective and they emphasize a lot on hands on experience, so there are regular industry visits and practical projects to make us thorough with the curriculum. Mostly, all faculties have their degree in textile related subjects. But in BFT, a lot of faculties are also from Engineering backgrounds as Engineering topics are also part of the syllabus. The style of teaching depends on the faculty and subjects. Seminars, expert lecturers, and group discussions are the main methods of teaching. There will be presentations and in depth teaching every now and then to help the students understand easier.

Yes, there is a very active Placement Cell in campus (Called the RAC) which revises the placement packages every year and calls companies accordingly. It starts during the month of April and then the students get multiple companies to apply to based on their area of interest. The salary packages have been really low the past 2-3 years, but now, in 2024 it has taken a really good change. Only companies which have an annual package of 8 lakhs can come to place students and this has resulted in students getting really good deals. But at the end of the day, it depends on the students and their capability. It may not be very easy to secure jobs, but there are really good opportunities.

Yes, hostel facilities are available for students but only for girls. Boys will have to look for other options. But as the campus is placed in a prime location in Hyderabad, it is very easy and convenient for students to find good PGs, apartments, or any accommodation nearby. The hostel rooms are pretty decent, with mainly 2 sharing. 3 sharing and individual rooms can be given upon request. The rooms are pretty decent, even though it does not have a lot of space; it has enough space for students to share, with a bed, cupboard, table, and chair given. There is also partition between students inside the hostel which is really good for privacy. The washroom are moderately neat and have regular clean up sessions, which is almost every day. Water facilities are also available with cold water during the hot climate. Regular cleaning sessions are given for the filters as well. Washing machine facility is also available on the basis of availability at that point of time. Mess facility comes together with hostel amenities. Food is given for breakfast, lunch, snacks, and dinner. The food is not the best, but edible. It gets better every time. The food is on rotation every week and changes accordingly. Free Wi-Fi is also available with good connection on all floors. The hostel facility is only available for 3 years. The 4th years will have to shift as it’s only for 6 months of hostel residence.

There are mainly 2 buildings; the main block and the freshers block. The main block has major departments like fashion technology, fashion design, accessory design, and textile design. The freshers building has, knitwear design, fashion communication, and fashion management with the freshers block. There are 3 hostels inside the campus as well; the freshers hostel, junior hostel, and senior hostel. Other than that, there is a conference room, auditorium, photography lab, fashion communication studio, 8 ball pool and table tennis tables, a multipurpose hall, a small canteen, weaving labs, sewing labs, art labs, SPME lab, CAD labs, computer labs, patternmaking labs, etc. As of 2024, a new academic building and a hostel is under construction. New hostel rooms, art labs, performance rooms, etc. are being made.

All in all, NIFT Hyderabad is known for their endless number of events. There is an event literally every week. The major events are Spectrum and Converge. Spectrum is the inter Hyderabad event that has students from all over Hyderabad participating. Students from IIT, IIIT, BITS, IBS, layola, Symbiosis, NMIMS, and every other local college participate. Over 40 competitions are conducted out of which the main one is Art To Wear (which is just for the campus students). It is the grandest event that spreads across days and celebrities and very famous personalities come in for the event. After this, is Converge where majorly all NIFT Campuses like Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Kannur, Gandhinagar, Bangalore, Kolkata, Srinagar, etc. come to participate. All NIFT campuses all over India participate for the same. A total of 50 students are only allowed from per campus for this. Other than converge and spectrum, the major events in the campus are conducted by the different clubs such as cultural, literary and dramatics, sports, etc. Ganesh Chathurthi, Onam, Bhathukamma, Hindi divas, Teachers day, Freshers, Diwali, Dussehra, Holi, and Halloween are some major events conducted. The overall campus life is amazing. With people spread throughout different diversities coming together to celebrate everything. The work life balance is really good and helps the students balance between academics and fun activities. Different workshops are also conducted such a pottery/clay, dance, theatre, etc.