Charotar University of Science and Technology MBA Review By Darshan Vaghani

Charusat is one of the top universities in Anand. Going to Anand from Ahmedabad was like a step back as there are many MBA colleges in Ahmedabad as well. If I had admissions in my desired college, I wouldn't have relocated to Anand. However, I am not disappointed at all and perhaps happy that I came here. Here again, a couple of my friends from the previous institute Indus University accompanied me and explored a nice little world at Charusat. Like many other universities in India, Charusat was also a dedicated engineering college but started the Management program a few years back. The institute is more known for its engineering studies, and MBA is just a cover option. One can have fun, enjoy life, and make new friends, but the primary reason for which we all were here took a back seat. The reason was placement, and even though one of my friends somehow made it, I couldn't get placement through campus. Thus, if placement is the only thing, you are looking at, don't join the MBA program. No complaints about the university other features as the rest all are taken care of brilliantly.

Academics at Charusat was more severe than anywhere else. Students have to be sharp on time and can't leave the classes as there was hardly any break between the classes. Coffee break or a small interval was only after the first three classes were done. The latest technology has been introduced in the classes and students were asked to give a live presentation of their projects in the class. Many such exercises like hypothetical reasoning and situational dramatic picturization related to studies were all done in class. Thus, practicals and theory both were done in class. I bet one will never get bored even after spending 8-9 hours in classes daily.

More than the knowledge, they had the skills and wanted us to grasp every bit of it. MBA students can never make an impulsive decision but had to make customers buy products out of impulsiveness. Marketing was never my genre, and I regretted till the end why I chose marketing as my specialization. The projects we did ranged right from being a salesman to selling almost everything had faculty backing. Live videos were shot, and faculty would analyse them and picture the areas we need to improve. Faculty members were quite helpful, and at this level, where self-study is the most crucial aspect, the faculty still did spoon-feed in developing the required skills in us.

3 out of 1 had the last laugh with placements. We were three friends and only one of us could manage a placement as the placement rate was exactly the same. 3 out of 1 would be placed from the campus and finding an off-campus job is too extreme. I thought of cursing the institute for the false promises they made, but maybe I didn't have the required skills or wasn't good enough to enjoy corporate life. There's a hell lot of competition, and if one thinks he/she is tough enough, they can try their hands at Charusat for placements.

All the boy's hostels were outside the campus as the campus only had girl's hostels. This was, in a way, good as we had enough options to choose from. There were plenty of hostels and all at different locations. The rooms charges were as per the room, and the hostel we choose was the Royal Care Hostel. The rent was reasonable and sharing it with my friends, I didn't mind because the hostel had all the facilities that one, in general, has at their home. The university bus took care of student's travel from hostel to college.

One should look at the college entrance. It's grand, and one will feel like they are entering an old palace that has a hell lot of greenery. Palm trees surrounding all around the campus made sure that sunlight escaped only between them and one will be under complete shade at the campus. The campus is huge, and I was not accustomed to such a huge campus because most of the colleges and universities in Ahmedabad has don't even have a one-tenth area of what Charusat had. The college canteen was used only during the breaks as I am a coffee lover and the coffee at the canteen was pretty good. The campus had many shops inside the campus like a medical shop, a departmental store, a Xerox center, an ATM, and a couple of gardens. The sporting facilities, from indoor to outdoor, were terrific. The campus was huge and probably one of the biggest in the state.

Life was fun as it was the first time I stayed at the hostel. It was the first time where I had to bargain with strangers for notes and all. So, for me, it was the experience of a lifetime. I was an introvert, but once you leave your comfort zone, there are many changes that one has to make. I learned all of that at the Charusat campus, and I would always thank the university for teaching me life lessons that will help me with all my endeavor in the future.