Indian Institute of Technology Madras M.Tech Review By Saumya Doshi

No wonder why many IIT-M passed out students have gone on to settle in at the campus. The campus is super-duper, and no cold can separate IIT-M from other country institutes. The staff member's co-operation from beginning till the end was unforgettable. Growing up, I always dreamt of IITs and getting to IIT-M was surely not easy. After missing out during UGs, I ensured that I would leave no stone unturned until I got into any IITs. IIT Bombay was always my first choice, but destiny took me to an even better institute. Doing M. Tech from here is like learning new things daily. As a student, I could comprehend all concepts that were taught in class. Though some things were forceful, as the institute used to make us do many things that were irrelevant to our course, but since it was IIT-M, no one dared to say no. The campus will never let you bored, and if you are bored, the Phoenix Market was just a km away to have some fun.

As I said, something was forceful, and attendance was one of them. 85% attendance was mandatory and none had the right to disobey this rule of the institute. It didn't matter if you are not attentive in the class, but the professor's ego was satisfied only if you were in the class. It's not that the classes focused on attendance, but those who were keen to learn had a lot of bright stuff coming their way. You will forget what you have learned at graduation because the bridge between other institutes and IIT is such that you will have to start from scratch if you aren't an IIT graduate.

If this is the case with me or all, I found some professors too egoistic. If somehow, we haven't scored well in the subjects they teach, you will always be on their radar so that can point out a nook in you. My hook was in to actually irritate such people. As there's a brighter side to everything, the college also had many bright professors who were ironically passed out from IIT-M. IIT-M is one of those institutes that hires students interested in teaching.

I didn't take the job after UG as I wished to work for MNCs. I never knew that as many as 10 MNCs would interview me as IIT-M has recorded the highest number of MNCs to their campus since the 80s or 90s. Companies like Google, Infosys, Amazon, and Accenture are some of those names who would take any number of students if they are IIT-M passed out. The package numbers and all are such that it may look hard to believe. One can Google or ask their connects the highest package offered during the 2018 batch. It was 42LPA, and I am proud to say that this is to date the highest placement recorded from any of the IITs, and I feel lucky as the person was from our batch.

IIT-M is a residential campus, and there are plenty of hostels and residential facilities for staff members. The girl's hostel was close to the forest area of the campus, and therefore it was heavily protected. If I mention about all the facilities at the hostel, it will take me the full day. So let me sum it up in gist. The rooms were amazing as PG students had the option to stay in individual single rooms. The hostel had amazing internet of 1 GBPS. DC++ was the only source of downloading at IIT-M and not just the education material, but we could also download entertainment stuff from it. The reason for choosing a single room was by and large because twin and triple sharing rooms students have to share the common washrooms of wings. Some boy’s hostels allowed girls to enter but within a stipulated time. There were two mess operating, one that served North Indian food and one that served South Indian Food. The best thing was that it was not compulsory to have food from the mess as there was a campus café and we could have our choice of food from there.

IIT-M is one of the country's top institutes in terms of infrastructure. One needed to have their own vehicle to roam inside the campus as it was nearly 2.5 km big. The Guindy National Park is also a part of IIT-M, and therefore rare species of animals like Jackals, Deer, and Blackbucks were easily seen at the campus. The facility that makes the campus distinguish is IITM Research Park. Then there's a centre for innovation where you can go the park with any new idea that and if your product is liked, you will come out with funding in your hands. OAT (Open Air Theatre) of IIT-M has seen national celebrities and international celebrities perform. Pop singer Beyonce too, have performed here. The central library building has now been converted into a modern library that is fully air-conditioned. A swimming pool of Olympic size with 10 diving boards. There's a stadium inside the campus, and Chemplast Cricket Ground facilities are such that even Tamil Nadu State Cricket Association players use it for practice.

There was so much to do at the campus that sometimes we were distracted from our studies. There are seven restaurants operational inside the campus that offers food and beverages at subsidized prices. I used to have Café Coffee Day coffee for 50% as students were offered that much discount. The annual tech fest called Shaastra is considered the world's best student tech festival. The annual cultural fest Saarang was run entirely by the student. The program ended with popular night, and those five days, the campus would look something else.