SRM KTR: A Top Private University in India for Coding Enthusiasts

Studying at SRM was one of the best decisions that I made. From basic infrastructure to facilities, faculties and events happening inside the campus, it is an entire different world. I chose this university because of its good name, exposure, infrastructure, and the extracurricular opportunities that it provides to the students. Even though pandemic era took almost half of my college life, whatever that I had in the institute is unforgettable. I did apply to other colleges also, but decided to stay at SRM mainly because it has elements, which satisfies both parents and students.

I was interested in coding and that is the main reason for enrolling in this subject. It was famous for its Computer Science but I did not want to do engineering. For BCA, you are supposed to have minimum pass marks for being eligible to apply here. I applied directly. I received the call for admission via email. Upon arriving, I had a personal interview, which I felt more or less like a basic document verification process (including your 12th and 10th marksheet) and to check your basic communication skills. After that, it informed me that I am eligible for admission and I can join by paying the fee for the first year. The admission was purely based on merit. We have exams every 2 months (6-month semester) called Cycle Test (CT), which along with our attendance is considered for our internal marks. We have a total of 2 CT's, 1 Model Exam (also considered for Internal Marks) before the final exams. The exams are not easy but if you study well enough, it is not hard to score marks. The curriculum gives us a basic idea regarding the programming languages and how everything works. This along with our lab sessions and placement training gives us an idea on applicability of the same and makes us industry ready.

The tuition fee was Rs. 80,000 per year (This was back in 2018). So I paid a total of Rs. 2,40,000 (3 year course) for this course. This includes every charge that is needed for academics. We have to bear other extra charges for submitting Assignments (Printing and Binding) and Records for certain Elective Subjects (for example, if you choose photography as your elective, you'll have to submit the assignments in different paper size with color prints having certain quality which can get expensive). I do not remember having special discounts in fee for specific category students or any scholarships for the same provided by the college.

Curriculum was vast and extensive but the faculty was well experience with student coming from non IT backgrounds. They literally started from scratch because the topics will get intense after a while, so thorough knowledge on basics were essential and the faculties make sure of that. Most of the faculties were working on their papers for PhD which makes them more than qualified for the relevant subjects or topics. Most of them stick with standard blackboard sessions while few others concentrate on discussions with real life applications and issues. The faculties are always approachable even for a basic doubt, they'll make sure that all of our concerns related to the topics are cleared well enough. We had around 50 students in the class but the faculties could easily concentrate on every individual student. They'll monitor your performances in exams and participation in class activities and provides extra care if required. Most of the faculties were friendly and will help you to achieve your goals.

You should not have any backlogs for appearing the placements. From the first year itself, we have CDC (Career Development Cell) classes that provide us training with everything needed for the campus placements. It mainly focuses on enhancing and boosting our self-confidence, helps us to overcome our stage fear, and it corrects even the basic mistake we make. We also have a Placement cell team that assists us throughout the placement process. From 5th semester (3rd year), onwards you'll start receiving classes, workshops and training arranged by the placement cell to enhance and brush up our skills and makes us industry ready for the campus placement process. The team trained us even during the pandemic era via online, conducted online workshops and classes and ensured that we are ready for the next step. We had top MNC's like Infosys, Wipro, TCS, IBM, Deloitte, and many other famous companies that came to our college for campus placement. Since mine was during the pandemic era, the procedures for the same were a bit different from the usual. Everything was conducted online and the number of opening spots was limited. Therefore, we had to compete with students from other colleges for the same spot. The average salary package was around 3 Lakh per annum. I was also placed in a famous MNC with a package of 2.4 Lakh per annum.

College does have multiple hostels inside the campus. The fees changes depending on which hostel you want to enroll in since different hostels have different facilities provided and the fees varies based on the facilities. We have separate and multiple hostels for girls and boys. Each hostel has separate mess that provides both North Indian and South Indian delicacies. Quality and hygiene of the hostel mess in commendable. It provides a huge variety of healthy and delicious food 4 times a day (Breakfast, Lunch, Evening Tea / Snacks and Dinner). Hostels have separate securities at their entrances and students are supposed to mark their attendance in the biometrics daily. Students are supposed to get back to the hostel by 7 PM and are required to take permission by submitting paper to go outside the hostel after the specified time.

Infrastructure and facilities that SRM provides to its students are commendable. We have free shuttle bus services from the entrance to every main building inside the campus. We have 2 water coolers on both ends of every floor that provide both hot and cold water. Each classroom has Wi-Fi modems that provide free Wi-Fi to students. Students can use the same by using the individual credentials provided by the college. SRM medical college provides medical assistance to the students. The consultation is free (there is one time registration charge) and we have student discounts on medical tests. It also has a star hotel outside the campus where BHM students are trained. We have separate canteens for each department, one private canteen (called JAVA) that has private food outlets including Subway. We have saloon, ATM’s, and even stationary stores inside the campus. This is a huge campus with many iconic buildings. You would have seen some of them in movies. We have a huge library with vast varieties of books and a silent reading room nearby. College has multiple grounds, facilities, GYM, and even indoor stadium inside the campus. There are securities in the main entrance, entrance of every building also. We have beautiful gardens inside the campus and a lake nearby with beautiful scenery. Campus also has multiple labs, which are huge enough to hold more than 50 students (in a single lab) at a time. College is situated on the side of the NH, which is also an active bus route. Pother railway station is on opposite side of NH with respect to college.

SRM has lots of fests, events, promotions and everything happening throughout a year. We have Jalap and Aarush (inter house cultural competitions), celebrations during festivals, Department fests, Road shows, Stunt performances, Marathons and our main fest called ‘SRM Milan’. It is a 5-day fest with many events and activities for students, celebrity appearances, and concerts from famous national and international artists sponsored by giants like Red Bull, Coke Studio, One plus arena and many more. We have students from all around India and we have international students and it has a community in the campus. College does give importance to extracurricular activities of all types. We have a number of student clubs (including gaming, theatre, movie, technology, etc.) which the students can join based on their interests and skills. All of the clubs conducts wide variety of programs for promoting their clubs.