The journey of my Architecture days

Course curriculum The course trains us to solve the live design problems. We are exposed to seminars, studio workshops that instill in us the presentation skills, computer application skills and problem solving abilities. We are specifically taught the emerging issues with special with special emphasis on sustainable architecture, urban renewal and design, energy efficient design, heritage conversation, Acoustics and Aesthetics. We take a robust set of fundamental courses in the first year and advanced specialized courses in the later years. Some of the core courses that I studied include Material and Manufacturing, Light and space, Climate, Services, Infrastructure Design Studio, Interior Architecture Design Studio and Reading architecture. These courses enabled me to develop a comprehensive understanding of architecture. The university follows a choice based credit system (CBCS) that allows us to choose the electives wisely from the wide range of the subjects. We often choose the subjects with highest credits to increase our credit points.

Placement The Career Service Office is set up that acts as a medium between the industry and us. It provides counseling, coaching and corporate connections required for us to kick-start our professional journey. Some of the recruiters include Piramal Group, QCI, Common Ground Practice, INI Design Studio, HCP Design, Planning & Management Pvt. Ltd, Earth Foundation, Open Spaces Design Studio and Biome Environmental Solutions. The internships are the compulsory part of my course which is managed by the Career services office. I worked as summer intern for two months at open space design studio closely working with their designs that shaped my analytical and creative skills. I was paid the stipend of INR 20,000 per month.

Fee structure Since I secured my admission through All India Quota, my annual total tuition fee was INR 88,000. This was divided into two installments-INR 44,000 and INR 44,000 payable at the commencement of semester 1 and semester 2 respectively. The tuition fees did NOT include other incidental educational charges such as Study Materials, Stationary, peripherals, and consumables, Excursion Trip Charges, or any other charges or penalties. I paid the fees online through net banking.

Scholarships There are various scholarships and financial aid provided by the university to the students. The student who has secured more than 140 in NATA shall be eligible for 100% waiver of tuition fees for first each year of the program. Since my score was 170 I got 100% waiver of tuition fees for the first year. There is also Presidential scholarship which is one of the prestigious scholarships given to top five high-achieving students, across the postgraduate programs with distinguished academic records and accomplishments. It requires CGPA of 3 on a 4 point scale from the Recognized University. It also requires 80% above marks in both 10th and 12th grade in state or central board examination. All these scholarships encourage us to perform our best in the university.

Campus life The university is a state-of-the-art campus with studio spaces and well-equipped workshops. The library has ample of books on architecture and design. We can access the online database and journals of international universities to enhance our research work. There are various clubs and societies run by students on the campus. Some of the clubs include dance club, sketching club, graphic club, music club, photography club and sports club. I joined photography club in my first year. And took part in various photo exhibitions held across the colleges.

Admission The eligibility criteria requires that the student must have passed 12th grade with 50% marks in physics, chemistry and mathematics and 50% aggregate in the 12th grade exam level. The course takes the students who have cleared National Aptitude Test in Architecture (NATA). Out of the total 90 seats in the course, 40 seats has to be filled by the university through All India Quota. I applied online by filling the form. I had scored 170 marks in NATA exam and my name appeared in the second merit list prepared by the university. I got the admission through All India Quota. I paid the first installment of the tuition fee to reserve my seat and confirm my admission.

Faculty There are more than 15 faculty members in my department. All of them are experts in their field. Some of them are even the visiting faculty of the universities in USA and London. They all impart the industrial knowledge to us. They are our mentors who often take a mentor mentee session with us in which they discuss about the wisdom in life. They support us in all our designs and motivates us to perform better in classes and life as well.