A comprehensive review on the life and curriculum at Jadavpur University

I am persuing Civil Engineering at Jadavpur University. It is a comprehensive course consisting of a perfect balance between research oriented studies as well as industrial knowledge and practices. The syllabus is comprehensive and provides with credible knowledge to encourage us for further academic persuits as well as real world problem solving skills. The areas of improvement, though very less, might imply a significant change. The laboratory classes need to be more comprehensive in order for us to perform them with ease. The teaching methods are extremely helpful and doubts are solved instantly in the class. Exams are usually held twice in 10 months including 2 semester exams and 4 class tests. The difficulty is moderate to high. We also have lab viva-voce and practical exams that are on the easier side.

Students become eligible for campus placements in their final year of studies. However internship opportunities are available for 3rd year students. Microsoft, Amazon, Aecom, LnT, Samsung, IFDC Bank, HSBC Bank, Indian Oil, WBSEDCL, CESC, Pepsi, Texas Instruments, PWC, Deloitte, Schrodinger, Goldman Sachs, Flour Daniels, Netflix, Facebook are our regular recruitors among many others. Highest pay package is approximately 42 LPA and average is 12 LPA. All entry level and in some cases intermediate level job profiles are offered. Almost 80-85 percent students get placed with handsome pay package every year. After getting the degree I plan to grab a placement within the campus placement drive.

The total course fee for Btech is Rs. 12000 and it has remained same without increase for many years. This low course fee is mainly due to student movements that have kept the authority from increasing fees. We rather believe in funds by government to improve infrastructure than taking money from students who might have a weak economic background. Half freeship and full freeship are given to students appearing from weak economic background. In these schemes the students need to pay half the total fees or not any fees at all. No campus employment undertaken by me. I am a student without any scholarship. Although Mtech students are awarded a scholarship of Rs. 12000 per month.

Sanksriti is the annual cultural fest where all departments work together in the organisation and planning part. It is typically held in the months of April and spans for 9 days in a stretch. Both Indian and foreign bands are invited for performance and the campus goes for a full swing in those few days. Our technical fests include Srijan. There are lots of clubs and societies like the Science Club, Aerospace Club, Motorsports Club, Entrepreneurship Cell, Education For All, Mountaineering and Hiking Club and many others which actively participate in competitions. Sports and games are given a high priority. There are University teams for every game like Cricket, Football, Kabaddi, Basketball, Kho-kho, Vollyball, Lawn Tennis, Table Tennis, Chess and Badminton. Overall the campus is pretty dynamic and every individual has access to every club and sports activities that they want to persue along with academics. These clubs and societies have an active work culture and welcoming attitude.

Admission is based solely on the basis of rank in WBJEE. It is an entrance examination held in the state of West Bengal. The minimum eligibility criteria is 60 percent marks in boards for general students and decreases to 45 percent in case pf reservation. After WBJEE there itself is a window for application in the college. If the rank is below cutoff(determined by college and varies every year) then a letter is sent and offline admission needs to be taken after that. WBJEE exam is held once every year. The admission process is pretty easy and requires least interferance by parents. There are seniors always helping new students with the admission process.

The faculty to student ratio varies in different departments. In some department like mechanical engineering, they have a facultu-to-student ratio of 1:15 whereas in department like civil engineering they have a facultu-to-student ratio of 1:25. These are approximately the minimum and maximum. Each faculty holds a PhD degree in their subject and hence provide excellent knowledge in class. They also provide mentorship for different competitive examinations like GATE. They also focus on placements and make us interview ready. Teachers even work on their contracts to bring about internship opportunities for all. The teachers as well as lab assistants are always readily available for resolving our doubts. They are never reluctant regarding the students career and future.