IISER Berhampur, A Budding Institute With Immense Potential

I am still in undergraduate course. and I prefer to take Earth and Environmental Science because it is related to our mother Earth and the ecosystem which we are also a part of. It is an interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary course which includes fundamentals of Physics, Chemistry, Biology and Mathematics. It also conducts grest field study which all the other sciences lack. I like to explore new things out in the real life and this field will eventually grant me that. For now, the curriculum is more focused on Earth Science. But it would have been better if the balance would have been maintained with Environmental Science as well. The frequency and timing of the exams are the same as the others, two exams per semester with similar levels of difficulty.

When my seat was confirmed, we had to pay a seat acceptsnce fee of 39,000 INR which was adjusted with the fees of the the first semester, A total of 69,000 INR was the entire fee for the first semester including the admission fee. However, for the rest of the tenure i.e 9 semesters, we pay 54,200 INR for each semester. The fee can be broken down as follows- 39200 for tuition fee. 1500 for semester registration, 2000 for examination and grade card, 1500 for cultural activities, 1500 for library, 2000 for lab and computer facilities, 2000 for gym and sports, 3000 for hostel charges, 2000 for electricity, water and maintenance. However the tuition fees are waived for SC/ST/PwD students. So they pay around 17200 INR each semester. For now, there are no scholarships for the students.

There are cultural end scientific events being conducted all over the year. We celebrate major festivals like Diwali, Ganesh Chaturthi, Utkal Diwas, Onam, Agomoni, Lohri, Bihu, Janmashtami and much more. We even have INVENIO- Science Fest, STREAM- Science Outreach Event, ALORA- Food Fest, LAKSHYA- Sports Meet and the three day Annual Fest- KYRAT. The campus life is colorful and can be dramatic sometimes like any other campus. Still being an under construction campus, there are many things going on around the corner. There are many highly sophiticated and advanced reseacrch machines there being installed here and there like NMR (Nuclear Magnetic Resonance), MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging), etc. There are many Science clubs related to Ecology, Biology, Mathematics, Physics, Astronomy, etc. There are also cultural clubs like dance club, music club, chess club, etc. Recently a mesmerising birding trip was organised by the Ecology club (Oasis) to Mangalajodi, a wetland to the north of Chilika Lake.

Only the first years are alloted double rooms to make a social life among batchmates. From the next years, they are shifted to a single room. Each room is well furnished with one bed, a wooden study table and a chair, a closet, a clothes hanger, a tubelight a night lamp and a railed sliding window with mesh. There are three sockets and one ethernet port too. Still the room is well spacious. There are no cracks or leakages either in the floor, walls or in the ceiling.However there are common bathrooms and toilets. Each floor is equipped with two washing machines, two water coolers, 3 washrooms, each containing 3 sinks, bathrooms and toilets. on the three corners of the floor. The hostel is compulsory and affordable- 3000 hostel charges and 2000 for electricity, water and maintenance for each semester, i.e 4 months. The meal quality is very bad compared to the price. The menu is great but the food quality is far worse. We pay 140 INR for each day and end up with incomplete stomach. After much revolt, the institution is planning to change the mess company by May 2025.

From the 8th standard, I have been interested to stude in either NISER or IISER. I had made up my mind since then that I would do research in any of the fields. So, I gave the entrance test for both IISER (IAT) and NISER (NESt). I was not selected in NISER. I managed to get a seat in IISER. among the seven IISERs, I chose IISER Berhampur because it was the closest from my native place and it's campus plan was the best of all the IISERs. I also gave JEE and NEET like any other student. I could have even enrolled in a good engineering college, but I was hoping to find a seat here. The results of IAT and Nest were far later than JEE. I was ready to take a drop for the next time if my selection didn't happen. But seccessfully i was selected on my first attempt and came to IISER Berhampur. Well, IISER recruits students from a test named IISER Aptitude Test (IAT) which is a competitive exam just like JEE or NEET. It is a computer based test (CBT). The questions are from 12th standard Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics and Biology. Eligibility criteria- Must secure atleast 60% marks in 12th board exams. For those with PCB or PCM there is an option to take paper only in their respective subjects. Like a student with PCB won't get questions on Mathematics and vice-versa

Well the facukty members here are not professional teachers. They are researchers. They are working on their own theories and research along with teaching us. There are professors, assisstant professors, teaching assisstants, etc. However, for the first two years of undergraduate program, where we have to study all the branches, one-to-one interaction with the professors is difficult amonf 170 students. But they are approachable througm mail. From the third year onwards after taking majors, we can get more attention within a class of around 30-40. There were only a few faculty so far who were interesting though. One among them is Dr. Rahul Sharma. In the first semester, he mesmerised us with his absolute teaching skills on the course on Classical Mechanics. He is a very wise guy. He is the most approachable guy so far. He also gave us chocolates from his behalf on his first class and in the examination. Another one was Dr. Vishwas Chavan who cracked jokes multiple times during his class on his course on Introduction to Environmental Sciences. He also took us on cleanliness drive and to make us understand better, he conducted a theatre where we had to enact on a story related to many Acts taken to conserve the environment. He also gave hillaarious commentary during the Faculty cricket match. Regarding the exams, each semester we have two exams- one mid- semester exam and one end semester exam. They are relatively tough. But cracking them is easy with a good hold on concepts with thorough practice.

No. there was no GD or interview. One can get admission if he/she clears the cut-off of the IAT examination. you shall frequently check the results of the counselling rounds. Beforehand, you will be asked to select your preference order among the seven IISERS. According to that you will be selected. You must pay the seat acceptance fee even if you get a seat in an IISER of lower preference. You must choose the option to accept a seat but still continue in the upcoming counselling rounds hoping to get an IISER of higherr preference. I would suggest to complete understand the concepts of CBSE 11th and 12th grade from NCERT textbooks only. The questions are directly picked up from the textbooks only. And practice the previous year questions as much as you can to gather confidence and get an idea of the question pattern. With this clearing IAT is just a piece of cake

The beach is the favourite hangout spot for me. Otherwisse, the football field and the cafeterias are also great to hangout and have a chit-chat along with the cold breeze. Hitting the gym and playing sports also are a great way to relax and have a break. Late night activities include having a stroll after dinner and watching movies or webs-series during midnight. Campus is closed after 8 pm. The campus gate gets closed by 8 pm. However one can roam around the campus till 2 am. The nearby locality is relatively safe to roam around.Outside the campus, there are a few food stalls and there is a temple nearby too. Being situated in a rural area has a benefit of nature gazing. We can move out of the campus and observe the Cashew trees, Kewda trees. Also the birdlife here is vast too including kites and hawks.