6 Things You should Look for In An Engineering College in India

Are you looking for an engineering college in India? Do you want to make sure you choose a good college? After all, you’re going to spend four most crucial years of your life there. It must be good and promise great start to your professional career. Read this if you want to know what makes a good engineering college in India.

Before that let me tell you a little about me and why it makes sense to listen to my advice. I completed my B.Tech. in 2015. Being a very active student, I had good contacts with students from different colleges in my city and even from different parts of the country. That allowed me to critically analyze how a particular aspect of a college affects your student life and your career. Therefore, I can confidently inform you about some of the most important things you should look for in an engineering college in India.

1. No management quota

Management quota is even worse than the usual reservation system in India that fetches quite enough criticism from people. While caste reservation system just gives a better chance to the weaker (or not so weaker) section of the society, management quota ensures that the atmosphere spoilers enter your college.

Most of the colleges in India take the donation and allow admissions under management quota. Such students come from the monetarily sound background but have little interest in studies. Most of the times, they will act as a bad influence on you or just belittle you for not being “that rich”.

If you are a bright student, try and enter the colleges that don’t have such a quota. And if you’re a person who is thinking of entering a college using management quota, I hope you didn’t get offended 😛

2. Automatic attendance

‘Proxies’ is the second most popular word in college (after ‘bunk’). A lot of you would be able to enjoy your college life just because of this concept of proxies. It’s marking your presence in your class while you’re off to movies or road trips. And this is the coolest thing about college.

It truly is, until one day you realize that you have been able to learn nothing in four years of your life. Just because no one cared about being present in class, no one cared about teaching or focusing on actual learning. And now you have placements, and you know nothing that can help you crack an interview.

So, decide! Are you going to college just to have fun and waste four years of your life or to get a degree that can help you procure a good job? If the answer is latter, prefer colleges that have an automatic attendance system.

3. Practical experience

Pick an engineering college that focuses on hands-on experience. Now, don’t believe a college by that prospectus, TV ad and presentations they show. Not even 20% of those are the truth. Find out about the alumni of the college and people who have just passed out of the college and ask them about the real situation.

Do they help you in learning the practical implementation of an engineering concept? Do the teachers insist on practical knowledge? Is the university’s curriculum focused on practical experience? Find an engineering college which has an affirmative answer to these questions.

4. Preparation for companies

Trust me! Once you’re in your last year, the only thing you would care about is getting a placement. Maybe that’s not your ultimate goal, but it’s a reasonably good idea just to test the waters before stepping into it. For example, I sat for placements, got offers from 5 MNCs and then decided to work on my own projects. Had I not been able to get those offers, I wouldn’t have enough confidence to start my own business right after I finished my B.Tech. Getting placed helps!

Check what kind of placement preparation programs are in place in the engineering colleges you’re considering. Don’t believe the placement stats released by management. They are often full of lies. Ask the alumnus instead. Also, check what kind of trainers they have. I lost the job offer from the only company I wanted to work with because of a stupid advice given by the “best teacher in the country” hired by my college. Hope that’s a lesson for you!

5. Chance for innovation

Many engineering colleges boast of the innovation cells and Formula one car, but not all of them can be trusted. A lot of them are just promoting one project which was accomplished ten years back. That usually happens by a couple of bright students who enter a college by chance!

Look for colleges that are in the news repeatedly for innovative projects and ideas. Again find people who have studied in a particular college to know what goes in there.

6. Performance of faculty

Most of the colleges boast of infrastructure and blah but often stay mute when it is about faculty. Or worse! They make false promises. For example, I entered my college thinking I would be taught by postgraduates while I was being taught by people just a year senior to me! A fresh B.Sc. Passout for mathematics! No wonder why I nearly failed in the subject. (Didn’t. Completed my degree without any backs at 84%)

If I had to sum up everything and just give my advice in one line, it would be – “do your research about everything a college claims”. Don’t get fascinated by the claims of the college. The students and alumni can tell you the real picture. Trust them!

Hope you will choose a good engineering college for yourself. It’s more important than you think it is! Let me know if this was helpful to you! Don’t forget to share it with your friends and family.