Education in Chennai

Chennai is home to many educational and research institutions. IIT Madras is ranked among the top centres of engineering education in India. College of Engineering, Guindy is the only state owned college to be ranked in the top 10 engineering colleges in India, along with the IITs and NITs.^[1] Madras Institute of Technology is another institutions for engineering studies, which is also part of Anna University along with College of Engineering, Guindy. it also have one of Top MBA institute in India Xavier Institute of Management and Entrepreneurship, Chennai. Medical colleges such as the Madras Medical College and Stanley Medical College are located in the city. The arts and science colleges in the city include Loyola College, Stella Maris College, Women's Christian College, DG Vaishnav College, Madras Christian College and Presidency College. Some of the schools in Chennai are recognized among the top schools in the nation.^[2]

Schools

Schools in Chennai are run publicly by the Tamil Nadu government, or run privately, some with financial aid from the government. The medium of education in private schools is English.^[3] Government run schools offer both English and Tamil medium education.^[4] Private schools are usually affiliated to the Tamil Nadu State Board or the Tamil Nadu Matriculation board. A few schools are affiliated to the national CBSE board, ICSE board, NIOS board, Anglo-Indian board and the Montessori system. A few schools also offer the International Baccalaureate and the American systems. Schooling begins at the age of three with two years of kindergarten, followed by ten years of primary and secondary education. Students then need to complete two years of higher secondary education in one of two streams: science or commerce, before being eligible for college education in a general or professional field of study.^[5] The sex education programme was made as a mandatory in Chennai schools and colleges for the first time in nearly two decades. This announcement was done by the city Mayor at a function to commemorate World AIDS Day.^[6] School Education Department of Government of Tamil Nadu announced that, from 2012 educational year onwards, the books for students are merged to reduce carrying loads of books. T.S Sridhar, Additional Chief Secretary to Government told that the number of books reduced as two for 7th and 8th std students and only one book up to 6th std.The state board system is often criticised due to the lack of quality it provides to the students comparing to world class education systems. ^[7]

Colleges

The main building of College of Engineering, Guindy.

The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Madras (1959), is located in the south of the city.^[8] Located nearby, is the main campus of Anna University (1978), which formed from a merger of the College of Engineering, Guindy (1794), the Madras Institute of Technology (1949), the Alagappa College of Technology (1944), and the University of Madras School of Architecture and Planning (1957). Almost all colleges in Tamil Nadu that offer programs in engineering, technology and architecture are affiliated to Anna University.^[9] The remaining colleges are autonomous deemed universities.

The University of Madras (1857), which has six campuses in the city, offers a range of programs in liberal arts, science and commerce. A majority of city colleges are affiliated to the university and offer programs in medicine, law, science, Arts and commerce.^[10][11] Some such older institutions are the Madras Christian College (1837), Presidency College (1840), Pachaiyappa's College (1842), the Madras Medical College (1835), Stanley Medical College (1938) and Vivekananda College (1946), The New College, Chennai (1951), Madras School of Social Work Chennai (1953) DG Vaishnav College Chennai (1964) all of which affiliated themselves to the University of Madras on its formation. Other autonomous educational establishments include Sri Sivasubramaniya Nadar College of Engineering(1996), SRM University (1968), Hindustan University (1985), Bharath University (BIHER) (1984), Sathyabama University (1987), B. S. Abdur Rahman University (1984), Quee Mary's College (1914), Women's Christian College (1915), Ethiraj College for Women (1948), Loyola College, Chennai (1925), Stella Maris College (1947), Stella Matutina College of Education (1961), St. Marys School of Management (1987), the National Institute of Fashion Technology (1995), Asian College of Journalism (2000) and the Madras School of Social Work (1952).^[12] The Dr. Ambedkar Government Law College, Chennai, a prominent law college in Tamil Nadu was founded in 1891. Madras Medical College, established in 1835,^[13] is one of the oldest educational institutions to offer medical education in the Indian subcontinent. Stanley Medical College, Kilpauk Medical College and Sri Ramachandra Medical College and Research Institute are other medical colleges in the city. Madras Veterinary College established in 1903 was the first institution of its kind in India. The southern regional office of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) is located in Chennai. The ICAI is the governing body of the chartered accountancy profession in India.

One of the best private Film school in India mindscreen film institute headed by Rajiv Menon which offers courses in film making, cinematography and acting is in Mylapore Chennai

Research Institutions

Chennai is home to many research institutions. One of the premier institutions in the mathematical sciences, Matscience is located in Taramani. The world's largest organization for leather research, the Central Leather Research Institute, is located in Adyar. It is a constituent of the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, India and is the premier institution of education and research in the leather sector in India.^[14] The Central Electronics Engineering Research Institute, which is an important center for electronics research in India, has a branch in Chennai. The centre focuses on advanced sensor technologies, process control instrumentation and automation and machine vision technologies.^[15] Centers for research in mathematical, physical and computer sciences include the Institute of Mathematical Sciences (IMSc) and the Chennai Mathematical Institute (CMI). The IMSc focuses on research in theoretical computer science, mathematics, and theoretical physics, while the CMI specializes in algebraic geometry, representation theory, Lie groups, logic, languages and automata theory. The National Institute for Research in Tuberculosis (NIRT) and National Institute of Epidemiology (NIE) are the two ICMR institutes in Chennai.^[16] The Institute for Financial Management and Research, which is a leading business school and a prominent research institution, is located at Nungambakkam in Chennai. Madras School of Economics, a premier post-graduate institution for teaching and research in economics is in Kotturpuram, Chennai.

The centrally funded institutions are Indian Institute of Information Technology Design & Manufacturing Kancheepuram (IIIT-DM),^[17] National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT),^[18] National Institute of Technical Teachers Training and Research (NITTTR),^[19] National Institute of Siddha,^[20] Kalakshetra Foundation^[21] and the Madras Institute of Development Studies (MIDS).^[22] The Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR),^[23] Dakshina Bharat Hindi Prachar Sabha,^[24] Indian Maritime University,^[25] Central Institute of Plastics Engineering and Technology (CIPET)^[26] and the Officers Training Academy are also headquartered in Chennai.^[27]

The campuses of the Central Scientific Instruments Organisation (CSIO), Central Electro Chemical Research Institute (CECRI), National Metallurgical Laboratory (NML), National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI) and Indian Statistical Institute (ISI) are also located in Chennai.^[28][29] Some other research institutes located in Chennai are the Adyar Cancer Institute,^[30] Central Institute of Brackish Water Aquaculture (CIBA),^[31] National Institute of Wind Energy (NIWE),^[32] Combat Vehicles Research and Development Establishment (CVRDE),^[33] and the MS Swaminathan Research Foundation (MSSRF).^[34]

Libraries

Anna Centenary Library

The Connemara Public Library built in 1890 is one of the four National Depository Centres in India. These centres receive a copy of all newspapers and books published in India.^[35] It has been declared as a UNESCO information centre.^[36] Other important libraries include the Archaeological Survey of India library at the Fort St. George, the Theosophical Society library at its headquarters in Adyar, the Ramakrishna Math Library and The Krishnamurti Foundation library in the premises of the Krishnamurti Foundation world headquarters.The Anna Centenary Library (ACL) is a newly established library, located at Kotturpuram in Chennai. Built at a cost of 1,720 million, it is the largest library in Asia.^[37]

Weekend education

Japanese School Educational Trust of Chennai (チェンナイ補習授業校 Chennai Hoshū Jugyō Kō), a Japanese weekend education programme, serves Japanese nationals living in Chennai. It is located at American International School Chennai, Taramani.^[38] Established by the Japanese Association in Chennai (チェンナイ日本人会 Chennai Nihonjin Kai), it opened in June 1975 as The Japanese Class of Madras (マドラス日本語補習教室 Madorasu Nihongo Hoshū Kyōshitsu). In 1998 the school adopted the name Japanese Language School of Chennai (チェンナイ日本語補習校 Chennai Nihongo Hoshū Jugyō Kō) since Madras took the name Chennai. The school moved to AIS Chennai in 2003. It adopted its current name in 2005 so it could register as a trust, as per the Trust Act.^[39]

Institute Of Computer Accountant of Chennai, an accounting training programme offers certification course in Accounts and Finance

Book Banks

The working of a book bank is similar to a library, where books are lent out for a specified period. However, unlike a library, book banks cater only to students as customers and lend them books for their entire semesters (usually six months). The book banks charge a fee and provide the students with the text books they need for their course. Students benefit by not having to spend a lot for their course books.

MV Book Bank is considered a pioneer of the idea in Chennai and leads the rest of the book banks in customer base and branches.^[40] However, competitors in the form of REC Book Bank , Reach Book Bank , OKOT Book Bank , Students Book Bank and a few others are important players in the field.

Book Bank Rates Comparison in Chennai 2011 ^[41]

• Book Bank Rates in Chennai 2011

Imported Books

Chennai is home to the famous Passaro Books, the pioneer's in offering pre-owned imported children's books to schools. They offer a wide genre of books for all age groups viz; Children's books, reference books (art, home decor, architecture, health, cookery, gardening, fashion, photography, cars, travel, educations etc), coffee table books, Reader’s digest, DK series, adult fiction / romance etc.

They were featured in The Hindu, The New Indian Express newspapers and the Education World magazine. They have more than 300 schools of high repute as their clients.

References

External links

• Information on Schools in Chennai City - GrepCity