Vellore Institute of Technology

Vellore Institute of Technology
Former names
 Vellore Engineering College
Type Private
Founder G. Viswanathan
Chancellor G. Viswanathan
Vice-Chancellor Anand A Samuel
Location Vellore, Tamil Nadu, India
Campus Rural, spread over 250 acres (1.0 km2)
Affiliations UGC
Website www.vit.ac.in

Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT), formerly Vellore Engineering College is a private deemed university institute located in the outskirts of Vellore, Tamil Nadu, India. Founded in 1984, as Vellore Engineering College, by G. Viswanathan, the institution offers 20 undergraduate, 34 postgraduate, four integrated and four research programs. It has campuses in Vellore and Chennai (Tamil Nadu), Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh), and Amaravati (Andhra Pradesh), India. N. Chandrababu Naidu, the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh and M. Venkaiah Naidu, the Vice-president of India (then a Union Minister), participated in the foundation ceremony of the Amaravati campus of VIT.[1] Foundation stone for VIT Bhopal campus at Sehore, Madhya Pradesh was laid down by Shivraj Singh Chouhan (Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh) on 20 October 2016.[2][3]

Admissions

VIT admits students through its own engineering entrance exam, called the Vellore Institute of Technology Engineering Entrance Examination (VITEEE). It is conducted every year in the month of April and May. The exam has been conducted online since 2013[4] and in 2018 212,000 students have registered.[5] Although VITEEE may be considered easier than JEE Advanced,[6][7] it is also considered more difficult than other exams, such as SRM University's SRM JEEE,[8]

Admissions for non engineering undergraduate programmes are granted on the basis of the applicants' 12th standard board exam results. It is mandatory for every student to have studied mathematics as a regular subject to be considered for admission.

Academics

VIT offers academic programs in Engineering, Technology, Applied Sciences, and Management. It offers 20 undergraduate programs, 34 postgraduate, four integrated MS courses, and four doctoral programs. VIT consolidated its disciplines into 10 Schools of Study with the addition of the VIT Law School at its Chennai campus.[9]

Research centers are part of the schools to encourage collaboration between the research and coursework areas and provide an opportunity for coursework students to participate in research projects. VIT organizes industrial workshops like Automotive Engineering, organized by ParaMek Technologies in GraVitas Fest.[10]

VIT is among the first in India to implement the Fully Flexible Credit System (FFCS) which gives the students flexibility to make their own time tables by choosing the subjects and the faculties under whose guidance they want to study.[11]

Rankings

University and institute rankings
General – international
QS (Asia) (2018)[12] 271-280
Times (World) (2018)[13] 801-1000
Times (Asia) (2018)[14] 251-300
General – India
NIRF (Overall) (2018)[15] 24
NIRF (Universities) (2018)[16] 16
Engineering – India
NIRF (2018)[17] 13
India Today (2017)[18] 5
Outlook India (2017)[19] 9
Business/Management – India
NIRF (2018)[20] 29
Outlook India (2016)[21] 54

VIT was ranked 801-1000 in the world by the Times Higher Education World University Rankings of 2018[13] and 251-300 in Asia.[14] The QS World University Rankings ranked it 271-280 in Asia in 2018.[12]

The National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) ranked VIT 24 overall[15] and 16 among universities[16] in 2018.

Among engineering colleges it was ranked 16 by NIRF in 2018,[17] 5th by India Today in 2017[18] and 9th by Outlook India in 2017.[19]

The VIT Business School was ranked 17 among management schools in India by NIRF in 2017[22] and 54 in India by Outlook India's "Top 100 Management Schools" of 2016.[21]

Schools

Teaching at VIT is structured around schools listed below. Students are registered in one of these schools according to their field of study.

  • School of Advanced Sciences (SAS)
  • School of Architecture (V-SPARC)
  • VIT School of Design (V-SIGN)
  • School of Bio Sciences & Technology (SBST)
  • School of Civil and Chemical Engineering (SCALE)
  • School of Computing Engineering (SCOPE)
  • School of Electrical Engineering (SELECT)
  • School of Electronics Engineering (SENSE)
  • School of Information Technology & Engineering (SITE)
  • School of Mechanical Engineering (SMEC)
  • School of Social Sciences & Languages (SSL)
  • Department of Physical Education (DPE)
  • VIT Business School (VIT-BS)
  • VIT Law School (at Chennai Campus only)
  • VIT School of Fashion (both in Chennai and Vellore campus)
  • VIT school of Bsc. Catering & Hotel Management

College festivals

Two main college fests are conducted in VIT: graVITas and Riviera.

GRAVITAS is the technology-oriented festival conducted in August/September.

Riviera is a sports and cultural festival. According to organizers for Riviera 2011, it pulled more than 300 participants from over 20 colleges and universities. Rivera 2013 saw popular names like Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy, Sukhwinder Singh, Chiyaan Vikram, Siddarth, singer Kartik and many more. ParaMek Technologies from New Delhi conducted a workshop on Automotive Engineering during the fest which was attended by more than 450 students.[23]

Campuses

Vellore Campus

VIT's main campus in Vellore is on 365 acres of land.[24] It is divided by the Chennai–Bangalore railway line. The academic portion of the campus and the women's hostels are to the south of the railway tracks while the northern portion houses the men's hostels and the outdoor stadium. The parts are connected by three subways.

The campus resembles a city, with lake, gardens, lawns, residential complexes, food courts, hair salons and wide roads. The campus has its own water supply and backup electricity supply along with shopping complexes to cater to the needs of residents.

VIT is in the city of Vellore in India's southern state, Tamil Nadu, between Chennai and Bangalore. It is 130 km west of Chennai and 180 km east of Bangalore. The nearest airport is Chennai (two and half hours drive). Vellore-Katpadi Junction is the nearest railway station, 3 km from campus.

Chennai campus

VIT university also has a campus in the city of Chennai, spread out over 160 acres, situated on the Vandalur-Kelambakkam road.

Amaravati campus

VIT is the first academic institute to set up a campus in Amaravati, the new capital city of Andhra Pradesh.[25] The new state private university is called VIT-AP. VIT-AP has been allotted a 200-acre land parcel (in two phases), with VIT paying ₹50 crores towards the purchase of the first 100 acres.[26] Construction of the first academic block has been completed[27] and the first Men's hostel block construction is in the process, with classes commenced on July 2017. The campus offers seven B.Tech programmes[28] and a five-year M.Tech (Software Engineering) programme for students who have completed their 12th standard.[29] Apart from these, research programmes including Ph.D. will be offered.

Bhopal Campus

Foundation stone for VIT Bhopal campus at Sehore, Madhya Pradesh was laid down by Shivraj Singh Chouhan (Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh) on 20 October 2016. Bhopal campus to be spread over an area of 100 acres with an investment of ₹500 crore (US$70 million).[2][3]

Gender discrimination

Gender discrimination has been a common issue raised in universities across India.[30] Some students have complained that VIT has much more restrictive hostel rules for female students compared to their male counterparts and regard this as evidence of gender discrimination in VIT. VIT officials, however, maintain that stricter female hostel rules are a necessary safety precaution given the rise in crimes against women.[31][32] VIT officials have stated that, while they agree that men and women must be treated equally, they have at times been faced by irate parents who have insisted on stricter codes of conduct. Measured steps are being taken to ensure that both genders are treated equally thus allowing all students equal opportunities to access the institute resources.

In October 2013, two female students were suspended after they helped to organize an online opinion survey of female VIT students, focusing on issues of safety and inequality.[33][34] Theodore Moallem, a VIT professor who supported the students and filed a public petition in their defence,[35] was simultaneously fired.[36][37]

Less than 10% of the students living in VIT's female hostel took part in the survey, only after knowing that their identity would not be revealed. Of those who did participate, roughly 84% of respondents indicated that they were dissuaded "from speaking out publicly against VIT’s management decisions" by "fear of expulsion, suspension or other academic devastation".[33][34][38] Commenting on the issue, VIT vice president Sekar Viswanathan said: “The students started a campaign based on the misplaced notion that the university discriminates against women, which is not true. They were taken home by their parents”.[39]

References

  1. ↑ "VIT-Andhra Pradesh cornerstone ceremony to take place on Thursday". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 2017-01-16.
  2. 1 2 "Chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan opens VIT Bhopal University in Sehore district". Times of India. 21 October 2016.
  3. 1 2 "VIT to set up its campus near Bhopal; MP CM to lay foundation". Business Standard. 17 October 2016.
  4. ↑ "VIT opts for computer-based entrance exam for B.Tech". Chennai, India: "The Hindu". 11 December 2012.
  5. ↑ "VITEEE-2018 begins". The Hindu. 5 April 2018. Retrieved 7 April 2018.
  6. ↑ "Will VITEEE 2015 be easier than JEE Main 2015". India.com. 5 April 2015. Retrieved 7 April 2018.
  7. ↑ "Is VIT Really a Top-10 Engineering College?". www.seasonalmagazine.com. 22 April 2014. Retrieved 7 April 2018.
  8. ↑ "What to Expect From SRMJEEE 2018 From Previous Year Paper Trends? - India Education Diary". India Education Diary. 21 March 2018. Retrieved 7 April 2018.
  9. ↑ "VIT's Law School Launched".
  10. ↑ "VIT University - Degrees offered". Retrieved 20 September 2009.
  11. ↑ Zafar, Shahila; Manjurekar, B.; Kumar, N. Prem; Khan, Zaved Ahmed (2014-01-01). "Effects of FFCS (Fully Flexible Credit System) on Learning Experience and Academic Performance". Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences. 143. doi:10.1016/j.sbspro.2014.07.347.
  12. 1 2 "QS Asian University Rankings 2018". QS Quacquarelli Symonds Limited. 2017. Retrieved 12 November 2017.
  13. 1 2 "Top 1000 World University Rankings 2018". The Times Higher Education. 2017. Retrieved 12 April 2017.
  14. 1 2 "Times Higher Education Asia University Rankings (2018)". The Times Higher Education. 2018. Retrieved 25 March 2018.
  15. 1 2 "National Institutional Ranking Framework 2018 (Overall)". National Institutional Ranking Framework. Ministry of Human Resource Development. 2018.
  16. 1 2 "National Institutional Ranking Framework 2018 (Universities)". National Institutional Ranking Framework. Ministry of Human Resource Development. 2018.
  17. 1 2 "National Institutional Ranking Framework 2018 (Engineering)". National Institutional Ranking Framework. Ministry of Human Resource Development. 2018.
  18. 1 2 "India's Best Colleges 2017: Engineering". India Today. 2017. Retrieved 17 May 2017.
  19. 1 2 "Top 100 Engineering Colleges In 2017". Outlook India. 5 June 2017. Retrieved 13 June 2017.
  20. ↑ "National Institutional Ranking Framework 2018 (Management)". National Institutional Ranking Framework. Ministry of Human Resource Development. 2018. Retrieved 3 April 2018.
  21. 1 2 "Fits And Start-Ups: The A+ Schools". Outlook India. 3 October 2016.
  22. ↑ "MHRD, National Institute Ranking Framework (NIRF)". www.nirfindia.org. Retrieved 2018-06-04.
  23. ↑ "VIT University-Campus life". Retrieved 20 September 2009.
  24. ↑ "Infrastructure". VIT University. Retrieved 19 October 2016.
  25. ↑ "VIT, first university to set foot in Amaravati". Telugu360. 2016-10-28. Retrieved 2016-11-01.
  26. ↑ "VIT is coming to Andhra Pradesh". Archived from the original on 4 November 2016. Retrieved 4 June 2018.
  27. ↑ "Inauguration of Academic Block 1". VIT University. Retrieved 2017-11-22.
  28. ↑ "Degree programs - VIT-AP". VIT University. Retrieved 2017-11-22.
  29. ↑ "VIT". www.vit.ac.in. Retrieved 2016-11-01.
  30. ↑ , "On India’s Campuses, Female Students Speak Out About ‘Deep Rooted’ Gender Discrimination", Chronicle of Higher Education, 22 April 2013.
  31. ↑ , “Rapes in Tamil Nadu on the rise over last 3 years,” The Hindu, 20 July 2014.
  32. ↑ , “When It Comes to College Rules, It's All Down to Safety” The Hindu, 6 June 2013.
  33. 1 2 ,“Two VIT Students Sent Home for Dissent” The Hindu, 11 October 2013.
  34. 1 2 ,“Kept Away from Commotion” The Hindu, 11 October 2013.
  35. ↑ “Petitioning G. Viswanathan VIT University: Give Women Equal Rights and Stop Suppressing Free Speech” Change.org October 2013.
  36. ↑ Sankar, Nanditha (25 October 2013). "[UPDATE] VIT University Refuses To Act Even While Thousands Register Their Protest!". Youth Ki Awaaz.
  37. ↑ , “VIT: A Case Of Blatant Gender Discrimination At A Top Indian Engineering School” International Business Times, 9 November 2013.
  38. ↑ , VIT Female Student Survey Results
  39. ↑ BP Staff (27 October 2013). "VIT University Professor removed after starting Online Petition?". Biharprabha News. Bihar, India.

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.