India Today

Coders’ Club

A rigorous all-round focus and an eye on the next big thing in computer applicatio­ns has stood Christ University in good stead

- By Vishnu Nath

AS A FORMER STUDENT, it was a proud moment for me to see Christ University coming out on top once again as the No. 1 college in the country for a Bachelor of Computer Applicatio­ns (BCA) degree. If there’s one thing the university has taught me, it’s that life is filled with opportunit­ies just waiting to be grabbed. The three years I spent in the college not only instilled in me a solid foundation but also equipped me with all the tools one needs to face the challenges life throws at you.

If there was a word to describe the 2014 BCA batch, it would be ‘colourful’. We were a talented batch from all over the country, and various other parts of the world as well. In my first year, I was introduced to the world of programmin­g (as well as the world of Christ University). Our lecturers put in a lot of effort at every session to help us understand the fundamenta­ls of their subject. The faculty were all highly approachab­le and understand­ing.

College life is not all about academics, so I joined the student welfare office as an anchor for university-level programmes. In fact, my professors encouraged me to participat­e when I got a chance to be an anchor for ‘Inbloom’, the national-level intercolle­giate fest at Christ

THE UNIVERSITY HAS ITS OWN SOFTWARE DEVELOPMEN­T CENTRE AS WELL AS A DIGITAL INNOVATION CENTRE

90% OF STUDENTS SCORE A FIRST CLASS, 20% DISTINCTIO­N

University (even though I had to miss a few classes for it).

My second year was quite a challenge as more subjects were added to the syllabus. It included ones from other streams such as Financial Accounting and Technical English. In fact, the university puts a lot of focus on interdisci­plinary studies (even psychology), which has made us better prepared for the outside world. And on top of that, as second-year students, we had to take on the responsibi­lity for organising department­al events, which included our very own nationalle­vel fest, ‘Interface’.

This was an incredible learning opportunit­y for all of us, as we got to meet students from colleges across India and hone our talents. We also got opportunit­ies to visit colleges within Karnataka as well as outside the state to participat­e in various IT fests.

As part of the course, we had to dedicate two to four hours a week to working on our own research projects. On a personal level, I felt the third year was the best as we managed to take Interface to a whole new level. I also gained a lot of clarity about career opportunit­ies in this chosen field of mine as well as options for a postgradua­te degree thanks to the various placement activities.

Another memorable event I was part of was ‘Daksh’, the college’s career fair. It was a unique experience getting to interact with the pre-degree students and helping them with their career choices. With that, the academic year ended, so after an amazing farewell party thrown by our juniors, my classmates and I bid farewell to B.C.A and Christ University.

Looking back, I realise that I will forever cherish all the wonderful moments I had at Christ University, whether it was eating hot momos in the college cafeteria or once even being reprimande­d in the counsellor’s office for some mischief mongering. I guess that’s the beauty of college life. It stays in your heart forever, long after you’ve climbed those dizzying ladders of success.

Vishnu Nath was part of the 2014-’17 BCA batch

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