Well qualified to answer as I graduated from the class of 2020.
VIT has it’s pros and cons, just like almost everything in life does.
The pros have been established in several other answers. However, I’ll address the cons that have been mentioned.
Fee structure
Some answers here accuse VIT of charging an unaffordable high fee. So let’s compare with the prestigious IITs, the most expensive IIT to attend is IIT Kanpur (around 1.48 lakhs per year) and the most cost effective one is IIT Dhanbad (around 1 lakh per year) therefore an average of 1.24 lakhs, this despite being subsidized by the government. The cost of running a engineering college with excellent infrastructure and facilities is really high and VIT being a private institution needs money to run. VIT however follows the category system, the total seats are divided into 5 categories, with the fee in category one ranging around 1.76-1.9 lakhs per year to category five being around 4.7 lakhs per year. The more you score in VITEEE, the lower your rank will be, the cheaper the seat. So if you study well the fee is on par with the IITs (keep in mind, VIT is private). But if you end up in 5th category, mind you, VIT provides you the same opportunities as a first category student, you have a price to pay for that, hence the higher fee.
Comparing it with other world class private institutions (Top 2 apart from VIT according to NIRF rankings)
BITS Pilani – 1.49 lakh per sem, around 3 lakhs per year.
Amrita School of Engeering – 2.4 -3 lakhs per year
Therefore, VIT’s fee is totally justifyable.
Hostel restrictions and curfew (including gender bias)
Is gender bias prevalent in VIT, yes it is. The curfew times and rules are stringent for girls than boys.
Have you ever wondered why big companies spend millions on PR?
Because good PR signifies credibility and trust. VIT is an engineering college that hopes to churn out qualified engineers. So it’s PR strategy should be focused on convincing recruiters and students VIT does exactly that.
Hence VIT can’t afford to be known as the “cool and chill college”, it wants and needs to be known as a “professional and excellent academic institution”.
If you want your child to become a good engineer, would you prefer them studying in a college known as the latter or the former?
Now you clearly know the answer.
VIT manages an institution with around 30,000 students aging 17-25, some mishaps do happen, these mishaps bring in bad impression to students, parents and even recruiters. And about PDA, you can perfecfly be in a relationship without having to show PDA.
PDA is unprofessional in an academic institution.
Imagine you are a recruiter visiting a college to judge the quality of students, you walk inside the campus and see a couple being intimate.
Sets a bad impression, right?
Hence the “Red Tag Annas” to institute discipline and the curfew to reduce mishaps.
About the infamous gender bias, VIT has discrimantive curfews but that’s where it ends, no other discrimination based on gender.
South India is definitely not progressive enough to give enough freedom to girls as they do to boys. Though it should, it still isn’t. When in Rome be a Roman.
Should VIT break barriers? Yes and I hope it will soon.
Quality of faculties
To manage a student force of 30,000 students VIT has around roughly 400-500 faculties, an estimate.
Can we get 400-500 world class professors?
Nope, seems impossible.
VIT does have some excellent professors whose classes are engaging, has some who have adequate knowledge but troubling communication skills, some who are just dumb.
Also, Engineering in India runs based on self study, hang on, it’s just a 45 minute class 😂
Jobs
VIT does it’s best.
2020 stats
Maximum pay :
- 41 lakhs – CSE
- 19 lakhs – ECE (core)
- Around 10 lakhs – EEE (core)
- Mechanical, Civil and Bio Tech, relatively less indeed.
Average : Around 7 lakhs.
Can’t blame the college for the lack of opportunities in the industry right?
Coursework :
2 CATs, 1 FAT, lab work, project sometimes even publications – all for a single subject.
Multiply it with 5 or 6, the course work for a semester is hectic.
Additionally, one internship, a club credit, a final year project, some research papers (optional)
Don’t forget the fests every semester too.
It gets hard, it’s unmanageable at times. But worth every single minute.
Conclusion
This answer does not intend to justify everything about VIT, just provides another perspective.
VIT has a lot of room for improvement, but it’s worth joining.
Fuck, I miss that place ❤️
Feel free to DM for any doubts, happy to help.