Memoirs of IIIT-B

Anything that happens in reality happens twice, once in your head and once in reality. Your thoughts are the most powerful thing in the world. And, this thought is kindled at your home which is your first school and then by your teachers at your school. There are very few places in the world where your thoughts and your perception are elevated to a higher level than what you have and you start imagining the big picture. One of such places is to be in IIIT-B. And, it was indeed a privilege to have studied at IIIT-B.

It was a chance encounter with my friend who was in Bangalore for a brief visit suggested me to apply for IIIT-B. And, indeed it was a life changing suggestion as it has made me to never look back again at the past. Having come from working in the night shifts, I walked in to the campus imagining a good night sleep from here on.  But, this was the start of sleepless night and days; sometimes we were awake for few days at stretch. I remember discussing with my friend who is in Air Force, that they slept between 2 am & 4 am and had gruelling intense training for the first 6 months or a year. Coming from a non-computer science background, I felt I was undergoing such a training session and we had to give our best. After all you are surrounded by those who are toppers for their respective university, college and are instant problem solvers. 

While the classes used to start at 8am, we used to get up at 745 am :) . And, it used to continue till 4 or 5 in the evening with a quick snack break in the morning and a lunch break in the noon. Post the classes, there used to be tests, then special classes, then tests and then some deadlines and so on and so forth. And, your day used to end at 4am. It was a never ending cycle and you had to be 200% focussed.

Despite having brilliant minds around, the exams were so hard that the average scores were in single digits and people would be happy if they were above the average. We wondered whether we really scored so well in our past engineering schools. And, I would blame the education system that encourages tuitions, preparation of notes etc.  Though we scored less, it made us to think hard about how this problem could be solved.   And, if the exam is open book, then definitely you will not write much in the paper.  And, this imbibed thinking which has lacked in our education system.

Despite having such a tight schedule, there used to be games, trips and who can forget the kicks on those who had their Birthday’s followed by the holy dip in the pond. I still relish viewing the World Cup football in the hostel on a giant screen, the volley ball match during the annual games event where all the girls were hooting for my junior dear friend ;).  Also, I learnt those nuances of photography from another junior friend who used to share tips while sipping coffee post mid night. This gave us opportunity to have fun and enjoy things in whatever we do.

‘Jnanam Uttamam’, knowledge is supreme is the punch line of IIIT-B. True to its punch line, there are scores of opportunities to work with eminent professors who are so well versed in their streams and knowledge drives them to crave for more. They have their own labs, projects, they publish in elite journals, conferences which gives you opportunity to explore new ideas and know your true potential.  Several of us got opportunities to publish in papers, credits in patents, opportunity to visit different countries, conferences etc.

The opportunities are endless; there is a SPICMACAY which conducts music events.  Also, an association was formed with National Entrepreneurship Network, which gave us to meet several eminent personalities that we would never have been able to meet. Some of them include Mc Afee India VP, Infosys Chairman, ICICI MD, Ashoka foundation fellows and many more. Listening to these people inspired us and also helped to build the network. There were also efforts on the Social side ‘Aikyam’ for helping the poor kids. The opportunities are endless and it helps you discover what you want in life. 

As the sun rises on 7^th July, IIIT-B will be having its 13^th Annual convocation. And, many more students will be graduating and going to chase their dreams. It was on this day that the previous batches have graduated and what a day it was a total feeling of celebrities who were being clicked by the media, parents and guardians on both the sides of the procession from the college main entrance to the convocation venue. Indeed it was such moment of joy that we relish it forever. And, it would be quite inspiring to hear from the Chief Guest as well. Post the convocation, throwing the hat will ever be enshrined in the memory.

Thanks to the beloved Director, professors and the management to have such wonderful institute.