Vital Statistics

• WHAT IS IT? An undergraduate college that also offers some postgraduate courses. • WHO’S THE BOSS? Sister Albina is the principal. • HOW CHEAP IS IT? Tuition fees are charged in accordance with what the state government prescribes every year. • WHAT ABOUT JOBS? The institute has two placement cells that help students find jobs. • WHERE TO STAY? There is on-campus accommodation. • WHERE IS IT? Mount Carmel College, Bangalore 560 052. Phone: 22261759, 22286386. Website: www.mountcarmelcollegeblr.co.in

Ask Prof. V.N. Raghu, public relations officer of Bangalore?s Mount Carmel College (MCC), about the institute?s rankings, and he will show you the alumni list. The names on the list include heavyweights like politician Margaret Alva, sports person Ashwini Nachappa and actors Vasundhara Das and Kirti Reddy. ?The list speaks volumes about the college?s reputation,? asserts Prof. Raghu. MCC was set up as an undergraduate college for women in 1948. ?The college started with 50 students, a single building that housed the classrooms, a hostel and thatched sheds that doubled up as labs,? says Raghu.

That?s all in the past now. Today, MCC boasts of a strength of 4,000 students. The 2.5- acre campus also houses three libraries, labs, museums, auditoriums and sports facilities. ?The focus is on holistic learning,? says Raghu. Apart from the regular BSc, BCom and BA courses, MCC also offers various special degree courses like those in travel management, fashion and apparel design, etc.

Special courses

?The college has introduced vocational courses at the undergraduate level. The emphasis is on vocational skills, market relevance and hands-on training, rather than on theory,? says Raghu. He adds that a special feature of such courses is a paper on entrepreneurial development, a subject meant to promote self-employment. The special degree courses are offered in subjects like communicative English, nutrition and dietetics, fashion and apparel design and travel and tourism management.

As part of the communicative English course, students are trained in various aspects of the media. ?Each student makes lab journals, does creative advertising work and a film project as part of their portfolio,? says Raghu. Students are also required to do internships. Says Shivani Pradhan, a final year student of travel and tourism management, ?There are very few travel and tourism courses on offer in Bangalore. This course prepares us to work in a firm as well as strike out on our own.?

MCC?s honours courses ? also open to men ? include econometrics, portfolio management, international business, advertisement and business management and human resource management. ?These are short- term courses offered to undergraduate students to supplement their theoretical knowledge,? says Raghu. The college also offers a course in business management and postgraduate diplomas in business administration, information technology management, HR and financial management, etc.

Adding variety

MCC?s extra-curricular activities are as varied as the academic courses it offers. The college has 29 clubs and 25 committees. ?Students are encouraged to participate in as many clubs as they like,? says Raghu. ?There is never a dull moment in the college,? adds final year student Harini. ?We are always on our toes, attending classes or participating in extra curricular activities,? she says.

The college has a basketball court, a volleyball court, a table tennis room and a stadium with a track for athletic events. Activities at MCC include a Mounts Cares Week, a week dedicated to social work, a Cul Week for cultural activities, an inter-departmental science festival and a fresher talent week.

MCC has a student government that ensures that students have their say in various matters. The government comprises a president, a vice president and elected representatives from each class. ?The aim of this government is to ensure democracy in college by letting students have their say,? says Raghu. MCC also has placement cells for both undergraduate and postgraduate students.

Varuna Verma

OLD MEMORIES

Maya Sharma, correspondent, NDTV, on her Mount Carmel days

The green campus offers the perfect ambience for studying and indulging in extra-curricular activities.

I graduated with a BSc in 1984. In those days, the college offered fewer courses. Therefore, I had to opt for science, though I was very keen to pursue media studies. The various committees of the institute ensured that students were kept busy. A dedicated and sincere faculty ensured that we never faltered in submitting our assignments on time. The only negative aspect at MCC was that teachers didn?t do much to encourage creativity. We were expected to strictly abide by the guidelines set out in the textbooks.

At that time, I had returned to India after a long stay in the UK and Zambia, and MCC helped me to adjust to India.

As told to Varuna Verma