Indian Institute of Technology B.Tech Review By Tanish Pagaria

The overall experience at IIT Jodhpur is fairly decent in my case. The primary reason for my choosing this institute was based on my JEE Advanced rank and branch preference. I was interested in computer-science and based branches, and I was able to get Artificial Intelligence and Data Science here. The other factor included the location factor. I live in Udaipur, Rajasthan, and Jodhpur is really close to my city, so it was also an advantageous factor for me. The campus is clean, green, and beautiful, with garbage bins present at regular distances. Regular construction activities are still being carried out on the campus. Apart from lecture hall complexes, a library, and other academic buildings, there are also excellent sports facilities and grounds. But they may be a bit distant from each other, so one may prefer buying a bicycle for movement.

There are also facilities like a cafe, named SHAMIYANA, two general stores for purchasing stuff, vending machines, etc. The academic facilities are also decent. The departments are open to all students, and there are labs and lab equipment available for use. There is also a nice and big library along with a computer center. There are some issues like water shortage sometimes. Also, the grading scheme can be considered to be a bit less lenient than other IITs. The research opportunities are pretty good at the institute. Also, the curriculum is very flexible, and courses of great importance, like Machine Learning and Data Structures and Algorithms, are compulsory courses for every branch. Also, students can opt for minors in interdisciplinary courses. Also, there is a great encouragement given on Artificial Intelligence and Data Analytics side. So, anyone who has a deep interest in this domain or research can indeed consider IITJ as a great option.

The course in which I have been enrolled is Bachelor of Technology (B.Tech.) in Artificial Intelligence and Data Science. The entry into this course was primarily based on the JEE Advanced AIR (All India Rank). The eligibility for the course or college can be found on the official websites of JEE Main, JEE Advanced, and the official website of IIT Jodhpur. The motive for enrolling in the course was based on personal interest in computer science, software domains, and the growing demands of artificial intelligence, machine learning, automation, and data science in the current worldwide scenario.

The academic curriculum of this branch offers several interesting and important courses like Pattern Recognition and Machine Learning, Deep Learning, Human Machine Interaction, and many others that can be found on the official college website. Also, other compulsory and not-so-interesting courses (subjective terms) are also there. There are also compulsory projects involved in the courses under various professors, which are helpful in building a resume and CV and also in gaining experience. There are also provisions for minor courses in interdisciplinary domains. Moreover, apart from this, the students can also opt for higher studies or research in IITJ itself. The college also offers M.B.A. courses from the School of Management and Entrepreneurship (SME), IITJ.

All the faculty members teaching any course in IIT Jodhpur are highly educated professionals, researchers, etc. They are graduates or post-graduates or PhDs from highly renowned institutes of the country and also the world. These include prominent institutes like IITs, IISCs, BITS, and also foreign universities like the University of Melbourne, MIT Boston, etc. The teaching style is also a very subjective opinion. Each professor or faculty member has a varied style of teaching. Some of them prefer to use slides for the courses, some use a projector and write using a tablet and stylus, others prefer using white board / black board, or may even just use verbal way of teaching.

There are generally Google Classrooms made for each course that is used for announcements, submissions, and even grading. The mode of the announcement is generally mail, or it may be a WhatsApp / Telegram group depending on the choice of the professors. Some professors have a very straightforward and simple way of explaining. Others may go a bit deeper into the topics or application part. It is mostly dependent on the student regarding his / her understanding of the courses.

The placement cell in IIT Jodhpur is known as Career Development Cell (or CDC). It handles the placement and internship opportunities and issues. It regularly shares updates regarding offers and opportunities from companies and research firms.

Last year, Computer Science and Bioengineering Branches observed hundred percent placements. The overall placement was around 97 percent. The average package offered was around Rs. 26 lakhs, and the highest package offered was around Rs. 84 lakhs. The companies that offered recruitment included both private and public sector companies like Morgan Stanley, Zomato, PayTM, Deloitte, American Express, Samsung, and also Bharat Petroleum, Indian Army, etc.

The hostel facility of IIT Jodhpur is really decent. Our batch and the previous batches got single occupancy rooms with A.C. in our rooms. The furniture already provided included a table, a chair, a bed (without a mattress), and an almirah. There was also a wall-mounted fan and a LAN point for internet access. (I believe that the batch next to ours has got double occupancy rooms.) The hostel room also has large windows. The rest of the stuff is to be brought by the student himself/herself (including a bucket, mattress, and LAN cable).

In the hostel, there are shared bathrooms and toilets. They are decent. But sometimes, a problem arises when there are no regular cleaning or maintenance issues. There are also two water coolers on each floor. In my hostel, there are 3 floors and total 240 rooms (80 on each floor). The other facilities in the hostel include a table tennis table, a pool table, badminton nets on the porch, a gym, etc. Some of these facilities are different for each hostel. There is also a regular housekeeping service which we can contact if we want to get our room cleaned. If any dispute arises in accessing any facilities, the guard on the ground floor can be contacted. Hostel secretaries are elected annually among the hostel residents who look over socio-cultural, intra-hostel, and inter-hostel activities and competitions. There are also common rooms in hostels that can be used for storage, as a reading room, or any other group activity if required.

The overall campus of IIT Jodhpur is really vast, around 852 acres. The infrastructure includes a lot of different residential, academic, and departmental buildings and also sports grounds and facilities. Most of the buildings are built on the same pattern and are generally only 3 floors high. There is a big Lecture Hall Complex that has several classrooms and two auditorium halls (one big and one a bit smaller). All the classrooms have projectors and black boards. The other significant buildings apart from the hostel area include the Departmental Buildings. Each department/ branch has its own building where the professors of that department have their offices, and branch-specific studies/ classes/ research is carried out.

One of the major attractions of campus is the Clock Tower, built on the top of the library. The library is also a nice area. There is a facility to stay in the library and read or carry out any other work. The area is well equipped with desks and charging points so that students can spend the required time without any hassle. The library also has a computer center for accessing the institute computers for any work. These facilities are free to use and open to all. There are also infrastructures called Berms which have many rooms/ storehouse areas for many specific purposes. The campus also has a large Indoor Sports complex for badminton, table tennis, and squash. It is an excellent and big area. The students are not provided with any sports equipment and are supposed to bring their own. There is a large football ground surrounded by a track for running. There are also multiple basketball courts, a cricket ground, a hockey ground, lawn tennis courts, volleyball court. There is no swimming pool. The sports facilities are overall quite good. There is also a Public Healthcare Center (called PHC) there on the campus which offers health and Medicare facilities. The services are free for students, and medicines are also provided free of cost if the student is treated inside the campus. The institute has a tie-up with Goyal Hospital, Jodhpur, and free treatment can be carried out there if applicable. There is also an institute ambulance for any emergency situations.

The campus life is quite dynamic at IIT Jodhpur. In summer, the weather is harsh, especially if you have to go for labs in the scorching heat. This is compensated by A.C.s in the room and the availability of water coolers at every place. The winters are equally cold. Apart from that, the environment is quite lively.

There are multiple fests held on the campus. These include VARCHAS (inter-college sports fest), KRIDANSH (inter-hostel sports), IGNUS (socio-cultural fest), PROMETEO (tech-entrepreneurial fest), AAFTAAB (literature fest), and many more. We also had YOUTH CONCLAVE and SANDSTONE SUMMIT this year, where representatives of multiple big companies like IBM, Google Cloud, etc., and many prominent researchers of the country were invited and conducted sessions.

Talking about the clubs in the college, we have many different clubs and societies based on various different domains. There are creativity-based clubs like ATLIERS (art club), DESIGNERDS (designing club). There is also THE GROOVE THEORY (dance club), SANGAM (music club), DRAMEBAAZ (drama club), and clubs like FRAME-X (film making and video editing club).

We also have LITSOC (Literature Society) in the college that conducts literary events and also the Entrepreneurship Cell known as E-CELL.

Most importantly, there are the technical skill clubs like ROBOTICS SOCIETY, RAID (Artificial Intelligence and Data Science society), PROGRAMMING CLUB, INSIDERS (game development club), and DEVLUP LABS (development club, based on open source contributions and other frontend, backend, web development, and other domains). There is also a science and astronomy club, NEXUS. All the clubs are open to all. But, to become a member or hold a POR, you need to go through interviews or show your skills and contribute to the club activities.

There are also various other societies and clubs dealing in alum affairs and other activities of which students can become a part.