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Admissions 2013

Courses to Look Out For: B.Tech under CIC

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cic
DU’s endeavor to pass on the highest quality of education to its students, led to the inception of the Cluster Innovation Centre (CIC), a research facility that has been guiding the development of B.Tech courses with the aim of making them more comprehensive, innovative, practical and responsive to the changing times.

The programs offered include B.Tech Innovation with Mathematics & Information Technology and B.Tech Humanities.

B.Tech Innovation with Mathematics & Information Technology:

The importance of Information Technology and Mathematics in today’s technology obsessed world cannot be stressed enough. This course offers students a chance to acquire in depth knowledge of Maths and IT along with disciplines like genetics, molecular biology, management, economics, electronics etc.

Each semester consists of Interactive Learning Modules and activity Modules.

In the former, students get in depth knowledge of disciplines like Seeing the world through calculus: First Steps, Modeling continuous change through ordinary differential equations and the Art of Communication.

In the Activity Module, the students get to interact with the real world with projects, internships and industry training to promote holistic development of the pupil’s personality.

The program is a result of an initiative of National Innovation Council and is the first at DU to introduce interdisciplinary approach and unconventional project based learning. Another advantage enjoyed by the students is the small class size which allows the development of each and every student to the best of his abilities. A large number of partnerships with research institutions and labs such as IIT-Bombay, DRODO, PhD Chamber of Commerce etc. helps link academia to other sectors where technology is highly desirable. 

B.Tech Humanities

B.Tech. Humanities is divided into five streams-Journalism, Education, Historical Tourism, Art & Design, and Counseling. This revolutionary program, started through the MetaCollege concept,  is extremely different from its predecessors. The course encourages a student to ‘design his own degree’. A student is guided by a mentor and can chose from a variety of courses offered in various colleges, in all his semesters except for the first and the last. A student will be required to take some compulsory courses prescribed by Cluster Innovation Centre in the 1st and the 8th semesters only.

These include Mathematical Awareness, Art of Communication, Innovation

Management, Social Enquiry and Legal Literacy.  For all the other semesters, a student can opt for courses according to his preferences. In the end, a student will get to specialize in one of the five streams. This course is tailored to help students take up professions as per their inclinations.

The CIC offers excellent labs and research centers along with partnerships with reputed research institutes. Hostel facility is available to boys and girls.

Both courses are 4 year programs with 40 seats in each. Aspirants should note that the institute follows its own procedure for admissions which includes an entrance test (75% weightage) and an interview (25% weightage). All details regarding eligibility criteria and the admission form can be found at the CIC website. Last date to submit the form is July 16, 2013. The test is scheduled to be held on July 21, 2013.

Image Credit: CIC Facebook Page

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Admissions 2013

Entrance Gyaan: Bachelor of Management Studies- Last Minute Do’s and Don’ts

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Another year, another batch and yet another bunch of earth shattering cut offs. If you’re a class 12th student about to enter college, you’re in for a treat. SRCC and St. Stephens are having yet another bumper year with all the aspiring economists vying for a golden ticket. All the budding engineers are hoarding to get into IIT Delhi (or any other, for that matter).And all the others students pursuing different streams are holding their breath as they eagerly await the first cut offs.

Among the various questionable changes being introduced in the curriculum from this academic year, the introduction BMS-Bachelor of Management Studies- is the most engaging. It is a four-year undergraduate program that has been formulated after combing BBS, BBEand BFIA. To everyone’s surprise,More than 22,000 students have applied for the course. So it’s just going to be you and 21,999 other students competing for a few hundreds seats, to say the very least. Not to dampen your spirits further and to make this article actually worth reading, let’s focus on what exactly is the entrance exam going to be like.

The marks are distributed as follows:

50% The Entrance Exam
30% The Board Result
20% Personal Interview

In order to actually reach the personal interview round, an applicant first needs to clear the written exam. Here is a list of Do’s and Don’ts that can be helpful in preparing for the exam:

  • The Test Structure: The exam will have a total of 100 questions. Although there is no set syllabus, the exam aims to test:
    • General/ Business Awareness
    • Quantitative Abilities (Mathematics)
    • Reasoning Skills
    • English.

    The format of the exam itself is still the same, so practicing from past year papers can be of great help. Practice questions can also be found on the Facebook pages of prominent institutes like Pratham, IMS, Edumentor etc. Another very useful website I stumbled upon is ‘www.indiabix.com’. It has general practice questions on most of the sections for BMS. Also, continue reading the newspaper (no, not HT City and the Delhi Times, but the main paper).

  •  Segment wise Division: Every candidate has only 120 minutes to complete the exam. So it’s better to think of a strategy before entering the exam hall. The section on General Awareness is the shortest, so that should be attempted first. The Mathematics and Critical Reasoning sections, being the lengthiest, should follow it. The English Section is relatively easy so that can be attempted in the last, keeping in mind the time constraints. It’s better to attempt an entire section at once as it helps to maintain a flow of thought.
  • Negative Marking: 1 mark will be deducted for each incorrect answer and correct answers fetch you 3 marks each. So if your unsure of an answer, it’s better to leave it blank. Also, DO NOT mark multiple answers for the same question.
  • The Examination Day– Irrespective of what you have or haven’t done, stay calm and confident. Do not clutter your mind with new things. Either you know it or you don’t know it and there is nothing you can do to change that a few hours before the exam.
  • Last Minute Worries– Last minute hassles can cause more troubles than the exam itself. Make sure that all your documents, stationery, admit card etc. are in place well in advance. Read all the instructions carefully a day or two before the exam to make sure you don’t ignore an important instruction.

Keeping all pointers apart, work hard; there is no substitute for that. Study smartly and plan your time well. These two always seem to work.

All the best!

Illustration Credit: Megha Sarogi

(For entire Admissions 2013 coverage click here)

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Spo(r)tlight

French Open 2013: Another chapter in the book of Grand Slam Tennis

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French-Open-Logo
Irrespective of who you are and where your interests lie, everyone has their eyes set on France in the months of May and June. The movie buffs are in for a treat as they witness yet another installment of the magnificent Cannes Film Festival and the sports fanatics are busy rooting for their favourite tennis stars as they make their way to Paris in a bid to make history by winning the French Open, The Glorious International Tennis Tournament held in Paris every year for two weeks between end of May and June.

French Open which is alternatively referred to as Roland Garros after the French aviator with the same name, was first held in 1891 and ever since then it has increased in it’s popularity and sheer magnitude by leaps and bounds. With more and more money riding on it every year, and the popularity of tennis rivaling that of soccer and cricket, the 112th edition of the French Open had the entire world’s eyes glued on Paris from 26th May to 9th June this year. Titles were up for grabs in Men and Women’s Singles, Doubles, Mixed Doubles. Juniors and players on wheelchairs also competed in Singles and Doubles.

The frenzy that lasted two weeks ended with the declaration of results on the last two days. Serena Williams defeated the defending champion Maria Sharapova and went on to win the title for the second time. Her first win was eleven years earlier in 2002. Rafael Nadal emerged as the champion in the men’s singles category on the last day of the event. He was not only the defending champion but has also won the title seven other times summing his totals to an astronomical eight. In addition to winning this prestigious title, the two also got a cash prize of a whooping €1,500,000 each. Russian Players Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina won the Women’s Doubles after they defeated Sara Errani and Robert Vinci from Italy. Americans, Bob Byron and Mike Byron, won the Men’s Doubles against Michael Llodra and Nicolas Mahut from France. The prize money awarded to the winners amounted to €360,000.

The rest of the winners included Lucie Hradecká and František ?ermák (Mixed Doubles), ChritianGarin (Boy’s Singles), Belinda Bencic (Girl’s Singles), Kyle Edmund and Frederico Ferreira Silva (Boy’s Doubles), Barbora Zahlavova and Kate?ina Siniaková (Girl’s Doubles),Stéphane Houdet (Wheelchair Men’s Singles), Sabine Ellerbrock (Wheelchair Women’s Singles), Stéphane Houdet and Shingo Kunieda (Wheelchair Men’s Doubles), Jiske Griffioen and Aniek van Koot(Wheelchair Women’s Doubles).

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Biblio

What makes Robert Langdon the most impressive Harvard professor?

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Tom Hanks portrayed the role of Robert Langdon first in The Da Vinci Code.
Tom Hanks portrayed the role of Robert Langdon first in The Da Vinci Code.

Dan Brown, one of the most widely read authors across the globe, is back with yet another spine chilling novel. And not just any power packed thriller but another book featuring ‘Robert Langdon’, the insightful professor from Harvard who cracked the secret of the Holy Grail in the Da Vinci Code. His latest offering, Inferno, takes Langdon to Florence, Italy where Langdon finds himself not only suffering from retrograde amnesia but also trapped in a cat and mouse chase with WHO. In this roller coaster ride spanning over a day and a half, Brown once again shows his prowess in keeping his readers hooked to the pages without food or water, powerless in the face of an imaginary apocalypse and an imaginary Professor playing Superman.

Not to reveal too much and not to make this piece of writing yet another review of perhaps this year’s most reviewed book, lets focus our attention on Robert Langdon, the Harvard Symbolist who shot to fame after his escapades at the Vatican and whose popularity soared the charts with The Da Vinci Code. What makes him the awe-inspiring personality that everyone thinks he is?

Being an ardent Robert Langdon follower, I have compiled a list of credentials that make every student want Robert Langdon as his professor, even if it means studying iconology and symbology :

  • He knows everything there is to know about every relevant person in history: As each of his adventures gets more perplexing Mr.Langdon has no qualms about solving archaic riddles and messages which stem from the famous works of prominent shapers of history and which also take the story forward.
  • Displays of superhuman Dexterity : Remember the time Langdon was trapped in the Vatican Library in Angels and Demons or the time he excuses himself to the washroom in the Louvre in The Da Vinci Code. A normal person would be completely bogged down and clueless about which way to run, but not Monsieur Langdon. Also running away from the police or International Organizations is his area of expertise.
  • His enviable ‘personal connections’: Langdon always seems to know whom to contact and which strings to pull. Right from caretakers of museums to owners of private chateaus, Langdon not only knows everyone but can just as easily call upon them in the hour of need.  Private jets and possession of priceless artifacts often comes with the package.
  • A beacon of bravery: Langdon is nothing if not courageous. Right from saving an entire country while walking on egg shells in Angels and Demons to saving his dear friend from a psychotic killer(who turns out to be his friend’s son) in The Lost Symbol to the more recent, trying to save the entire world from a pandemic, Langdon has displayed the virtue of bravery like no other.

Leaving all his abilities and shortcomings apart, Robert Langdon has captured human imagination like no other and has carved a niche for himself in the minds of is readers. For me, he is the hybrid of Harry Potter and Einstein.

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