Latest
DU Beat – Delhi University's Independent Student Newspaper
Tag

college

Browsing
DUB Speak

The First Class: An Account of Anxiety and Apprehension

By

The conception of the ‘firsts’ is raised to a pedestal and glorified by any young adult who is about to join college. There is a great deal of anticipation associated with your first day at college, but it’s your first class with the new people and the new mentors that get your heart racing. Do you relate to it? If yes, read on.

As you walk towards your first class, the hot rains of July would most likely be enveloping the lush, green gardens surrounding the campus. However, with the sweat-beads materialising out of your body, you almost overlook the beauty of the rains and rush to find your way in the big, daunting world you stepped into. The clock strikes 8:30 a.m. You realize that you’re 15 minutes early to class, but so is everybody else. A succession of thoughts engulfs your mind. You think, “Are all these people always this punctual?”, “Am I not serious enough?”, and “I’ll never get to sit on the good benches, will I?” A hundred more questions like these exasperate your awkwardly-smiling self, and dance to the tune of your misery.

As the lecturer enters the class, you ascend to greet in unison, almost hoping for her to miraculously know everything about you just by the way you wish her a good morning. As the introductory class begins, your notebooks are out. Your heart thuds in desperate anticipation of a mind-blowing revelation in the first 10 minutes of your college life. Nothing like that happens. Instead, you use your pen unnecessarily to scribble down the words being uttered by the authoritative figure before you who is moderating a gradually opening discussion.

The experience of your first class generates a wave of profuse sentiments. All around you, hands are raised, beliefs questioned and stereotypes defied. All the new phrases, all the new names, and all the newness in general makes you feel awfully overwhelmed. For a good while, you’re in awe. You’re nervous. Your feet are tapping. Your eyes are twinkling. You feel privileged.  But on the other hand, there is also a giant cloud of formidable emotions making you feel alone, scared and home-sick.

Everybody tells you that it’s going to take some time to adjust to the bout of change, to take it easy and that it will be more than okay in just a little while. However, you know in your heart that surviving this is going to challenge your mental health and strength. With time, the heavy-seeming assemblage of incomprehensible emotions will hit you in the face stronger than the heat of July ever could. But before that happens, you won’t have the opening to narrate survival stories and say, “Hey, I survived change. I changed for growth.” Your first day might be the epitome of pleasantries or a dooming quiet. Nevertheless, you must remind yourself that nothing is fixed yet. The other person is not your best friend in the whole wide world and this day would not determine the rest of your life in college. Before you comprehend it, you will be a part of it all. Don’t forget, you’re not the only one.

Feature Image Credits: brilio.net

Anushree Joshi

anushree.joshi31002@gmail.com

Keep Reading
By
DUB Speak

Recounting My First Week at College

By

The ‘firsts’ are always memorable. Here’s recounting my first week at college while hoping yours went likewise.

Truest of joys are lived in the coalescence of our dreams. The 20th of July 2018 marked my Orientation Day in college, and it also marked the day I saw my dream of studying at the University of Delhi (DU) come true. While thousands of us approached our colleges in the highest of spirits,  there was a great deal of anxiety too. However, as the week progressed, the anxiety also dwindled. Thankfully, the weather has been blissful, if the resulting muck is not to be accounted for. But this week has been an amazingly informative and inspiring one. The atmosphere increasingly becomes more intoxicating! However, it goes without saying that some inherent downsides were also present. Henceforth, I have endeavored to be more realistic in my account.

Our fear of crowds, seniors, and our own batchmates takes root from the fear of judgement. In this regard, a senior of mine told me, “Everyone judges you, but this is why you are here. You judge people and find in them the requisite companionship. Do not fear this judgement. This is your time, live it fully. Let nothing hold you back.” As repetitive as it sounds, it is an absolute truth. Initially, I was afraid of being laughed at. I feared that a wrong answer to a question would probably diminish my credit among rest of the stellar performers who have made it to my college and course. But at the same time, I reminded myself that if one can make people laugh, it is his or her victory. However, if they laugh mockingly, it is their loss. This week I have learned so much about the discipline that I always dreamt of studying, that every moment in learning this discipline has been an insightful and learning experience.

Undoubtedly, another highlight would be the brilliant people I have come to know. From the learned to the rad, all my seniors have offered the best advise and counsel. A large number of us came here hoping to find friends for life. While many have already struck similar chords with like-minded people, many others have not been as fortunate. After years of being with their high school friends, they find it difficult to fill the void of companionship in a week. Give yourself and others some time because all good things take time, after all. But remember to remain original and true to yourself while creating new bonds, because you are all you have to offer. Presenting any other version of yourself would not do justice to who you inherently are.

Today, after a week of walking straight into a dream, it still feels surreal. And very ideally, it will always be. I do not presume I have learned all in a week, neither should you. But I have witnessed a change already, as have we all. Acceptance and compassion start with us. We all are afraid, varyingly if not equally. But it is in the nature of fear to take away our happiness. Fear is the end of growth. Opportunities will come, but your endeavor to grasp them will determine everything. This idea is my greatest takeaway from this week. Most colleges have commenced their registrations for enrolling the excited freshers in a number of societies – possibly the most celebratory avenues in colleges. Before I entered the gates of my college, I was told about societies,  “Join them all, even the ones you find remotely interesting. Live them fully, as per your interests. Do not ever hesitate.” Now whenever I enter them, my conviction strengthens.

Believe and thrive, grasp and grow. I hope you have an adventure as great as you deserve. I hope we all do. With the first week’s closure, I know one thing for sure, that I will have loads of fun. Will you?

 

Feature Image Credits: Kartik Chauhan for DU Beat

Kartik Chauhan

kaycee1542@gmail.com

 

Keep Reading
By
Campus Central

Opportunities You Will Inevitably Get in College

By

You can do anything if you really want to! Even if you get nothing to learn in college, there are some opportunities that are inevitably provided to you.

You must have often heard people talking about how there are never enough opportunities for them in college. They substantiate their argument by claiming that somebody else always takes it up or their college is not supportive of the same. However, you need to realize that these are excuses. You can do everything you want to! Even if nothing works out, there are some opportunities inevitably provided to you in college. How you use them and whether you use them at all is up to you. So, regardless of your overall experience as a college student, you will get the following opportunities in your college life:

Connecting with Like-minded People

College is the best time to create a social cum professional network, through which you can access opportunities later in life. This network of contacts might help you climb the ladder of career even after college ends. However, the benefits availed through these contacts is not unidirectional. You would also have to help some of these people later in life. This is a place where all the people around you are like-minded by the virtue of being in the same course of study or field of interest as you. Furthermore, because college societies provide a platform for people with similar interests to come together, the same provides a fertile ground for nourishing your network of contacts.

Pursuing a Hobby

College gives you the scope of doing something other than studies. Your Curriculum Vitae (CV) is not built just on the basis of your grade point. Besides helping you to indulge in and rear your hobbies, there are several other opportunities that are accessed if you join a college society or do internships. It may get difficult and tiring and but it is worth it. It teaches you how to manage time and work under stress. Hobbies are great escapes from the monotony of academics as well.

Exploring and Failing

Now, though it may sound strange, you need to realize that the option of exploring and failing is actually an opportunity. You are just in college and are still exploring your life and career options. Therefore, it is your time to go and explore all you can – food places, sectors of interest, jobs and careers, offices and other possibilities for the future. You are allowed to get a “feel” of what you want and choose accordingly. When people around you see you as a fresher or just as a college student, they understand that you are allowed to commit mistakes and learn from them. Many will also want to teach you how to move past mistakes! This becomes very conducive for your growth and development as a person. College is that place which allows you to fail at things and still not be socially disregarded.

 

Feature Image Credits: HuffPost

 

Khyati Sanger

khyatis@dubeat.com

 

Keep Reading
By
Campus Central

Things To Do When You Encounter College Life for the First Time

By

We are often very busy worrying and preparing for the first few days of college. In the process, we tend to forget some things that can enhance our experience as we step into our college for the first time. Here are a few of those reminders:

Take a Few Pictures

It is understandable that when one first encounters life as a college student, one’s priorities are really different. But it is a good idea to take a few pictures here and there, during the day. Not only will you thank yourself for it later, but you might also want to remember what you wore on day one, or perhaps recreate a similar photo at the end of your college life. It is an important phase of life and you would want to capture it a little.

Build Strong Networks of Contact With Seniors

It is good to build contact networks with people who can help you expel your confusions and doubts on the first few days itself. The seniors are generally very enthusiastic to invite the freshers and are mostly willing to share what they know with them. It will be all the more productive if you can exchange numbers with the Union Members of your department in college and ask them to coordinate a small interactive session between your class and the seniors’ classes.

Be Presentable

The first impression is not always the last impression, but it is important. Be yourself and do not overdo anything. However, at the same time, try to be presentable in how you look and what you do. You will feel confident if you look amazing on day one itself. Besides being on time for college, you must also be presentable in the way you treat people.. While maintaining your politeness,  you must also be bold in whatever you do. This will help you interact with like-minded people and maybe even create some good friends!

Understand That Everyone Feels Similar to How You Feel

You need to remember that you are not the only one feeling confused, apprehensive, self-conscious and even excited! Everyone around you feels the same way. They are as desperate to make friends, as excited for what the future holds and as confused about how a college functions. You are not alone and the confusion and uncertainty settle after some time. You won’t even be able to discern when your college would become home to you. Before you know it, you would be laughing with your friends about all the insecurities and first impressions you had of each other on day one of college.

 

Feature Image Credits: Hindustan Times

Khyati Sanger

khyatis@dubeat.com

Keep Reading
By
Campus Central

Myths About College Life Busted!

By

When we have not experienced something first hand, we tend to believe anything that is a popular opinion regarding it. So, if you are a fresher then you tend to believe everything that into pop culture and select Instagram posts show about college. However, not all of what you see is true. Here are some of the myths about college. Let’s bust them!

1. You won’t have to study

Just get your school life done with. Do your class 12 well and that is about it. You don’t have to study at college, you’ll pass all exams!

Let us take this moment to call you out of this misconception. You must or should have been really worried about your class 12 results and you should have worked hard for them. And, just to make sure you give it your all, people tell you that the struggle ends after your school is over. Definitely, college is not as hard as that until the last year. However, it does not mean you don’t have to study at all. Your score from semester one to the last semester adds up to count the final percentage at the end of your college, which will not only stick to your CV for the rest of your life but also play a crucial role in getting you a job or further admissions.

2. Life will suddenly turn into a Karan Johar movie

When your college is about to begin, your parents will take you out for shopping and your friends at college will talk about the freedom and fun you’re about to throw yourself into. With all the amazing clothes and stories given to you, you might begin daydreaming about your college life as one of those KJo movies. Yes, a few moments might definitely be like you’re on the golden screen. However, it is important to remember and be prepared for the fact that not everything will be as glamorous. There will be failures, heartbreaks and god forbid, bad hair days!  But what do all the protagonists do when in trouble? Get back up and emerge out of it!

3. You will get friends for life

This is not true for everybody. You do get contacts for life. You will receive and give several calls to your college mates throughout your life, for work. However, you might not remain tight friends with them. While in college, you will definitely have a ‘gang’ of friends. However, people tend to get scattered and busy once college ends. Only lucky people are able to sustain these lifelong friendships. But, the good news is that you are living in the era of social media. Most of your friends might be just one tap away from you, therefore, you have a great possibility to remain in touch for a long while.

4. You have to defend yourself in this cold world

Your parents are seeing you grow as you enter the new college environment. They have seen and been in touch with your school, earlier. They used to trust the school, its people, and its rules well. However, they now are a little paranoid about college. They will tell you all sorts of precautions you have to take to defend yourself in the ‘cold world’ you’re about to enter. However, it is not true. Do not pull up your guards or over think about anything at college. It will just cause mistrust. College is as warm as a school if you want it to be. There will be well-wishers, there will be competitors like there always are at every place! Just remember to take sensible decisions and really know a person before relying on them. That done, you are good to go!

Feature Image Credit: Hindustan Times

Khyati Sanger

khyatis@dubeat.com

Keep Reading
By
DUB Speak

A Few Firsts of College Life

By

College life is a whole new experience, where we break out from our mold and dip our toes into things we haven’t tried before. These experiences, and the beauty of these “firsts” makes college even more special. 

We often hear our parents gush over memories of our first word, or the first step we took as babies, but the value of firsts is something we understand for ourselves as we go through the journey of adolescence into adulthood.

By the age of sixteen or seventeen most people from our generation are guilty of exclaiming ‘I am not a child anymore’ to our parents. There are several things that may trigger this response, it could be something as simple as a protest against being yelled at for not keeping our room tidy, or calling out our parents’ hypocrisy for calling us adults in some instances, and children in others, but what really makes us believe this statement, is the yearning to actually be an adult.

When younger, we fantasize about the romantic lifestyle we’ll lead as grown ups. Driving, going out without permission, having our own salary to spend as we wish, contribute to the fantastical delusion of what adulthood is actually like.  Once out of school, we come a step closer to this romanticized idea of growing up. While our reality is still somewhat clouded in college, what makes college life so interesting are the many firsts we experience.

The first year of college, is the starting point of most firsts for many people. Indian parents are infamous for over protecting their children for most part of their lives, but from this unconscious coddling comes something magical, the gift of experiencing the many (previously forbidden) firsts life has to offer. Lets address the most fantasized about first, one’s first love. Before entering college, we not only graduate from school, but also graduate from meager crushes, to being open to full fledged, unabashed, untamed love. The diverse crowd of college presents the bright eyed with limitless opportunities to fall madly and deeply into love, away from the prying eyes of parents. Caste, colour, culture and identity merge into one big word, ‘human’ and you let yourself, maybe even for the first time, experience intense emotion for another human being. Films like Rang De Basanti start to seem more romantic than tragic, and you consider yourself to be ‘alive’ for the very first time.

While your first love may make you feel more alive than ever, the next first is more of an escape. A lot of us have our first drink in college. We are introduced to the world of parties and clubs, which are incomplete without, alcohol. A rookie favourite, vodka and rum are a broke college kid’s best friend. The feeling of ‘nothing’s happening’ to ‘I’m not drunk’ (when you clearly are), become memories to cherish, and of course, so does the time you puke your guts out after one too many shots. The mind numbing first experience everyone has with alcohol, not only helps place you in the category of ‘light weight’ or heavy weight’ but also brings with it the joy of shutting does unwanted overthinking and unnecessary stress. However, being sensible about your intake of alcohol is extremely important and drinking responsibly is something your future self will thank you for.

The next first is something most experienced by  Delhi newbies. If you’ve just moved to the city for college, the metro at first may seem like a task but will eventually become your best friend, and definitely a cherish-able first. It’s not uncommon for your first metro experience to be somewhat confusing. You’re overwhelmed by the different coloured lines and stations, and somewhat disappointed when your  destination is not right outside the metro station. You may end up staring at the map for a while, only to discover your savior in the coloured footsteps which lead you right to your platform. The metro card becomes as important as your debit card, and the panic you experience on forgetting it is almost at par with the torture of standing in the long token line that follows that. We can honestly thank our stars for the inexpensive and fast travel the metro has to offer and can’t imagine life without it.

This first may be an unpopular opinion when it comes to the theme of ‘cherish-able firsts’, but it definitely deserves a spot in the list owing to its novelty in terms of work experience. This is a first which majority of people experience only after entering college, and can also come under the category of  ‘forced firsts’. Internships for some may be the best first work experiences for some, and the worst for others. No work, odd jobs and moody bosses are familiar to anybody who’s ever interned, but on the flip-side, great bosses, amazing learning experiences and meeting wonderful people are too part and parcel of the internship experience.Whether you have a good experience or a bad one at your first internship, you are bound to leave having learnt something new.

College life offers so much to each one of us, friends, memories and learning experiences for a lifetimes. These memorable firsts,  generously sprinkled here and there make college life beautiful and memorable.

Feature Image Credits – Hindustan Times

Meher Gill

meherg@dubeat.com   

 

Keep Reading
By
DUB Speak

Why it’s Okay that You Didn’t Get into Your Dream College

By

Admissions bring with them their own turmoil and chaos. While they fulfil a lot of dreams, they also break a few hearts. Either way, not everyone makes it to the college of their dreams. Here is why it’s okay:
When it comes to Delhi University, you don’t really get to choose your college, your college chooses you. While that might be true, there is a lot more to it than what meets the eye. Every single year, the cut-offs soar a little higher, the percentages drop down a notch, and the stress levels skyrocket.

There are queues of thousands of applicants outside every college in campus, wishing to meet the cut-off and get a seat in their desired course. However, as accessible as the colleges sound at times, not everyone gets into their dream college, mostly due to no fault of their own.

At this point of time, it is absolutely natural for you to feel nervous and confused. However, looking for someone to blame and beating yourself over it will not get you anything. It is completely okay to feel disappointed and dwell in your feelings, but carrying this disappointment to the first day of this new journey, is not the best choice. If you decide to call this a failure on your part, let it be a failure that makes you strive harder in the future, and accept it on its face value. Dealing with it positively is so important for entering this new journey.

College is a big step of life and wherever you end up, it plays a pivotal role. College merely serves as a platform, more than anything, it always depends on how you want to use that platform. There is no right or wrong to the path of success, and your college definitely does not determine the path you seek. You can take any path, strive hard, and still get to your destination. The college will provide you with a lot of opportunities, but it is completely up to you to utilise those opportunities.

Step into college with optimism, and you will be greeted by a new home and family. Within the first month, you will meet people who will understand you and the kind of turmoil that is within you, and you will find support through thick and thin. You will soon adjust to this new environment and learn to love it like home.

Good luck for all that is ahead!

Feature Image Credits: DU Beat

Muskan Sethi

muskans@dubeat.com

Keep Reading
By
Admissions 2018

Things Every DU Aspirant Will Relate To

By

As an aspirant of the University of Delhi (DU) we all go through the same troubles and fantasies together, no matter where we are. Therefore it is on multiple occasions that we are able to relate to one another. Here are five of those incidents.
1. Going fanatic over cut-offs
If you are a University of Delhi (DU) aspirant, chances are you would have applied for several other universities and given other entrances. Even if you would have cracked them, you would check the cut-offs of DU like this is your only chance. And once you get it, the cracked entrances don’t matter anymore.
There are so many cut-offs and colleges to check out, that sometimes it becomes difficult to keep a track of them all. However, you’ll surprise yourself by remembering the cut-offs of the colleges you want better than the names of your family members.
2. Getting stuck in the tug of war between course and college
When there is a grand variety to choose from, you are bound to get confused. The one major confusing tug of war will be between the college and course. You will find yourself questioning which one to prioritise. Here, you will also face a tussle between your preference and the societal reputation of a certain course or college. The key is to talk to people who have been in your situation and be well-informed of what a certain prioritisation would imply in the future.

3. Craving for North Campus
One of the biggest factors affecting your decisions during the admission season would be your crazy craving for north campus. Some of us love it for the proximity between colleges, others for the aura. Whatever may the reason be, you might find yourself swept away by the famous campus of DU. Most of the time, the aspirants may not even have a reason to like North Campus, other than the fact that it is such a craze amongst the other DU students.

4. Making action plans
Now that school is over, you have left behind the subjects you didn’t like so much. You have taken up a subject you love, most probably. You are in the atmosphere of freedom that a college will give you soon. Therefore, you begin to make action plans, but not regarding academics. Your action plans will begin to revolve around Hudson Lane and Satya Niketan. The DU lifestyle brings so many fests, amazing food outlets, and concerts that there really is no time to make any other action plan. If only you and your best friend get into the same college! Even though you have not gotten into DU yet, you’re excited about planning everything out and making sandcastles in the air. They’ll be tangible soon!

5. Changing loyalties
We all believe in the popular perceptions around us about which college is the best in which field. As an aspirant, we want to achieve whatever we have been told is the best. However, not all of us get there. One phase of being an aspirant is seeing your loyalties change. You begin to get firsthand experience and turn emotionally biased towards wherever you settle. Needless to say, your loyalties will deviate from achieving what the ‘best’ is, to proving that whatever you have is no less.

 

Feature Image Credits: Times of India

Khyati Sanger
khyatis@dubeat.com

Keep Reading
By
Campus Central

South Campus Colleges’ Round-Up 2017-18

By
With yet another academic session coming to an end at the University of Delhi, it is time to let nostalgia get you over and look back at the year that has gone by before all of us get busy with semester examination preparation and some of us eventually leave to charter their career paths. Going by the thought, DU Beat brings to you its exclusive series ‘Colleges’ Round-Up (2017-18)’, where we present the highlighting incidents of numerous DU colleges that took place over 2017 and 2018.  

Let’s take a look at the different events at the south campus colleges of DU, namely, Lady Shri Ram College for Women, Gargi College, Maitreyi College, Jesus and Mary College, and Sri Venkateshwara College.

Feature Image Credits: News18

Radhika Boruah
radhikab@dubeat.com

Keep Reading
By
DUB Speak

Why Farewells are Good ?

By

Although farewells and goodbyes make most of us cry, especially when it comes to saying it to colleges which have been our home away from home, they are in a way very necessary to our existence.

No one likes to stay in a rut. If we were perpetually stuck in a place, no matter how wonderful it is, the thought of immobility would hamper our creativity, our hopes, dreams and the creation of any goals. We would be hanging in limbo, floating through time in zero-gravity, with no sense of direction. Goodbyes make it easier for us to manage our time accordingly, to do full justice to the present so that we can make a better tomorrow.

Come April and the lawns of the University are littered with decorations of the seniors’ graduation dinners and farewells. Endless speeches of regret, love, loss, ambition abound in our hallowed halls as each batch grapples with the question: After this, what? In a way, facing this question is extremely vital to our existence as healthy, rational, contributors to our world’s legacy. We need to come to answers to this question in our own ways, decide what we want and grow up. The process of becoming an adult comes to fruition at this moment.

Farewells also serve another important purpose. They make us treasure the countless memories of school and college life. As loss sinks in slowly and we realise that we might never meet some of these people again, we tend to be kinder, more cheerful and less angry versions of ourselves. Amidst the hectic churn of entrance exams, internships and applications for student loans and grants that all final year students face, they also have to come to terms with this realisation of impermanence.

Such a sense binds us all. And hence, we do more for our institutions, willing to leave our mark, we love more and we definitely, smile more. Like, Ozymandius, we leave our sculptures of bittersweet memory behind. In the process, we also leave a part of us behind. The part that would wander around the canteens, doggedly follow the teachers and think fondly (I know!) of assignments. Long after we leave, this spirit of loss and gain, past and present, would tie us to our Alma matter, our city and ultimately, ourselves.

Feature Image Credits: EAge Tutor

Sara Sohail

sara.jagiroad@gmail.com

Keep Reading
By
preload imagepreload image