JOIN USA tremendous sense of camaraderie
The Indian Academy was started 14 years ago with barely five students in a building that was rented out for a small sum of money.
Today, the Academy has grown and branched out into different streams of learning. It boasts of 4,000-plus students and the number is still growing.
The Academy is the brainchild of scientist-turned-academician Dr Somasekhar Thummala who returned from the United States with a vision to impart quality education to the young.
Metrolife interacted with the students and faculty of the Academy to find out what makes the place so special and why it attracts a large number of students from across the world.
The students attribute their choice of college to the coaching. “It’s among the best. The teachers are available to us 24/7 and we can approach them and clear our doubts, however trivial they may be. The teacher-student relationship is encouraged to go beyond the four walls. They are more than just teachers,” says Shyamala of first year M Sc.
Impossible as it may seem in a class of 30 to 60 students, but each student is given individual attention.
The student is evaluated on his or her strength and merit counts. The Academy's library is among the best, says Swapnali, a first year PG student.
She says the students are encouraged to research and every dissertation project requires them to do extensive reference and the college library stocks some of the best books.
“I bunk class to go straight to the library. Time flies and I get lost in the many books.”
While academics is given top priority, extracurricular too has its importance.
The students look forward to Spectrum, the annual college fest.
“There are dances by students from different countries. There's a great deal of cultural exchange that goes on and we get to learn a lot from the international community.”
Sports and a chamber exclusively set apart for board games help students unwind.
No college life is complete without bunking classes. And students of the Academy are no exception.
While they bunk classes and hang around in the college or stray off to a eating joint close by with their buddies, they say they make sure they don’t mess with their grades.
The international student community at the Academy says that it is made to feel completely at home in the Academy.
“I did have a problem with the language when I came in here but the teachers and my classmates made that extra effort to see that I understood what was happening around,” says Bahareh from Iran.
Chairman Somasekhar Thummala thinks that education and learning must emphasise on quality rather than quantity.
Sreeraj K, vice-principal of the college observes that the quality of students gets better every year. “There’s a conglomeration of different cultures here. The teacher-student relationship is warm and friendly and I think that goes a long way in enhancing the atmosphere,” he sums up.