Brand Vs Branch - A Major Question

It’s a question which pops up often - given a choice between a ‘good’ college and a ‘bad’ course, and vice versa, what should you take?

Unfortunately there is no clear-cut solution to this issue. This decision is important because it’s not just about the next 4-5 years of your life, but what you could be working on for the next 40-50 years of your life in your career.

There aren’t many people who get to take their pick among the top IITs / NITs, so it is important to accept that fact and then take informed decisions.

The major factors that play a role in influencing a decision are the following,

Area of interest identified/Branch Value:

A normal XII pass student generally has no idea about his interests. The glamour in the IT industry tends to make students show inclination towards computer science and electronics.

One thing that perhaps students tend to fail to understand is the fact that education in XII standard and education in college are two completely different things. For instance, an interest in computer gaming and Internet cannot be and should not be mistaken for interest in computer science.

However if you have identified your area of interest and specialization, then focus only on college with a decent background / history in your area of interest; e.g., UDCT Mumbai is undoubtedly one of the best colleges in India when it comes to chemical engineering even though it’s not an IIT.

Important criteria for choosing a branch/stream

Choose a stream based on your interest. All streams have good career prospects as long as one is interested in it. Choosing a stream based on other’s recommendation is good. But if you are not interested in it, avoid it.

Some major criteria for choosing a branch are – Placement prospects, Higher studies options, future growth in the area

{mosbanner:id=57}

Area of interest NOT identified/Brand Value:

In case you are confused about your area of interest as most students are, go ahead and chose a college on the basis of its brand value. While age of the institution and brand value are directly related, faculty background is something that decided the quality of education.

Institutes like LNMIIT Jaipur have faculty from the IITs which would give them a great edge amongst the private engineering colleges. Most of the students applying to these colleges might refer to last year’s placement, which unfortunately was not the best year for the final year students; so instead you should check placement record of the previous years.

If the colleges that you’re considering have similar placement records, then you should focus on the location of college. For example, a private college in Bangalore (like M S Ramaiah) would be more worthy of joining than a regional government college in some state.

Important criteria for choosing a college:

Make a list of Colleges you are interested in. Choose approximately ten colleges that are on your level. Also, choose two- three colleges that are safeties where you are positive you could get in. Rank these schools according to your desires. Some things to keep in mind include:

The faculty of the college is one of the major factors which decide the future of any college. A strong faculty ensures good academics and collaboration in industry.

Alumni – A strong alumni base of college helps a lot in terms of placement and brand of college.

Placements – The placement statistics of the college are really important. However, students are generally misled with fake placement reports from different websites and magazines. A true picture of placement is critical and should be obtained from reliable sources.

Industry Interaction – A good collaboration with different industry verticals is important as it provides a platform to apply the theoretical fundamentals learnt at college to the practical work. Industry links help in getting live projects, industry visits, seminars and placements

Choose a college according to the stream you looking for. A college which is very good in Stream X may be a bad choice for stream Y.

Location, location, location:

For many students - especially those from metropolitan cities - choice of college is often dictated by where they can get admission. So you might have offers from colleges in Vellore, Bhubaneshwar, Ranchi  et al - but what happens is that most students from metro cities don’t want to relocate for these colleges and opt for some college close-by instead. If you are a bit more flexible about this then you might be able to get into better colleges.