GetMyUni's Verdict on Gauhati University

Midhun Hari

“The Oldest University in the North East of India, Gauhati University is one of the most famous and important universities in the region. However, when one takes a closer look at  the university as it is today, the reality is a bit more complex.”

 Gauhati University is the oldest University in the Northeast of India. Located in the Assamese city of Gauhati, the University is one of the most important universities in the state and the region. That said, taking a closer look at the reality of the University, there are more than a few issues that it has to deal with.

A significant matter of concern is the reports of ragging that have emerged from the University. Students staying in the university hostels have complained about harassment and mental and physical torture that they have been subjected to at the hands of other students. 

Another aspect that causes students a lot of inconvenience is the delay in releasing the results that the University is often accused of. Many students have complained that they lost various opportunities for higher education after they could not produce their results from the semester during their studies at the University.

Table of Contents

• Various Course Options at GU
• How Good is the Infrastructure?
• The Proficient Faculties
• Mediocre Placements
• Eventful Student Life
• Final Verdict

Various Course Options at GU

The Gujarat University offers various courses across Arts, commerce and management, law, Medicine, allied health sciences, and technology. Notably, Gauhati University is one of the few colleges that offers Five Year Integrated M.Com Course. Most of the departments at the University only offer post-graduate and Doctoral programmes at the university campus. The affiliated colleges usually provide the undergraduate programs.

The University offers a good and wide range of courses to choose from. In addition to the UG, PG and PhD programs, diploma and post-graduate diploma courses are also offered at the University. The Gauhati University is famous for its research programs. The University collaborates with several international institutions in Southeast Asia, Europe and the USA for research.

Affordability of GU

Being a state university, Gujarat University is very affordable. The tuition fees for most of the courses are much lower than the average fees at other private universities. For instance, the total tuition fee for BA courses ranges from INR 12,000 to 19,840, lower than most other universities. Similarly, the MA courses are also very affordable, with the fee ranging from INR 14,000 to INR 72,000. The University also offers a range of scholarships to eligible students studying at the PhD level.

How Good is the Infrastructure?

The Gujarat University Campus is quite beautiful as the sprawling 484-acre campus only has around 16% manmade structure. The remaining are Natural forests and wetlands. While this is good for the most part, the monkeys and snakes have often caused problems for the students on the campus.

The Infrastructure at Gauhati University is good overall. The University does provide its students with all the facilities for their academic and extracurricular growth. The classrooms are air-conditioned, and many are digital classrooms. The classrooms are spacious and well-designed. All the laboratories at the University are well-equipped and maintained. 

To ensure the safety and security of the campus, a two-tier security system has been implemented in the campus. The main areas and the hostel's premises are under CCTV surveillance 24/7.

The Krishna Kanta Handiqui library at the Gauhati University is the largest in Assam state. The library, located in the centre of the University, has an enormous collection of books, articles, research papers, etc. The library provides students with a calm and peaceful environment to read and study. Additionally, all the departments have their mini-libraries.

Ample Sports Facilities

The University offers excellent facilities for its students interested in sports. The sports facilities available on the campus include playgrounds and stadiums, Volleyball, basketball, and tennis courts. The University also has spaces for indoor games and a gymnasium.

How are the Residential Facilities?

The Gauhati University has 24 hostels, 12 of which are for the boys and 12 for the girls. The hostels are infrastructurally good as they provide the hostellers with good facilities. The students can choose from 1, 2 or 3 sharing rooms based on availability. Most importantly, the hostels are very affordable to the students.

The mess in the hostels serves the students with meals 3 times a day. The mess fees are also very affordable. Moreover, there are several canteens and food courts around the campus that serve students with delicious food.

Many current and past students of the University, however, recommend that the students shouldn't opt for hostels as it is not conducive for those who want to study. Students say that a lot of politics happens within hostels, especially the bigger ones, which makes it very difficult to study in the hostels.

The Proficient Faculties

In general, the faculty across all the departments at the University are very knowledgeable, qualified and supportive, as per the students. The students have said that their professors are very approachable and help them in their academic and career paths. However, some students from outside Assam have said that the faculty sometimes teaches in their native tongue, which the students do not understand. This causes difficulty for such students.

Mediocre Placements

The Gauhati University Placement Cell works towards securing placements for its students after they leave the college. The placement record at the University can be called average. Only a relatively small percentage of students, around 20%, secure placements from the college. The number of companies that visit the college is also low—moreover, the average packages offered are around INR 4 lakh, which is also below average.

Eventful Student Life

The students at Gauhati University experience a mixed, bitter-sweet student life at the University. The University does conduct inter and intra-college fests such as the youth festival and many sports competitions.  The students find these events and their time with their peers the most enjoyable periods in their college life. Moreover, there are many conferences and seminars that are conducted for the students. 

The Gauhati University is quite diverse as many students from the neighbouring state of the northeast region attend the University. This means the University has a mix of different cultures, languages and perspectives. However, the number of students from the other parts of India is close to none. 

The Uniform Policy

All students attending Gauhati University must adhere to the strict dress code and wear the prescribed uniform by the particular department. Only students who are in their uniforms will be allowed to attend the classes.

The Politics at Gauhati University

The Post-graduate Students' Union (PGSU) of Gauhati University is the student body elected by the University's students every year. The University does have active student politics happening within it. While this is beneficial for the students to become more politically aware, politics can sometimes be disruptive to students not too interested in politics. Students have commented how, especially in the bigger men's hostels, the student union elections are a time of great commotion.

Complaints of Ragging

Some students have alleged that they have faced harassment and exploitation in the name of ragging at the University. This is especially true when the students start off in the first year. The allegations range from the senior students forcing juniors to work against their will to physical abuse. One case of ragging at the University had even made the news during the last academic year. 

The University has constituted an anti-ragging cell, as per UGC guidelines, to tackle the issue of ragging and punish the perpetrators. Going forward, strict anti-ragging rules are expected to be enforced in the University.

Final Verdict

Like any other big university, Gauhati University has several aspects, some more severe than the others, that the administration, faculty and student community need to work together to overhaul. To summarise, here are the pros and cons of the University:

*Source: gauhati.ac.in