GetMyUni's Verdict on Calcutta University

Midhun Hari

“The Calcutta University is one of the oldest universities in India and is quite recognised in academic circles. However, when one takes a closer look at the University, it becomes clear that it has a long way to go in becoming one of the best.”

Established in 1857, Calcutta University is one of the oldest universities in India. As a University that has been around a while, it has a glorious list of alums and has quite a brand name. However, the students who studied at the University have mixed responses about it.

One of the main issues the students had trouble with was how hard it was to score marks at the University. For students who scored, say, 90% in their class 12 boards, to see their marks drop to 60% at their first university-level exam can be quite disconcerting. Moreover, it becomes quite hard for them to get admitted to universities abroad when their graduate or postgraduate marks are so low. This is a consequence of the stringent evaluation system at the University.

Another aspect of the University that is quite disappointing is the infrastructure. The main campus of the University is only 2.7 acres and is quite small to facilitate the large number of students studying there. However, the University is spread across seven campuses of various departments and courses, so overall, it has enough area.

Table of Contents

• How are the Course Options and Fee Structure?
• The Pedagogy at CU
• The Many Campuses of CU
• How are the Hostel Facilities?
• Average Placement Opportunities
• What’s it Like Being a Student at CU?
• How Good is Calcutta University?

How are the Course Options and Fee Structure?

Calcutta University offers a wide range of courses at the undergraduate, postgraduate, and Doctoral levels. The courses are offered in Science, Arts, Commerce, Law, Engineering, Education, Management, Medicine and Health Sciences. The specializations are offered in each of the courses. Hence, the students are provided with a wide variety of courses to choose from based on their eligibility of course.

The syllabus for the courses in each of the semesters is quite extensive. This often makes it hard for students to complete them all in the time period of one semester. Moreover, as previously mentioned, it isn't easy to score marks in university examinations - Sometimes, the toppers score in the 70% range!

Being a state University, the fees for the courses are quite low and very affordable. Moreover, the University also offers several scholarships for eligible students.

The Pedagogy at CU

The faculty at CU are qualified and have good subject expertise. All members of the faculty have a master’s degree, and many have doctorate and postdoctoral degrees from esteemed universities in India and abroad. The teachers have a teaching experience spanning decades in some cases.

As for the students' experience with the faculty, like any other university, some are good, and some are less. Many of the students have reacted that the faculty are supportive, helpful, and cooperative. On the other hand, there have been comments from students saying that faculty under certain departments at the University are disappointing. 

The Many Campuses of CU

The Calcutta University is spread across several campuses in different parts of Kolkata. While the Main Campus is located on College Street, Kolkata, it has around 14 other campuses spread all around. 

The College Street Campus, officially known as the Asutosh Siksha Prangan, has British-style buildings, which, although old, are well maintained. The campus area, however is quite small, at 2.7 acres. All the other campuses are of similar size. Most of the buildings are well-maintained, clean, and tidy. The campuses can’t be described as being grand, although they do serve the purpose.

The facilities provided vary from campus to campus, although basic amenities are provided everywhere. For instance, the CU Salt Lake campus, the technology campus, has fully air-conditioned classrooms, while the others do not.

What About Wi-Fi and Other Amenities?

Calcutta University provides high-quality Wi-Fi to all its students studying on its various campuses. The students can access the college Wi-Fi using their credentials. Moreover, for the safety of the students, the campuses are covered by CCTV surveillance. As for the laboratories under the different departments, all of them are well-equipped and are well-maintained. 

What are the Library Facilities?

Calcutta University boasts a collection of 10 Lakh books and over 2 lakh volumes of bound journals, M.Phil. and Ph.D. dissertations, etc. Additionally, the different departments also have libraries that hold a collection of 15,000 books across the various disciplines.

Be Active in Sports at Calcutta University

Calcutta University hosts Inter College Sports competitions for the students studying at its various campuses as well as affiliated colleges. The University conducts the meets for Football, Cricket, Swimming, and so on. The University has a Cricket Ground, Football Ground, Volleyball Courts, and Athletics Tracks for the students.

How are the Hostel Facilities?

Calcutta University offers student accommodation to both its male and female students separately. The 16 halls and hostels of the University, situated at different locations, are divided among the boys and girls as well as among UG and PG students and the Research fellows. 

Overall, the students have reviewed that the hostels are clean and well-maintained. However, it must be mentioned that the hostels look quite shabby on the outside. The students are given the basic amenities such as a bed, desk, chair, light, fan, Wi-Fi, electricity, etc. Moreover, the hostel fees are very affordable. 

However, the students must note that the University only provides accommodation to students who meet the required eligibility criteria regarding how far their home is from the University. As for the Hostel Mess, students have said that they are provided with breakfast, lunch, and dinner at the mess. The food is to the satisfaction of the students. In addition, the campuses also have several canteen facilities that serve students and faculties with delicious snacks and meals.

Average Placement Opportunities

Calcutta University can be said to help its students grab Placements, although they may not be that great. The college does have a placement cell that works to secure the student's jobs during their final year of the course. 

In the Placement cycle of 2022 at the University, the average package offered to the students from the UG programmes was 9.17 lakhs, while the PG course also attracted average packages of 9.26 lakhs. The average package offered has been the same over the last few with no increases. The placement rate was over 90%, and many reputed companies had visited the college for recruitment.

The placement rate is average, peaking in the previous academic year 2022-2023. The median package offered to students is also average compared to many other universities.

What’s it Like Being a Student at CU?

Students studying at Calcutta University generally have a great time studying here. The student crowd is enthusiastic, passionate, and vibrant. Despite the often heavy academic work, the students are able to enjoy their time at the University. There have been no reports of discrimination or harassment of any kind at the University.

The campuses often see events that are conducted by the elected student unions, which are a time of great enthusiasm in the college. Some conferences and fests are conducted for the students.

How Strict is the Dress Code on Campus?

The Calcutta University prescribes strict dress codes for some courses. For example, the students at the law college are expected to adhere to the color code. Boys are to wear white shirts and black or grey trousers in the classes while girls can wear skirts or salwar kameez. For the MBA courses, the students are expected to be dressed in formal or semi-formal.

However, for most of the course, there is a prescribed dress code, and students are only expected to dress decently appropriate for the academic environment.

The Not So Supportive Non-Teaching Staff

Students at the University have often reported the difficulties they’ve had to face at the hands of the administrative staff at the University. The students say that they’re often made to run around a lot, even to get simple tasks done.

Moreover, much of the operations at the administrative level are still done offline and require quite a bit of hassle from the students. This has been a major reason for criticism from the students.

The Not-So-Diverse Student Population

Most of the students studying at the Calcutta University hail from West Bengal. However, since Kolkata is a metropolitan city, there is some level of linguistic and cultural diversity in the campus.

How Good is Calcutta University?

Calcutta University, as a prominent and acclaimed university, still has a long way to go when one takes a more critical look at the ground. For an overall review, the University can be rated as above average. Here are some pointers to help students get a picture of the University:

*Source: caluniv.ac.in