What to Expect and Not to Expect at Jamia – A Guide for the Freshers!

As a new student at Jamia, just fresh out of school, you’re probably wondering how your college life is going to be. Will it be exciting, or will it be boring? Am I going to have the best few years of my life, or will it be unending misery and drudgery?

Let me end the suspense and help you find the answer to your question by telling you what to expect and what not to expect while you’re at Jamia.

– WHAT TO EXPECT –

1. Great Faculty:

Faculty of Architechture - JMI

If you hit just that right sweet spot of the right course, you can find some of the best, most inspiring teachers. College education is quite different from school education, the environment being much more open and flexible for your personal growth. When you meet the right people, the right teachers and some pretty good facilities, it can really turn your college career around.

Like any other Jamian, you should feel proud that your university has got one of the best faculties/ departments/ centers in the entire country, with Jamia’s AJK-MCRC ranked 1st, Fine Arts ranked 2nd, Social Work ranked 4th, Architecture ranked 7th, Law ranked 10th and Engineering ranked 20th best in India by leading magazines.

2. Great Campus Life:

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From daily cups of coffee from early 8:30 in the morning to late evenings around 6 from the Central Canteen along with two or three shero-shayari, without which conversations seem tasteless to provision of many daily needs within the premises of the campus, a DTC office, an ATM machine, a bank and a stationary shop. From spending your evenings near ‘Ghalib Uncle’ to the amazing gymnasium and huge sports complex. From breaks spent in Canteens, GCR (Girls Common Room), Reading halls and NFC aka Community Center to hanging out with people in their PGs or flats, the campus life of Jamia is great!

You will get some of the best experiences walking around on the avenues of Main Campus or Law Faculty, sprawled across the lawns of your campus (or someone else’s!) in the winters, or attending MIRAAS and other departmental fests with your new friends and meeting new people all the time, you are going to love the homely and secure feeling that Jamia gives!

3. Great People:

5 New Benches - Central Canteen - 12 Dec 2012 006

You meet the finest kids from all around the country, and also abroad (you’re going to find many people from foreign countries) which itself is a lot of exposure to different kinds of culture and experiences.

If high school was a hellhole for you because you never really found someone who understands you, Jamia is the best place to be. And nothing says friendship like bonding over Chicken Biryani in Central Canteen!

4. Great Events:

Indian vocal competition at the Ansari Audi.; Tuesday, Feb. 26, 2013 (Photo: Courtesy MiRAAS)

MIRAAS, Talimi Mela, competitions, debates, Nukkad Nataks – Jamia has everything one can hope for! The best talent and the best opportunities, and nobody is stopping you from going up on the stage and giving it a try. It doesn’t matter what you’re interested in – there’s something for everybody. From NSS events, workshops and talks by the most successful and inspiring people you can find, there really is a lot of exposure for those who are seeking it.

5. Grueling Student Life:

Jamia campus 1

Who said it was all fun? While all those people can go on talking about how Jamia students never really do anything besides chilling, take it from someone who has been here for almost a year.

College life is not easy. The syllabus is incredibly demanding and you will lose out on a lot of sleep, but on the bright side, if you’re able to manage your time well, you will have plenty of time for other things you enjoy doing. It just takes some time to adjust, that’s all.

I have talked a lot about what to expect from Jamia. Time to shed some light on what NOT to expect when you’re studying in Jamia.

– WHAT NOT TO EXPECT –

1. Spoon Feeding:

You are going to miss the days when your teachers used to give you individual attention and cater to your emotional and educational needs. Although you get to learn from some great teachers, do not expect them to run after you to make you finish assignments or submit things on time. Jamia professors are busy people and they do not have time for babies who cannot handle the extremely tiny workload of college.

2. Administrative Efficiency:

The people working in the office giving you your admit cards are not going to come to your classroom and personally hand you documents. You will have to stand in the long queue that is formed in the department for hours to do a two minute job. You won’t be informed about everything personally in your classrooms; you’ll have to make many rounds to your department to get your work done.

3. Rocking Fests and Happening College Societies:

Apart from MIRAAS and a few departmental fests, most of the fests in Jamia are underwhelming. Also, there’s a LOT of drama and a lot of politics in most societies. The societies are not-so-happening as you might have dreamt of.

4. Being Friends with Your School buddies:

Na, Na, Na!

You’ll be really busy meeting new people so your interaction with school buddies will decline severely. You won’t even be in touch with half the people that you thought you’d be BFFs with. Most of your relations will crumble to dust, and the song, “Somebody That I Used To Know” by Gotye will become your anthem.

To sum it up; from Govindpuri Metro Station, rickshwallas and irritating bus rides to Central Canteen ke aloo paranthas, Fine Arts ki Maggi and Dastarkhawan ki Biryani, from planning attendance and arranging proxies, to boasting about ‘Shahrukh aur Sehwag mere college se hai’, one thing is for sure – your life will go through a major change. But I promise you, life in Jamia will become an unforgettable phase of your life.

Welcome to Jamia and wish you all the best!

About Sana Khan

Sana Khan (2017), is an undergraduate student in the Department of Economics. JMI.

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One comment

  1. I am really excited about my new journey form Jamia to my upcoming future I am unable to encode my feeling -(stuck btw the fear and fond of my life)-
    God will always and forever with me Insha Allah..

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