How to appear for the grand viva?

In engineering colleges of India, there is a provision of grand viva for every branch in engineering. The viva is a kind of tradition of each department. So, what is the grand viva? The grand viva encompasses viva of all subjects taught in the B.Tech course. It is the final preparation for sending the students to the outside world. It can be considered a final quality check. Moreover, the student gets prepared for outside campus job interviews through the grand viva. For the students too, it is the final warning to get serious before going out of college. Many do extremely well and some are very poor. It is the greatest satisfaction of the panelist to have a student able to answer the entire question asked during the viva. For those who perform not well enough, they are the greatest reason for worry. After all, the students carry the name of the college. So, today we are going to discuss the final grand viva. In mechanical engineering courses, there are subjects related to engineering mechanics, dynamics, kinematics, solid mechanics, manufacturing, fluid mechanics, thermal engineering, non-conventional energies, refrigeration & air conditioning, industrial organization, machine design, quality control, mechatronics, robotics, etc. These are taught throughout four years of the course. For mechanical engineering grand viva, one needs to know the basics of all subjects. But you have to prepare two-three subjects as your favorites to be able to speak in front of the panelist. The panelist might ask about your favorite subject or may ignore it. In that case, you should be able to answer the basic questions in the viva. But, how can you cover such a big syllabus in the last semester? One way is to prepare a notebook with all the viva questions right from the beginning of the course. This way it will reduce your burden in the last semester. Prepare these questions over and over again.        

 

Hostel Life in B.Tech

The first year is very crucial for students. Students come from many backgrounds to stay in hostels or nearby paying guest boarding facilities according to financial conditions. Generally, in government-run colleges, there is always a scarcity of hostel seats. So it is based on a merit basis. What can you do? Not enough for every student. You get to live in with one fellow college mate or maybe many more depending on the room size. You have to adjust. You have to maintain a cordial relation with fellow roommates. Otherwise, your life will be pretty miserable. But always keep in mind you should know your limitations and should not engage in illegal activities restricted as per norms of the colleges. Many roommates may be adventurous in many ways. You have to look after yourself because many of you are a single child of your parent. You have to be careful throughout your life to support your parents. Many ruin their lives under bad influence. You have to stay focused on your motive. But the hostel life is very fun. One has to stay hostel to understand. It is not like staying in a paying guest house. You will make some of the best friendships in hostels. They will be friends for life.  You will enjoy in Diwali, Holi, Biswakarma puja, Saraswati puja, etc. you will cherish for your life.

Industrial internships: What is It?

Industrial internships are an integral part of B.Tech life. One has to do an internship by any means. Now AICTE has made internships mandatory. What is an internship? What is the purpose? Why is it there in the B.Tech course? In B.Tech you are to go to any kind of industry to gain practical experience for a limited period. Now a day, students have to do internships not less than four weeks in his B.Tech course. To apply for an internship, you apply through proper channel of training and placement cell of the college to the desired industrial body. These industrial bodies may be government-run of privately owned entities. The government of India has made the training of students under corporate social responsibility. For this they have cell and they claim tax benefits & other perks from government. Therefore, this is their duty too to train. This was the Indian government's endeavors to strengthen the quality and skills of human resources.

In the olden days, we had workshops for forging, metalworking, milling, textile making, etc. People used to be an apprentice before entering formally into the respective trade. The apprentice learned the nitty-gritty of the trade and become an expert after time. But, due to time constraints, the same concept has been applied to a lesser scale through industrial internships. Students are exposed to the real working environment and absorb as much as they could during the fixed time tenure. The students’ confidence gets boosted and skills are also developed as they learn to operate machines and work on various things. Now, what is the right time for internships? In my view, you can apply for internships right after 3 rd semester in your four-year course. When you do an internship earlier, you become free to do other things. Going to internships outstation generally is time-consuming and very taxing. Hence, one should complete it earlier.

The question comes to your mind that where I should go. You can go to any kind of industry; government or private. It does not matter much. There are very few people who will ask you about your internship but you are required to be prepared. Mechanical Engineering students like to do internships in OIL, ONGC, IOCL, Coal India, Sail, GAIL, State Transport workshops, Indian railway, etc. These are core sectors. If you do internships in core sectors, you get to know different types of mechanical engineering processes. It is always said that seeing is believing. You get practical knowledge. After completing the internships, you get a certificate and you are to submit the certificate in the time of industrial viva along with a report.