Anna University

Anna University was established on 4 September 1978 in Tamil Nadu as a public state university. The university's main campus is in Chennai. The university was named after the former Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, C.N. Annadurai. The motto of the university is Progress through Knowledge. R.N. Ravi (Governor of Tamil Nadu) is the Chancellor of the University, and the Vice-Chancellor of the University is R. Velraj.

History

Initially, this university was established as a unitary type in 1978. The integration of four well renowned technical institutions in the city of Chennai (Madras) formed Anna University. These four institutions were

• College of Engineering ( Established in 1794)
• Alagappa College of Technology (Established in 1944)
• Madras Institute of Technology (Established in 1949)
• School of Architecture and Planning (Established in 1957)

The various government of the state repeatedly changed the structure of the varsity and affiliation scope. The erstwhile Anna University became the affiliating university under the Anna University Amendment Act 2001. After this amendment, Anna University took all the engineering colleges in Tamil Nadu under its wings. In 2007 the Tamil Nadu Government decided to split the University into 6 constituent universities that are -

• Anna University, Chennai
• Anna University of Technology, Chennai
• Anna University of Technology, Tiruchirapalli
• Anna University of Technology, Tirunelveli
• Anna University of Technology Coimbatore
• Anna University of Technology Madurai

In 2010 it was reconverted into a unitary type of university, but again in 2012, its status as an affiliating college was restored. After merging the constituents in 2012, the four regional universities became the regional campus of the University.

Campus

The main campus of Anna University is in Chennai that extends over 189 acres. The second campus of the university is the Madras Institute of Technology, and Chromepet extends over 53 acres. At Taramani, Chennai, the university has its third campus, which is spread over 5 acres. All these campuses have all the infrastructure that serves the various need of the community of the university.

The University has 4 University Department Campuses, 13 Constituent Colleges, 3 regional campuses and 593 Colleges that are affiliated with the university and are either Government/Government Aided or Self Financing Colleges. It also has 20 research centres to contribute to the research field of various disciplines. Some of the top affiliated colleges of the University are-

• PSG Institute of Management
• Government College of Engineering
• Thanthai Periyar Government Institute of Technology
• SRM Valliammai Engineering College
• Central Institute of Plastics Engineering and Technology
• Adhiyamaan College of Engineering
• Velammal Engineering College
• Madras Institute of Technology
• Sri Krishna College of Engineering and Technology

Its campus has all the amenities and latest facilities for its students, such as -

• Computing - Computer centres that are specialised for all the technological and computational requirements
• Library - The Central Library of the university consists of over 1.5 lakh books and journals and also offers digital learning services. E-books and R- Journals can be used through the Digital Knowledge Center.
• Wifi- 24*7 high-speed internet connection
• Student Amenities Center - it provides services and facilities of photocopies, printouts, laundry, etc., to the students.
• Hostel - They also provide a hostel with all the basic facilities such as a mess, water purifier, Tv, security and surveillance, common room, etc.
• Sports facilities - The main campus and all the satellite campuses of the university provide the sports ground, arenas & courts, athletic tracks, swimming pool, gymnasium, etc for its students' overall development.
• Health Center - there are experienced doctors, aided modern lab equipment to handle the medical needs of any student, and the consultation is free for employees as well as for students.

Courses and Admission

Anna University offers a huge range of courses at the undergraduate, postgraduate and doctoral levels. There are 29 undergraduate courses, 90 postgraduate courses and research in different disciplines. Disciplines which are in demand are Engineering, Management, Science, Architecture, Humanities etc. University's admission process is online. It conducts admission in undergraduate and postgraduate courses under Single Window Counselling every year. University accepts the score obtained in the entrance exam for all courses (except M.Sc), which are followed by counselling.

The university publishes the merit list for admission in the course of M.Sc. It accepts the scores of entrance exams such as TNAE (Tamil Nadu Engineering Admission), TANCET (Tamil Nadu Common Entrance Test, conducted by Anna University), NATA, UGC-NET, CSIR-NET and GATE. University's acceptance rate is only 29%, and only the top scorer of the entrance exam can get admission.

University also provides an option for distance education for the students, and its application process is online. The Center of Distance Education of the university offers courses in MBA, MCA, M.Sc etc. and admission is taken through an entrance test known as Distance Education Entrance Test (DEET).

Ranking and Accreditation

The University Grant Commission recognises it, and NAAC accredited the university with an 'A' Grade. UGC has also recognised the university as a "University with Potential for Excellence". According to the NIRF Ranking 2021, it has been ranked 16^th among Universities in India, ranked 25^th in the Overall Category, and ranked 18^th in Engineering Category.

According to the QS World Ranking 2022, Anna University is in the Rank Band of 801-1000. According to the US News, it has been ranked 1170 in the Overall Category.

Scholarships and Placements

The university provides various scholarships that are sponsored by the university, state government and central government. It provides a Merit cum Means Scholarship. It also provides scholarships to the students who belong to the economically weaker sections. Some of the scholarships are as follows-

• Merit cum Minority Scholarships- Meritorious students whose annual family income is INR 2.5lakh and they belong to minority Sikh, Buddhist, Muslims
• Central Sector Scheme of Scholarships- For students who have secured 80% marks in their 10+2 and have 75% attendance in their first year of college
• MBC/BC Scholarship- Students whose annual family income is less than ₹2 lakhs and they belong to backward categories.
• SC/ST Scholarships- Students who belong to ST and SC have essential proof from Tahsildar, and annual family income is ₹2.5 lakhs
• TN Educational Trust Scholarship- Students who are enrolled in undergraduate and postgraduate courses and whose annual family income is not more than ₹2.5 lakhs.

There is a significant increase in the number of campus job placements. University has a Center for University-Industry Collaboration which is solely dedicated to placement related activities like guiding students, mock interviews, internship opportunities etc. In 2022 there was an increase of 53.15% in the job offers during the placement drive. There is also an increase of 16.66% and 18.33%, respectively, in the average package and the number of companies visiting the campus. In 2022 total of 142 companies visited the campus for recruitment. The average package was ₹7 lakhs per annum, and the highest package was ₹36 lakhs per annum. Some of the top companies were Ashok Leyland, Saint Gobain Glass, Ranbaxy Laboratories, Wipro, Accenture, Infosys, Suzuki, TCS, etc.

Collaboration

Anna University has collaborated with many Indian and foreign institutions. It has signed 41 MoUs with Foreign Universities and 26 MoUs with Industries and National Universities. It has also collaborated on student exchange programs to provide better opportunities to its students. Some of the universities with which Anna University has Collaboration are -

• Swinburne University of Technology- Australia
• The Université François Rabelais in Tours- France
• Tampere University - Finland
• Freie Universitat Berlin- Germany
• Ecole Centrale de Nantes - France
• Hiroshima University - Japan
• Politecnico Di Milano - Italy
• Nagoya Institute of Technology- Japan
• Universidad Autonoma Del Estado De Morelos- Mexico
• University of Bern - Switzerland
• University of Zululand - South Africa
• University of Skovde - Sweden
• University of Kentucky - USA
• University of Westminster- UK
• Erasmus University Rotterdam - Netherlands

Notable Alumni

There are many notable alumni of this university, and some of them are

• Dr A.P.J Abdul Kalam - Former President of India
• Kailasavadivoo Sivan- Space Scientists, Former Secretary of Department of Space, Former Chairman of ISRO
• Verghese Kurien - Father of White Revolution in India
• Natarajan Chandrasekaran - Chairperson of Tata Group
• Shiv Nadar - Founder and Chairman of emeritus of HCL Technologies Ltd
• Akkineni Nagarjuna - Indian Actor, Film Producer