CHENNAI: The number of foreign applicants to SRM university courses has increased this year, according to its Vice Chancellor, P Sathyanarayanan. “Almost 600 students have applied from abroad, in addition to 200 Chinese students. Last year it was around 400,” he said. “The semester abroad program has been very successful. One of our students went to MIT for his fifth semester, where he scored five out of five on his Grade Point Average (GPA). So we helped him stay on for one more semester and he got a consecutive five on his GPA. It is a difficult feat, and our Indian student has achieved it.”Holders of the top 10 ranks in the B Tech stream of the SRM University’s Engineering Entrance Exam (SRMEEE) were awarded the Founder’s scholarship at the university’s Kattankulathur campus here today. Counseling for the academic year starting 2011 also commenced today.More than 1.36 lakh candidates appeared for the SRMEEE this year, out of which the top 10,000 have been called for counseling. Vaibhav Kumar of Jharkand secured the first rank. T Ramkumar of Tamil Nadu and Kumar Gopal of Bihar scored the second and third rank respectively.The Founder’s Scholarship entitles the students for a 100% waiver on tuition and hostel fees and gives them a monthly stipend of Rs 1000. Merit scholarships are also awarded to those scoring above 90% in CBSE or State Board examinations. Those ranking above 8000 in the SRMEEE can apply for this.Vice Chancellor of SRM, P Sathyanarayanan, said, “Last year, we gave away scholarships worth Rs 12.2 crores. This year, we expect it to go up to Rs 15 crores.” Scholarships based on sports, economic backwardness and physical disabilities were also given, he said. The scheme of offering admissions to district toppers is being continued this year as well. Last year, two district toppers had joined.When asked why only one student from Tamil Nadu was in the top 10 and Andhra Pradesh had many toppers, Sathyanarayanan said, “In Andhra, the syllabus is entrance exam-oriented, and students are trained for this. We have the highest number of applications from Tamil Nadu, but since there is no common entrance exam to prepare for, they may not be able to cope in the SRMEEE.”The relatively new courses, which are in great demand, are nanotechnology and nuclear engineering. Both were launched last year and have become popular this year. The Vice Chancellor also said that the reason students opted for SRM was the placement cell especially for engineering. He also discussed future projects of the university, including their sports academy, satellite launch and entrepreneurship cell.
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