– Kunal Pal

After joining the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Guwahati in 2020, our classes started online because of Covid. Then we were called to the institute in February for around two months and sent back again. The period of those two months was amazing. I came to know about how foods in a northeast mess taste like. I came across people from diverse backgrounds. The institute since then has been playing a pivotal role in honing my overall skills and nurturing my intellectual curiosity.

I am from Uttarakhand and, in my neighbourhood, most students of my age have chosen a career in the armed forces. Delving for a career in engineering was altogether a new thing for me.

After scoring 97.2 per cent in Class 10, I wanted to do something big in life. Since my physics and maths were strong and I liked them as subjects, I decided to go with science in my Class 11.

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I started preparing for JEE Main and JEE Advanced in 2018 after completing my Class 10 board exams. However, my preparation in full swing started in Class 12 as before that, I was not aware of the Joint Entrance Examination. I did not put in much effort in Class 11 and so, my preparation was not up to the mark. When I made up my mind to appear for JEE Main during Class 12, I made sure to follow a timetable for my JEE preparation and grab a seat in an IIT. I obtained 97.4 per cent in Class 12.

I used to study for around 10 to 12 hours a day during my JEE preparation. I divided my day into four slots of two to three hours each and also had an extra hour for revision.

I secured a seat in the civil engineering department of IIT Guwahati and now I am in my fourth year. I am also the general secretary of the Students’ Web Committee.

Life at IIT Guwahati is dynamic and has been amazing. Things around me have changed so much in these four years. During the first year, I was mostly into exploring the institute, clubs and societies, and finding my niche. My peers and seniors used to motivate us to participate in college events. The first year was online due to the pandemic.

After my classes started to be held offline in the second year and we were called to the hostel, life became a bit harder. Attending classes, activities at the clubs and coping with the hostel life which began as a task for me eventually started to be manageable. What I mostly used to do was study during college hours and devote time to clubs and other activities after my classes were over. Time management and prioritising became most important.

Since I have 9 am lectures, I wake up at 8 am, run for breakfast and leave for classes. I return for lunch by 1 pm and do assignments and then go for labs between 2 pm and 5 pm. In my free time, I play some indoor game since I am not much fond of outdoor games. Then attend club meetings, study for tests or spend time with friends and go to the nearby market.

I started exploring different areas in my second semester including stock market and programming. I gained an interest in programming and later joined the Students’ Web Committee and Coding Club in my second year. Through the mentorship of seniors at these student bodies, I learned app development and web development and collaborated with other peers in the institute to develop exciting projects in those domains. Being part of these student bodies helped me grow technically and personally. Also, I was able to secure a Software Development Internship at I’mbesideyou (A Japanese Startup) through on-campus internships.

In my third year, I was primarily part of the Students’ Web Committee where working on institute-level projects, conducting events helped me learn a lot about software development and Leadership. Later, I took part in Students’ Gymkhana Election 2023 and got elected as General Secretary of Students’ Web Committee and the fun part is the elections were conducted on a portal developed by SWC.

At the end of the third year, I completed my internship at I’mbesideyou and later got placed at Dashtoon as product engineer on day 1 of IIT placements. I have learned a lot as I lead the student body to develop and deliver the software solutions by communicating with different stakeholders in the institute. I have been part of multiple projects in the institute which have directly impacted the admin branch of IIT Guwahati as well. I was associated with developing the student election portal and IIT Guwahati placement portal.