– Sasank Marthand

I was pretty good in mathematics and therefore in Class 9, I decided to choose the science stream. In Class 11 itself, I started preparing for the Joint Entrance Examination. I chose to be an engineer as I was always interested in problem-solving skills. I found a connection with it. Moreover, great CEOs like Sundar Pichai and Satya Nadella were engineers. I am deeply motivated by them. 

After cracking JEE Advanced 2022, I got admission to BTech in Civil Engineering at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras. I chose this programme over branches like data science and electronics and communications engineering at the top NITs as civil engineering fascinated me more. I am glad that my hard work and motivation bore fruit and I am currently studying at the best engineering college in India.

I had attended a coaching in my home town Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh but most of the preparation was done by myself.

As I completed my entire schooling in my hometown, it was for the first time I was living away from my family. I was worried about how I would cope in a new place. I used to frequently fell sick in my first semester and had a difficult time not having home-cooked food. Since the institute has various choices in its menus, I slowly started adjusting here. However, it was friends and seniors who made me feel like IIT Madras is my second home.

Even though I was reluctant to socialise at first, they all cooperated with me. In the first few days, it felt like I was still in my JEE days due to the rigorous academic curriculum with many co-curricular and extracurricular activities available beyond my imagination. Now that I settled in, I have discovered my hidden talents and interests and have joined quite a few teams.

I am part of the Entrepreneurship Cell (E-Cell) of IIT Madras and have made many connections through it. It also boosted my confidence in my abilities and am planning to continue to work with the team in the future. 

I have also been a part of the game development team of IIT Madras called Envisage. This club is my favourite as I have been interested in gaming since my school days. 

I am also in the cultural team and met one of my favourite celebrities, Suma Kanakala (Indian actress and television presenter), last year as I was on the event’s organising team. We interviewed her in ‘Saarang Spotlight’. Saarang is the annual social and cultural festival of IIT Madras. I still boast about it to this day. I met singer Karthik as well during the festival. I am also a part of the civil engineering association where I deal with sponsorships. 

I believe that getting into an IIT and that too in the NIRF (government ranking) 1 has boosted my confidence greatly and also helped me learn how to socialise and deal with deadlines while coordinating in a team. Living here in the institute has transformed me as a person as I have gotten exposure to various perspectives and now have a better understanding of the world.

In the beginning, I only concentrated on attending my classes, but slowly it changed to including at least one extra-curricular activity in my schedule every day. 

I generally hang out with my friends in one of our hostel rooms or near the Usha Cafe inside the campus. Center for Innovation (CFI) is also my hangout place where I along with my friends work on projects. We also go to CCDs to get midnight coffee.

I plan on getting into a management or technical consultancy in the civil engineering department itself. I am also planning on pursuing higher education like a PhD or an MBA in the later stages of my life.

My ultimate goal is to do something meaningful that is in sync with my interests. For now, my sole focus is on what I am doing at present.