Uncovering life at NMIMS SDSOS

NMIMS - it is already pretty famous for its MBA and other programs and so I was pretty surprised when I got to know they had a Biological Sciences program too. Honestly, I had very high expectations when I got into this course and every single one of them has been fulfilled. They have a truly rigorous curriculum that focuses highly on hands-on training for biology (facilitated by the newest technology) The SOS campus in a small disappointment, because the labs are cramped up but each of the students gets an opportunity to have proper hands-on training for everything ranging from Animal Tissue Culture lab to high-end instruments like RT PCR. There is an equal emphasis for the development of research lacunae as well as corporate readiness (courtesy of NMIMS B-school, of course). In the 2 years, we not only dip our toes in but also get to learn the details of subjects like Bioinformatics, IPR Patenting, Python & R which are the newest demands of the industry. Admission is by their entrance test

Chose this for the all-round development and emphasis on research skills and corporate readiness, which are the key points of picking up a course in NMIMS SOS. The core faculty is extremely experienced and amazing, with all of them currently guiding Ph.D. students and have amazing research experience under their belt, and we have had phenomenal visiting faculty, especially Prof K.K. Rao from IITB (now superannuated) for teaching Molecular biology and Recombinant DNA technology. Even for IPR Patenting, Prof Munshi from NMIMS SOL was brought in, who has the experience of working for the UN, even. All of the faculties are extremely experienced and brilliant at what they do and provide useful insights for practical use. The exams are conducted in two phases - 50% as Internal component (containing MCQs, assignments, projects, etc.) And the other half is for term-end externally. The 4th semester consists only of a thesis (project done outside) that is marked by external experts.

NMIMS is a record famous for placements, which is what has been happening for all batches of students so far. The students become eligible for placements from sem 4 of MSc, but the training for the same starts from sem 1 itself. There are Soft Skills sessions, Employability workshops, and Placement talks every week. Big Pharma companies come in, and so do corporate places like Medical writing firms, etc. Mostly around 65% of people opt for placements and get one. I will be opting for placements myself after finishing.

For the 1st year, my fees were 86.5k and for the 2nd year 79.5k, most of the chunk of the fees are for tuition while others are for the resources. Every penny is worth it because the University provides immense resources through the library and up to date computer labs. The fees might be steep for some people but is worth all the perks.

As part of the SVKM campus, there is a fest going on every 15 days by different colleges on the campus so it's always bustling with people. Literally always! Mithibai canteen is the best place for that, and for the best food, ever! As far as SOS is concerned, we have Excalibur in December as a cultural fest which has recurring themes, and the Student's Council organizes it along with organizing other things like Sports Day and other events to keep life fun. The library is amazingly spacious with as many books you could want, and SOS shares a library with UPG and SOL, so those too. Quite the interdisciplinary feat! Laptops are also available in the library for your use along with all the PCs. There is access to e-Library and numerous paid databases via the Library ID. Every class is equipped with a smartboard, and central air conditioning and carpets are just SVKM things.

They have their own Entrance test held in June which comprises of entrance exam and interview.

70 marks - Written-test Based on Biology information learned during Bachelor's degrees (Tends to be more generalized towards Life Science subjects rather than other specializations) 30 marks - Interview A panel consisting of 1 core faculty and 1 external examiner (Total there were 4 different panels) Ask questions about your learnings during B.Sc. and if any research background or projects that have been done during then