JIPMER - A Wholesome Experience

Anyone who qualifies through NEET UG and has a good enough rank is eligible for admission and has to apply for counseling and be selected. All details regarding the process are available on JIPMER's website and are also made available through a prospectus. Reservation benefits are available based on caste, location, and disability. The admission process is usually held offline and may be moved online for ease of access for students across the country. Previously, the JIPMER UG exam used to be held which has been replaced by Neet UG now. The cut-off changes each year based on the preferences of the top candidates who qualify for the exam.

The curriculum is preplanned and based on national guidelines. The faculty at each department is one of the best in their respective fields in the country. Many of them have authored and edited reputed medical books. Like every other college, there are some faculties that are revered for their excellent teaching style while others can be considered average. Exams are held regularly throughout the course in the form of formative assessments, internals, ward leaving, et cetera. Send-ups and university examinations are held at the end of each academic year and are not easy to pass. While pass percentages are quite high, one must prepare properly to pass the exams. Classroom teaching is accompanied by laboratory experiments, practical classes, clinical teaching and patient interaction.

One year of internship is compulsory for all MBBS graduates in India. An internship in JIPMER is among the finest experiences one can have in their medical career early on. We move through various departments and learn skills important for all doctors. We are paid during the internship period.

The academic fees paid by students in an academic year are extremely low and negligible. Education is heavily subsidized by the government and hence there is hardly any financial burden on the students. While there are no intramural scholarships available, many students avail of scholarships provided by external bodies or even the government. Out of the Rs.6770 being collected as academic fees, the tuition fee is Rs.1200, JSA fees is Rs.2000, learning resources fees is Rs.2000, corpus fund fees is Rs.70, and student information system fee is Rs.1500.

The annual fest, Spandan is held usually in the month of September and is considered the biggest medical fest in South India with thousands of students participating. It is a week-long fest. Other than Spandan, the student body also conducts sports, cultural, fine arts, literary and academic inter-class. Events like freshers, Holi, hostel nights, pre-graduation ceremonies, and various club sessions are held as well. There is one aspect of social life in JIPMER that I would like to focus on. Unlike most other colleges in India, our college has no curfew time for girls. We are allowed to live our social lives without much scrutiny from the administration. We have a central library with a huge collection of books as well as subscriptions to various publications and journals. Apart from this, Pondicherry is a beautiful seashore city, and spending half a decade of your life here in this city is a dream come true for many.

All JIPMER students are entitled to apply for hostels, however, day scholars are usually not accommodated due to the limited number of rooms available. However, all students who are not local residents are given rooms at hostels across the campus. Two students are given one room initially and will be provided single rooms once there is a vacancy for the same. Toilets may be common or individual based on which hostel building you receive. While boys usually have to wait till the final year for a single room, girls can get it earlier. Many people live in rented PG rooms as well nearby. Various mess services are available within the campus at reasonable prices. External mess services are also available based on various state cuisines. There are several cafeterias inside the campus as well. The meal quality, while not great, is of sufficient standard for the amount of fees collected which is 3000 per month.