How Nitte University is Making Its Presence Felt Globally

N Vinaya Hegde, Chancellor & Vishal Hegde, Pro Chancellor, Nitte Deemed-to-be University

Nitte Deemed University, near Mangaluru, is making its presence felt across the world. While Nitte alumni have already marked their presence on the global stage as renowned doctors and medical researchers, the university itself has been making waves on the international arena. It has recently become one among the only 8 universities in India to be ranked in the Top 300 World Universities Rankings by UK based Times Higher Education, based on UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. Nitte University students have been winning national level technology competitions in aerospace technologies and creating 3D Printed Robots. MNC and national recruiters from Nitte Campus include Mercedes Benz, Toyota Kirloskar Motors, Hitachi, ABB Power Grids, Juniper Networks, Intel, Novo Nordisk, L&T Technology Services, Syngene International, JSW, Prestige Construction, JK Cement etc. N Vinaya Hegde, Chancellor, and Vishal Hegde, Pro Chancellor (Administration) are heading an elite team of academicians and administrators at Nitte Deemed to be University, with a clear vision of shining at not just the national level, but at the international league.

When this year’s National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) results were published, Nitte Deemed-to-be University had much to cheer. This leading private sector university headquartered near Mangaluru moved up two ranks, compared to last year, to secure the 75th position on an all India basis. NIRF rankings are released annually by the Ministry of Education based on teaching, learning, research, resources and several such core criteria.

However, some of the constituent colleges of Nitte University fared even better in the NIRF 2022 rankings. For instance, Nitte Gulabi Shetty Memorial Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences (NGSMIPS), has obtained 45th rank nationally in NIRF 2022. NGSMIPS, which is recognized by the Pharmacy Council of India and All India Council for Technical Education, has been making rapid strides in delivering world-class pharmacy education in India. Apart from shaping competent pharmacy professionals, empowered to face challenges with integrity, NGSMIPS also takes care to groom them in social responsibilities.

An even brighter limelight was hogged by Nitte's AB Shetty Memorial Institute of Dental Sciences, which received the 6th Rank in NIRF 2022, retaining its position as a preeminent national level leader like in the previous year. With its unique motto of ‘Service to Humanity’, the dental college excels in not only delivering cutting-edge clinical knowledge in dentistry, but for executing with elan socially impactful outreach programs in the neighbouring communities that it serves. Earlier, the college had also won the Best Dental College Award, certified by the Indian Health Professionals Committee for ‘Outstanding Clinical Work and Contribution towards Research and Scientific Publications’.

Earlier in the year, Nitte University rose to international prominence when it became one among the only eight Indian Universities to be ranked in the Top 300 of the World's Universities in the 2022 edition of the UK-based Times Higher Education (THE) Impact Rankings. Nitte came out with flying colours in the category of meeting UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, and was ranked 92nd in the category of Good Health and Well-Being and placed in the Top 200 in the categories of Quality Education, Gender Equality, and Clean Water & Sanitation.

Highly impactful social outreach projects and programs have been a mainstay of Nitte University ever since it was founded. Being a predominantly healthcare university so far, Nitte could also do projects with far reaching and enduring impact across the communities around it. Taking this ethos to a new level, Nitte University has recently started the Nitte Day Care Clinic in Mangaluru.

The clinic, spread across 20,000 sq ft, will provide modern diagnostic and therapeutic facilities at an affordable cost. The Nitte Day Care Clinic will be run by a key constituent of Nitte University, the Justice KS Hegde Charitable Hospital and has come up at Pumpwell in Mangaluru.

The clinic will provide services of specialised and experienced doctors  and offer eight different types of preventive healthcare packages for the benefit of the general public. There will be 12 consultation rooms with facilities that enhance quality of life. Specialized treatments available at the clinic include dental, digital x-ray, foetal anomaly scan centre, day care chemotherapy, physiotherapy, well-equipped pharmacy, endoscopic procedures and minor OT with the capacity to conduct basic surgical procedures. If patients require advanced treatment, a free transportation facility will be arranged from the clinic to the hospital.

Nitte University got a shot in its arm recently, when a major institution so far under the Nitte Group, came under the fold of Nitte University. NMAM Institute of Technology (NMAMIT) has been the flagship engineering college under Nitte Group for long. The college was affiliated to the Visvesvaraya Technological University, Belgaum, and it had received autonomous status in 2007-08. And now NMAMIT has been made a constituent college of Nitte University, effective from June 2022. This will greatly enhance the prestige and standing of the university overall, which has been until now more focused on health sciences. For instance, engineering institutions bag the most limelight when it comes to placements, startups and rankings.

As a recent example, one of NMAMIT’s student clubs, AeroClub-Nitte has secured an All India 2nd Rank under Micro Class Category in SAE AeroDesign Challenge held recently at SRM Institute of Science and Technology, Chennai. The team consisted of Deeksha as the team captain and wing designer; Aman Kumar Srivastav as the wing structural designer, aerodynamic analyst and co-pilot; Deekshith Prabhu as pilot and propulsion system designer; Bhat Aditi Dinamani as the wing designer; K Nishmitha Pai as fuselage and aircraft designer; Pai Suchitra Maroor as the structural analyst and empennage designer; and Rathan Raj K as the structural analyst.

The role of engineering faculty and industry mentors were also quite evident in this national level win. Dr Gururaj Upadhyaya, associate professor in the department of Mechanical Engineering, NMAMIT was the technical co-ordinator of the student team. Mentors of the team from the aerospace and IT industries included Ananth Erasappa (UAV Operator United Nations/ Tata Defence and Aerospace/ Skylark Drones), Karthik Badanidiyoor (UAV Operator - United Nations Peacekeeping / Operations Officer - Infinity Drones), Sushmita S Shetty (Technical Support Engineer at VMware) and Ankith Bhandary (Software Developer-1 at Oracle).

Earlier in the year, NMAMIT students at the College Innovators Innovation & Product Development (CIIPD) Center - Nitte, had come up with an innovative 3D printed dancing robot. The robot was developed by a team of four students, from diverse academic backgrounds like Engineering, MCA, BBA etc. The robot’s development was made possible by the use of a combination of technologies.

The design as well as the robot's body were created using 3D designing and modelling skills, and the robot is operated with the help of microcontrollers, sensors and motors  These students at CIIPD Center, Nitte, believed that they not only had the right opportunity, but also mentorship, tools, training, resources, and most importantly, the innovation and maker space at Nitte that helped them not only think about an idea but also bring it into reality.

NMAMIT offers both conventional and advanced engineering branches like Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning, Biotechnology, Civil, Computer & Communication, Electrical & Electronics, Electronics & Communication, Information Science, Mechanical, Robotics & Artificial Intelligence etc. The college has a strong placement record with noted companies such as Mercedes Benz, Toyota Kirloskar Motors, Hitachi, ABB Power Grids, Juniper Networks, Intel, Novo Nordisk, L&T Technology Services, Syngene International, JSW, Prestige Construction, JK Cement etc.

Around 1072 students were successfully placed in 2021, with the highest package being Rs 45.64 Lakh per annum. The institute has also been placed in the 'Platinum' category for having high industry linkages by the AICTE-CII Survey of Industry-Linked Technical Institutes 2020.

Research is another area where Nitte University has been taking giant strides. The university had recently invited applications from eligible candidates to secure admissions for full-time or part time PhD Course in the faculties of Medicine (Pre, Para & Clinical Medicine), Dentistry, Pharmacy, Physiotherapy, Allied Health Science, Nursing (full-time), Biological Sciences, Speech & Hearing, Engineering, Commerce & Management, Applied Sciences, Business Administration and Humanities. Meritorious full time candidates will receive Nitte PhD Fellowships of Rs 15,000 per month as per University guidelines.

Nitte University has also introduced a new 4-year BSc (Honors) in Hospitality Management at the Nitte Institute of Hospitality Services in Kodakal, Mangaluru. Nitte Education Trust, through its constituent institution, Sarosh Institute of Hotel Administration (SIHA), has been providing quality hotel management education, since 1992. In recent years, prospects for students of hotel management programs have expanded.

Keeping this requirement in mind, the university is offeing a new 4-year BSc (Honors) in Hospitality Management. Students will be provided with a combination of traditional classroom instruction and opportunities for hands-on experiential learning, to help develop critical thinking and strategies, receive feedback, work with teams and gain confidence through organising micro and mega-events in the college and university.

The university is also getting sufficient support from Central and State Governments in recognition of its various initiatives. Recently, Nitte University was selected by Department of Science and Technology (DST), Government of India, to have a Technology Enabling Centre (TEC), which is one of the 10 such centres established at the national level. The TEC is mandated to assess the technology and service needs of Micro, Medium and Small Enterprises (MSMEs) in Karnataka to enable access.

Nitte University is a part of Nitte Group run by Nitte Education Trust, which was founded in 1979 by Justice Kowdoor Sadananda Hegde, former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court and former Speaker of the Lok Sabha. Offering education in diverse areas of learning, Nitte today offers a total of 130+ programs including medicine, engineering, management, hospitality, allied health sciences, dentistry, pharmacy, nursing, physiotherapy, speech and audiology, media & communication and architecture. The Trust has established 40+ institutions spread across three campuses at Nitte, Mangalore and Bangalore and has over 20,000+ students and 4500+ faculty in its campuses.