Events of the past year have taught us a lot about the need for resilience, justice, and sustainability. Just like any situation, it’s civil engineers’ responsibility to be leaders during the post-pandemic recovery. Whether it be adapting building designs to “COVID architecture” or re-thinking the way an urban core functions when half its workforce now has the opportunity to work from home, the need for flexibility and innovation with the engineering work to meet the changing needs of civilization is at an all-time high. We also need capable leaders in our communities as we apply the personal and societal lessons learned over the past year, who can look back, learn and help us out of these uncertain times and experiences. Thereby, with literally n number of engineering colleges across the country involved in giving back to society trained civil engineers of tomorrow, one particular educational institution which has since its inception aimed towards outperforming as all-rounded hub of academic & research excellence – Dr. M. G. R. Educational and Research Institute works relentlessly towards providing a better foothold for the students of today to face the challenges as strong individuals.
Started by Tmt.Kannammal Educational Trust as started Thai Moogambigai Polytechnic College in the year 1985, within three years of its inception, Dr. M.G.R. Engineering College was founded in 1988, and the Thai Moogambigai Dental College was started in 1991. Both the colleges acquired Deemed University status in 2003 as Dr. M.G.R. Educational and Research Institute as per the orders of the University Grants Commission, New Delhi and the Union Ministry of Human Resources and Development, Government of India, New Delhi.
A true epitome of succeeding as a hub which excels beyond academics, modern adults come out of the institute who have strong technical knowledge and ambitious confidence, where they are nurtured and groomed into young men and women. Helping students gain strong technical competence in their chosen specialty area of Civil Engineering with integrity and commitment, the students are turned into innovators, professional engineers, and leaders in the global community. Subsequently, all thanks to the impressive and unique teaching methodologies followed on campus, such as – Positive relationship, Cooperative engagement, Learning actively, Constructive feedback, Outcome based communication, Mutual respect and so on, at MGR, technology is utilized effectively to make the class interesting, irrespective of the medium of teaching used.
Creating economic competitors
Established in the year 2002, a vital part of the MGR university since its inception, the Department of Civil Engineering has grown over the years and is recognized as one of the major engineering departments in the country. The Department has developed strong links with various industries, academics, and research, both within and outside the country. Besides high-quality teaching learning for both UG and PG levels the department has organized various national and international level conferences, symposiums, and workshops. Additionally, the Civil Department continues to maintain and cultivate the talent among young engineers, which now has been accredited by the NBA (National Board of Accreditation).
Striving in pursuit of establishing quality assurance & continuously addressing, monitoring and evaluating the quality education offered to students and promoting an effective teaching – learning process, the Department of Civil Engineering has curated all its courses with a curriculum which is totally skill-based and practice oriented. Hosting B.Tech in Civil Engineering, M.Tech in Construction and Management and Structural Engineering, M.S and a PhD, the department endorses practical knowledge across all the programs, where the daily study routine includes experiments, tours, projects and assignments. The department also regularly motivates all its students to take part in industrial visits, in plant training, educational tours, to improve their knowledge.
“Holistic development is a comprehensive approach in learning which aims to develop multiple facets, thus, we at MGR aim towards developing critical thinking abilities among the students, via examining concepts, ideas, problems and issues”, stated – ER A. C. S Arun Kumar, the honorable president of the institute. Enunciating the ways at which the Department of Civil Engineering of MGR excels at being a genuine place for real Civil Engineering learning, the president took us on a virtual tour of the university and helped us understand how at MGR students are always the center of attention. Adding to his above statement, he stated – “Using additional subjects which we offer, such as – soft skill training for career building & confidence and Quantitative Aptitude to improve in solving numeric problems, and skill based training in the field of civil engineering, we ensure civil engineering curriculum goes beyond the classrooms”.
Situated in a prime location of Chennai, the MGR University facilitates prime infrastructure across all the subjects/fields taught in the Civil Engineering Department. Taking situations like the current pandemic in a stride, blended learning is a way of teaching and learning which integrates e-learning with traditional learning under a unified form at the university. The e-learning tools such as software, computer facilities and the internet are merged with regular tutorials in which tutors meet with learners face to face. Furthermore, during the lockdown period E-learning was made an essential component of blended learning, which clearly showed many advantages over traditional classroom instructions. In addition, this setup also provided electronic educational materials as well as a platform for discussion and interaction among students and teachers.
All in all, having research in its very name, emphasizes on the importance of collaborative learning and the importance of research and development across every endeavor carried out at the university. As a result, the Civil Department consists of a Centre for Excellence in Structural Engineering Lab, Centre of excellence in GIS and Centre of Excellence in Construction practice. The department is also actively doing research work under agencies of ISRO, DST and Chennai city Corporation, and partakes in consultancy work in the area of Cement, Concrete, Soil , Brick , Design of building works, Estimating and Quantity survey works, field survey works, etc. Lastly, having the university granting various scholarship opportunities for students coming from economically weaker backgrounds with the following percentage 100% , 90%, 75% and 50% and based on their category, MGR University focuses towards imparting quality higher education to the masses irrespective of the backgrounds they come from, thereby, increasing the rate of attainment in higher education and enhancing the employability of budding engineers of tomorrow.
ER A. C. S. Arun Kumar – Founder
The man behind the success of the MGR University across various fields, including Civil Engineering, as a President Arun Kumar aims to help students to excel across all the domains of their interest. A qualified engineer, his hectic schedule as a Life Member in various bodies / societies like Indian Society for Technical Education, Institute of Engineering Technology, Computer Society of India, etc, has helped him become a man of experience, who readily passes on his experience to others with full interest. Also, a Golden Member of all International Hotels in India, in his professional life he has received the Youngest Edupreneur-2014 & 2015 Awards and received EduIcon – 2016 & 2017 Awards. Apart from serving the educational field he is the Managing Director for the Three Star Hotel “Benz Park Tulip”, Chennai & Vellore. He holds the position of Vice Chairman for the ACS Group of Institutions at Arni, Kodaikanal and Bangalore. His sharpness as an administrator, as a good thinker and as a perceptive educationist, has made A.C.S. Arunkumar, a dedicated and devoted human endeared to the cause of education.
