Vivekananda College, Madurai

Gurukulam strengths

• Revival of the ancient Gurukula system since 1971.
• Life-training and character building education provided
• Early rising at 4.45 a.m. by all the students.
• Congregational prayer thrice a day and weekly bhajan on Saturday
• Chanting of Surya Gaytari five times during every prayer
• Students serve the three meals and the evening tiffin throughout the year.
• Chanting of Brahmarpanam before every meal
• Hand pound rice, ragi-malt, organic fruits and vegetables, and pure milk produced in the college dairy
• Peer Team Student Supervisors for physical activities
• Peer Team Student Wardens for co-operative living
• Peer Team Student Trainers in martial arts and gymnastics
• Monthly Assessment of physical activities for each student
• Maintenance of records like Study Hour Self-Evaluative Record, Cloak Room Record, Remarks Register, Database of Blood Grouping, Attendance Register during three prayers and Roll Call
• Traditional dress and uniform for three days in a week
• Spiritual solace through conducting Anthar Yoga
• Suriya Namaskar and Yogasanas and mass drill for all the inmates
• Annual procession to Edakanathar temple every year on Vivekananda Jayanthi Day
• Presence of Sannyasins
• Student ‘Kumkis’ to sensitize students to adjust with the system.
• All the students can sing "Vande Mataram", the national song.
• Personality Assessment Certificate to all the students at the end of the lifetraining which is as important as the degree certificate.

• Autonomy since 1987
• ‘A’ Grade by NAAC since 2002
• NAAC orientation to the needy colleges
• Annual cultural and spiritual camps for the children and the youth respectively.
• Option for choosing Sanskrit as a first language
• Support of the alumni in enrolment, resource mobilization, motivation for higher education, and placement
• Peer team student tutoring
• Pass percentage 93% in the Summative Examinations of First, Third, and Fifth semesters of 2007-2008
• Emotional counselling by a group of teachers
• Editorial presentation, journal articles presentation and group discussion forum.
• Teaching communication skills to the girls students of Government Higher Secondary School, Sholavandan.
• Regular inter-collegiate programmes.
• Training the Self Help Groups

• Student strength cannot be more than 1000
• Initial reluctance on the part of the students to get into the Gurukula system
• Poverty of students preventing them from paying their mess fees
• Students with poor communicative skills
• Left over students in the academic stream

• More students recruited in defence and police forces due to physical culture imparted here.
• Promotion of cultural tourism
• All round personality development
• Blood donations given for heart surgery at the Government Rajaji Hospital, Madurai throughout the year.
• Converting students with an inadequate value system into desirable characters.
• NSS camps during summer vacation
• NCC Republic Parade Representation every year
• Village Adoption Programme and donation of van by the State Bank of India, Chennai Circle.
• Earn while you learn
• Self study scheme and library services
• Science Exhibition for the rural masses once in two years
• Library and laboratory on wheels for the rural students.

• Water scarcity
• Frequent power cuts
• Enrolment in traditional science and arts courses declining
• Self-financing teachers may leave the institution any time

  Protecting the environment

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