After repeated requests by Aniket Anikhindi to call this one Calyx 2007 to maintain continuity, the college did not budge. So we had two Calyx 2006′s during this calender year. 
Calyx this year was a great success in terms of organisation, contests and quality. It was a great disappointment in terms of the turnout. Very low registration numbers were a major downer for everyone who had worked hard. It seems college egos and personal boycotts were a major undercurrent behind the low turnout.
I sincerely hope that students realise the benefits such events bring directly to them and leave their colleges out of the equation. Colleges have their own politics in which they’re always ready to sacrifice a few students – afterall they’ve got hundreds of them to replace.
But we did see Fergusson benefitting greatly both in terms of the college itself and the students directly from the Microsoft involvement all made possible thanks to Reza. DES might be getting some interesting licensing schemes from Microsoft and students have found out about different opportunities they have for interacting with MSFT. It only goes to show how other colleges and even the University of Pune has been employing people at Microsoft for the last eight years failed to make such information available to other students. I wonder what I’d have become today if someone had told me of such an opportunity when I was in my first year.
Now that I’ve vented my anger, it’s feels great to have made a small difference in my own way. I had decided right from my undergrad, based on my experiences, that I would directly involve my company in the college activities instead of giving a lot of philosophical talks on “industry oriented” crap and doing nothing. I always wished that the people who gave me lectures actually showed me how it’s done instead of only talking. Students got to see Microsoft and what the real “software industry” (as opposed to IT industry) is like. No “criteria”, no “rules”, and no “standards”. So long as you’re good and amongst the best, Microsoft wants you. No degree names, no college names, and no specifications. I’ll bet I’d have been a lot more confident today if I’d have met a company who didn’t go by my marks and my college name but focussed on what I can really do when I was in my first year of undergraduation. But I hope the future generations from Fergusson will no longer worry about being in BCS and only focus on being the very best that they can be. Microsoft is just _one_ of those guys who really don’t give a damn what college you come from, but care about what you can do in your future. There’s a million such companies, institutions, and individuals out there. Microsoft involvement was just to show that they _do_ exist, and not necessarily that MSFT is the only place.
I’ve always hated the discussions on “BE vs. BCS” on the BCS communities. It’s we who demean ourselves by such talks and somehow convey to our juniors that we’re lower than engineering. It’s by reiterating that we’re ‘also good’ that we indirectly tell others that we’re not good. Don’t say it. Act it. Prove it. Compete in the ACM ICPC. Compete in the ImagineCup and companies will look at you. They don’t look at IITians because they have a B.Tech. degree. Those days of “government jobs” from the 1960′s are gone. Companies look at IITians because they compete and win. True democracy is just reaching the Indians today. So stop blaming your degrees for your personal inadequacies and focus on how you can overcome them!
This information is primarily for colleges and students outside Fergusson who missed the discussions with Reza at our campus during Calyx. Starting relations with Microsoft is a lot easier than people imagine. You don’t face a lot of “we’re great” kind of egos to deal with and you won’t face a lot of “we don’t like academics” talks. Just mail any of the student partners or the evangelists and Microsoft will respond very plainly and frankly. I’d like to see more and more colleges involving these companies in their events.
Besides, one of the best ways for students to get noticed by Microsoft is to participate in their contests. The ImagineCup (www.imaginecup.com) is the current best contest to aim for. I’ve just received news that during the week of Calyx, ImagineCup has seen the highest number of registrations since September 2006.
Also, do register yourself as their student partners. Simply visit www.student-partners.com and send in an application. They’re looking for student partners in all BCS colleges so do spread this news far and wide. It’s very easy and very exciting for students, apart from being beneficial to the college in that it makes your college more noticable. So do register and I hope to see more and more Punites involved in activities and events conducted by Microsoft.
One of the things you should remember is to remember that you’ll not be treated any different based on what college you come from or whether you’re in BCS or BE. For Microsoft, everybody’s the same, so long as you’re the best. You have to set your own criteria and you have to defend in your own way why you think you’re the best. But remember the negative side of this. An argument like, “I’m the best because I’m in Fergusson” will get you rejected. It won’t work. You’re being in Fergusson or Wadia or SP or Garware or Modern or even the Pune University means squat to them. If you can write code that works wonders, you’re in. If you can’t, you’re out. I know many people are used to the security that being in Fergusson gives them. You’ll just have to deal with the fact that mugging up subjects and scoring high or using your college name to show off won’t work in the bigger world anymore. You’ve got to fight and always stay on top if you want to survive.
Having said that, I’m severely disappointed in Fergusson’s Post-graduate section, especially the flagship MCS students. For countless years, I’ve heard them boasting about how great they are and how they can win any contest and nobody gives them an opportunity. They’ve always teased their classmates who couldn’t get as high a pay package as them and have a habit of sitting at Savera/Vaishali teasing those who’re not as fortunate in plaements as themselves. Now it’s my turn! Getting Microsoft involved was one of my personal vendettas to shut them up for once and live my life in peace. We’ve seen what they’re made of and we have evidence – no more conjectures or comments or personalities – cold, hard, experimental proof! They blamed college for having bad judges. So I got Microsoft to judge the events accoding to ImagineCup standards (the events _were_ a part of the ImagineCup). MCS people chickened out from even competing. freshers from undergrad showed more courage. Fergusson FY’s and SY’s stood up head-on against PG students of other colleges and managed to win in some cases. But the fact that they stood up in the first place makes me have a great deal of respect for them. Great going juniors! UG ROCKS! An undergraudate student from Symbiosis managed to beat them with ease in the programming contest. I sincerely hope Calyx next year will see a lot more real competition and no snide remarks at Vaishali or Savera. If you’re great, prove it. If not, shut up. But talking just irritates everyone, so that’s something I’m not prepared to tolerate.
And please always feel free to mail me regarding any queries related to volume licensing schemes for educational institutions, student partner applications, or getting Microsoft involved in curriculum, certifications, etc. Mircosoft is always very easily approachable and very positive in responding.
