Letter from Apex

Dear Fresher

As a fresher, the greatest fear for most was to walk out of the dear home with familiar faces and walk into a large hall with an unknown visage, as nervous and frightened as you and honestly have no idea what to do next. And that, my friend, is where the magic happens.

So, congratulations! You can go and ahead finally put those prep books in your attic now, no need for them anymore! (Well at least not in first year) The fire-breathing dragon that had descended in the form of endless entrance exams, sleepless nights trying to figure out that “last” question, comparisons with the “sharmaji ka beta” and aunties who inquire about your “well-being” all are going to become a distant past. The dragon is now slayed and you are knocking on the doors from where college life starts.

The image of clean uniforms, plaited hair and spotless polished black shoes will very soon seem like a distant memory. Once in college, the sheltered lifestyle of schooling will become nearly obsolete, giving way to a courageous, ambitious and conscious individual. Yes, that will be you. This introspection, the consciousness and the courage will not come easy, mind you! It will be gruelling and challenging, as you will be striving to be better than yourself, everyday. That's not a scary thing though. That's what college is meant for.

You would often find yourself doing tasks out of your comfort zone, face challenges that initially look intimidating. Whether it’s academic things like doing well in a course, doing research work, competitive coding or exciting internships, or other things like playing sports, writing for the college magazine, dancing for the college fest, creating your own band and performing in November Jam, and so many other fun activities. Explore talents that you never knew you had, and find something that you are really passionate about. Make sure to get a piece of everything the college has to offer. Don’t hold back and try to participate in everything you possibly can. Enjoy these years as much as you can. There is nothing like them. Don’t be afraid to do things because you might fail, but, live and fail often.

We, here at IIIT-H, are a tight knit family. Owing to the relatively small size of our community and campus, you will know everyone by name, and will bond with juniors and seniors alike. You will be embark on this journey with your batch mates and seniors, later joined by your own juniors (currently fighting those dragons), while the faculty and professors watch on as guardians, nudging you towards your own path. In this process, you will be part of unbreakable bonds and camaraderie leaving an indelible mark on lives in college. If you feel stuck and lost, there are people at every step willing to help you, reach out to them.

We know that you will have many questions, concerns or problems. The institute has constituted a mentoring system, which enables student mentors to assist the freshmen in overcoming any hurdles that they might be experiencing. We have an Apex body of students who, in conjunction with their Faculty guides, will be coordinating with your direct student mentors. Your mentors and us, the Apex Body, are always available for you to contact with any issues throughout the year. If there is anything we can help you or your parents with, it would be our pleasure to do so. Our Email IDs are given below to get in touch with us at any point of time.

Harshit Gupta	harshit.g@research.iiit.ac.in
Advaith Malladi	advaith.malladi@research.iiit.ac.in
Hardik Mittal	hardik.mittal@research.iiit.ac.in
Khushi	khushi.goyal@students.iiit.ac.in
Nanda Rajiv	nanda.rajiv@research.iiit.ac.in
Sai Nikhita Obbineni	sai.nikhita@students.iiit.ac.in
Yashaswi L	yashaswi.l@research.iiit.ac.in
Mohammed Ihsan Ali	mohammed.ihsan@students.iiit.ac.in
Soumil Gupta	soumil.gupta@students.iiit.ac.in
Vaishnavi Shivkumar	Vaishnavi.shivkumar@students.iiit.ac.in
Sujal Deoda	sujal.deoda@research.iiit.ac.in
Rishabh Patnaik	rishabh.patnaik@students.iiit.ac.in
Bipasha Garg	bipasha.garg@research.iiit.ac.in
Karthikeya Busam	karthikeya.busam@students.iiit.ac.in
Pratishta Saxena	pratishtha.saxena@research.iiit.ac.in
Tanish Gupta	tanish.gupta@research.iiit.ac.in

Welcome to college life! You're gonna love it!
Don't hold back! Make your own memories!

— The Apex Body '24