#Peer Pressure#Admission season# by Manisha Panchal

#Peer Pressure#Admission season#

Thoughts, behavior, fashion, and music often have a deep impact on our society. Teenagers in particular, tend to get influenced by the lifestyles of their peer group. It is person's tendency to do what the crowd does. Few individuals have the courage to resist the peer pressure and be their own selves rather than being one amongst a group. Parents play a vital role to during this phase of a teenager's life and must exhibit extreme caution when dealing with their adolescents, as they are most vulnerable to yield to peer pressure during these critical years of their lives. Society is an intricate systems that entails numerous factors to an individual's growth as a person. These factors can range from simplistic to complex; a child's upbringing in a particular neighborhood  to a person determining a meticulous career. Peer pressure gets a bad rap. Since elementary school you have been taught  “Don't give in to peer pressure!”-an oversimplification of a generally good principle : don't let other people tell you what to think or how to act, be your own person and make good choices. Though peer pressure isn't always bad. Listening  to your friends, and letting them affect you, can have an incredibly good influence. One should think of themselves as individuals, capable of making their own decisions and have faith to walk on the path they have chosen. Though sometimes pressure is necessary to activate the mind but 'excess of anything is bad'. So this admission season don't let yourself feel pressurized just make sure to give preference to your interest field and you will surely rock!!

A #Glimpse into #Life at #North #Campus by Mahima Sharma

A Glimpse into Life at North Campus

A seconds worth of silence, followed with roars of cankerous questions by swarms of men approaching you from every possible angle. “Hindu-Hansraj-Kirrorimal?” ask some, while the others yell “Shri Ram-Daulat Ram-Miranda?” right into your face. You look at the first person who catches your eye, and state your destination with slight unease. “Bees rupay” he proclaims, momentarily holding up a peace sign with one hand while wildly motioning you with the other to follow him away from the crowd and towards his rickshaw. You push your way through the remaining scorned men, and take the first step out of the Vishvavidyalaya Metro Station.

Welcome to the forever bustling, always coruscating and the ever vibrant North Campus! The arena for love, the battleground of politics, the field of endless discussions over sumptuous food and the domain of all possible pursuits! The potentiality of activities here are endless; let’s have a look at some of them.

1. Extracurricular Galore!

One of the best things about colleges in North Campus is that they are all barely a few minutes away from each other, and usually boast of having a variety of clubs and societies that you could involve yourself with- Debating, Theatre, Singing, Dancing, NSS, NCC, Enactus, Photography, Films, Books and Travelling societies are just a few amongst a plethora of others. Involving yourself in these activities wouldn’t just boost your CV or cure the monotony of everyday routine; it would also give you a chance to learn, interact and make new friends on campus!

2. Bring me the Food!

 

North Campus brims with all sorts of events and activities, which is bound to work up your appetite- And you’re in luck! From the subsidised and tasty options found within the different college canteens and cafeterias, to the long lines of restaurants at Hudson Lane and Kamla Nagar, you’ll most definitely be spoiled for choice, without making too big a dent in that wallet!

3. Hello Shopaholics!

Shopaholics have some good news here- Both women and men! North Campus is famous for boasting about its absolutely favourite shopping destination, Kamla Nagar! Fondly known as “K-Nags” for some reason, it’s the land where brands meet their fake counterparts, where prices are cheap and the buys are not usually regretted. You’ll also be 20-30 minutes away from Connaught Place, Khan Market, Sarojini, Lajpat Nagar and a whole bunch of other shopper’s paradises in Delhi!

4. Academic Life! 

 

Life’s all about balance, and you’ll soon find yourself trying to juggle social activities with academics! Deadlines are usually unforgiving, and reading lists aren’t short of being endless, so you’ll also need to find time and spaces to occasionally put your face-in-a-book. But not to worry! You could take your books and assignments to quiet cafes at Kamla and Hudson, visit your college library or find a shady corner in the vast college lawns and allow nature to accompany you in simplifying all those complex theories and works.

5. Fests! 

The fest season is definitely the most exciting one of the year, where spirits run high, watching celebrities perform live becomes an everyday affair and finding more men inside the girl’s colleges becomes a common sight. From Miranda House’s Tempest, to SRCC’s Crossroads, From Hindu’s Mecca to the numerous other college and department fests, this season will most certainly keep you on your toes!

6. Independence! 

DU is all about giving its students a sense of freedom to explore their hobbies and passions, to discover, create and take on exciting challenges, meet new people from across colleges and learn from the classrooms and beyond. It’ll be an assault on the senses, a rollercoaster of a realm where time would race at some moments, and come to a complete standstill in others. Be sure to make it a memorable journey!

 

First Cut-off blues by Neeraj V Murali

First Cut-off blues

Waiting for the to-be-released first-cutoff list is worse than waiting for your board results. I believe most of us can accurately gauge the range within which we will score, right? Of course, there are exceptional cases wherein an expected 80% boomerangs to 95% or glides down smoothly to settle at 72%. However, after the first few bursts of euphoria, you begin to have trepid moments. Even after having scored a comfortable 90%+, uncertainty hovers around you. Some 3 lakh applicants and just 54000 seats, isn’t it an unequal ratio?

On top of that, news pours in about how thousands of students have scored above 90% and are vying for the popular courses. Your confidence falls a notch below. You feel as if your whole life has been a white lie. At every juncture, you’ve told that inevitably, you should work hard till twelfth grade and then, you’ll have a golden life ahead. Golden life, eh? The only golden moment is perhaps, with your scores, you can tape nagging relatives’ wily mouths. Else, you realize that your destiny is papered down with stressful events and a pressurized life.

The open days perhaps serve as the best booster to your confidence.  You assure yourselves with the fact that perhaps, the competition isn’t so high and you might bag a seat. Tense moments return with some friends asking you to lend an ear to their voracious complaints. Usually, it is a well-prepared rant against their parent, the CBSE, the teachers, the examiners, the school watchman and in fact, anyone. For, they had scored a low score just because of these anti-student forces, but not because they hadn’t even cared to study.

However, as the days pass quickly, you find yourself forgetting about the cut-offs. You adopt a carefree attitude and shrug your shoulders every time someone mentions impending doom. After all, is it worth worrying so much about the future? All the same, as the first cut-offs are released, you sit back and wonder whether it was worth waiting for this disastrous surprise. Perhaps, inwardly, you had expected it – every college posted 98s’ & 97s’. Why, some had 100 as the required percentile!

You just let yourself be swathed away in waves of ultimate misery and desolation. Ah! But, it is hard to be born and succeed in India, eh? Stripped of every comfortable feeling, you devoutly hope the colleges will be compassionate enough in the next cut-off. Hopefully, you will pass through this agony unscathed and in late-August, be seated in a college and course of your choice!

Good Luck, newbies! This is an agonizing experience, but a memorable one too! Keep your eyes peeled for the cut-offs and hope for the best!

LSR : The far-fetched dream! by Manveen Kaur

LSR : The far-fetched dream!

Chori Chori, Chupke Chupke, LSR ko dekha karti thi
Jab bhi guzarti thi uske saamne se, yahi socha karti thi
Ye LSR kya hota hai? Ye LSR kya hota hai…””

‘”Aik ladki thi deewani si, Bluebells mein woh padhti thi

Getting into my dream college LSR’ had always been a far-fetched dream; a dream you often dream but never dream of it ever coming true. With the sky-rocketing cut-off’s and the hype that the boards are, assured me that i will never be able to make it. After a long and exhaustive period of vacations that were spent in anxiety and fear, one morning, CBSE, FINALLY decided to release our board results. Chills ran down my spine as the realisation struck me. THIS WAS IT. My destiny stood right in front of me. I gathered the guts and logged on to CBSE’s site. The internet had never taken this long. It seemed as though the gods were also having their bit of fun. What made the situation even worse were the incessant phone calls by the relatives and peers who had been long forgotten. Finally, the page loaded. My marks were right in front of me. To my, amazement. I had surpassed everyone's expectations. 97.25%! WOAH. They were way above my predictions. I was elated. I do not remember being as happy as i was that morning. But, the suspense still continued. The cutoffs were yet to be released. After a long wait, the cutoffs were released and to my stupefaction, i got into LSR in the first list itself. All this felt surreal. A dream that i had never thought of coming true, had been achieved.

On July 1,2015, i finally got the first opportunity to enter the gates of LSR. We were made to stand in queue outside the college. At 9am sharp the gates were opened and we all ran inside. This was a little hysterical. It seemed as though birds locked in a cage for years had finally been freed. On reaching the auditorium we were reassured by our college president. Everything was well planned and organised. After filling up the college forms we were sent to different rooms for other important formalities. I was pleasantly greeted by my department faculty and the president of the department. After a short interview with them i was sent to pay the fee and finally a photo was clicked for my identity card; a card that would now be a treasured possession for the rest of my life.

JULY 17th, was my first day at college. The memories of which are so vividly entrenched that i can narrate them in a wink of an eye. I woke up quite early, took a shower, had some nice breakfast and then got ready as quickly as possible, to avoid getting late. I was welcomed by a big bunch of friendly faces of fellow students, and many very friendly and helpful staff members were around to guide us around the building and tell us where we should be. The first morning in itself was very organised. The department welcomed us by performing various dances and songs. We also had an introductory talk by the principal, welcoming us to Lady Shri Ram College, and explaining what we should expect over the next several months we are going to spend as a part of the LSR family. The talk by my principal was one of the highlights of my first day at college. She really lifted up my spirits and made me proud of being an LSRian. We were shown the campus and were also asked to plant a sapling, after which we had a meeting with the faculty and the union of the department. The faculty introduced themselves and asked us if we had any queries or doubts. All queries were addressed adequately.

There were quite a few breaks during the morning to give me a chance to talk to a my fellow students, so when we were told to break up for lunch, I already had a new friend to go have refreshments with. We spent an hour or so getting to know each other, and we even got a couple of people to join us, so we immediately felt much less nervous about the whole “first day at a new college” thing. It was lovely to chat with someone who was in the same boat as me.

After the tour was over, we were free to go wherever we wanted to – this meant grabbing coffee with one of my new friends and chatting for another hour or so. So, as you can see, all in all, the first day of college really is nothing to be worried about. First of all, most of the things that you will be doing are administrative in nature, and all the rest is just socialising and having fun with your new class-mates. Trust me; my first day in college did not even approach the scariness that I had managed to build in my head by the time it arrived! And I am sure; it will be the same for you!

#Leaders of #University by Priyanka Tiwari

#Leaders of #University

In today’s time Delhi University is a prosperous and flourishing platform for young leaders and has laid great emphasis on building leadership qualities in young minds. 

The university provides fair election for the union members and has given due importance to the campaign and one vote system followed by the country. I have been an active debater and orator from my school days and belief in standing for the issues of public and student concern. My institution has given me a content platform for showcasing my abilities in the arena. 

Although my college has varied process for selection of union members unlike the voting system it makes me proud to contribute in the progress of the college and university as a whole. The university gives you the opportunity to pitch your ideas about development and student interest.

In addition to this, the debating society of the college has provided me with the boost to continue accelerating my speaking skills with sheer confidence. The performance of the society has been appreciated in various competitions at intra college level. These competitions in collaboration with college societies help one to enhance their capabilities and skills regarding their passions. I have been constantly supported by the college and it has always motivated me to improve and polish my skilfulness.

Delhi University is an eminent podium to flourish and continue working in the direction of your talents and progress with each passing day. Therefore, the students should have a desire to actively participate in the extra curriculum activities in the college premises. Thus, devote some time to understand your inner talents, so that, by the time you reach to the college gate to explore your life according to your wish and priorities you come to know where your interest lies!