St Aloysius College (Autonomous): 142-year saga of forming men & women for and with others…

Press Release, Jun 16, 2022, 6:00 AM IST

St Aloysius College belongs to a network of educational institutions administered by the members of the Society of Jesus, a religious order which runs schools, colleges and universities in more than 105 countries in the world.  The members of the order, popularly known as Jesuits, have acquired a reputation for excellence in the quality of education.

Some of the distinguished Jesuit institutions of higher education in India are St Xavier’s College in Kolkata, St Xavier’s College in Mumbai, Loyola College in Chennai, St Joseph’s College in Trichy, Xavier Institute of Labour Relations (XLRI) in Jamshedpur, and Xavier University in Bhuvaneshwar.  These and many other highly acclaimed centres of learning are managed by the Jesuits and deeply rooted in Jesuit values of commitment and excellence.

Established in 1880, St Aloysius College prides itself on its history of 140 years.  Thousands of students who have passed through the portals of this institution have rendered outstanding service to humankind not only in India but across the globe.  Despite its status as a minority institution, the college has imparted high-quality education to all sections of society regardless of caste, colour or creed. 

The motto of the college, “Lucet et Ardet” which means “shine to enkindle” has inspired countless students to become men and women with and for others and thus bring light and joy into the lives of people.  It is for this reason that Jesuit education has become a touchstone for evolving new paradigms in higher education.

The distinctive achievements of the college in recent years have been a testimony to the excellence attained:

1. The college has been accredited by NAAC. In each of the three cycles of accreditation, the college attained one of the highest grades awarded by NAAC. In the third cycle of NAAC in 2015, the college was awarded “A” Grade with a CGPA of 3.62 out of 4.
2. Our ranking in the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) conducted by MHRD, Government of India has been 44 among all the Colleges in India in 2017. It has always remained among the best 150 Colleges at the national level. 
3. The College has been brought under 2 (f) and 12 (B) of UGC regulations.  
4. The College has been declared a “College with Potential for Excellence” by the University Grants Commission since 2009.
5. The “STAR College Scheme” conferred by the DBT, Government of India has been upgraded to “STAR Status” in 2016.
6. The University Grants Commission has awarded “DDU Kaushal Kendra” to the College for offering Bachelor of Vocational programmes (B.Voc.) in 2015.  
7. Karnataka State Government, which had sanctioned “BTFS Finishing School” earlier, has now selected (2017) the college under the scheme of “BiSEP” [Biotechnology Skill Enhancement Programme].
8. The college was brought under grant-in-aid by the Department of Higher Education,  Government of Karnataka
9. The College has uploaded the data of the All India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE)-2016-17, MHRD, Statistics Division, Government of India. 
10. The College was ranked 3 at the All India level among all Colleges under the Campus Swacchta Scheme. This has been the rarest of recognition for the green initiatives on the campus.
11. The College has been recognized as a Centre of Research capacity Building under the UGC-Scheme for Trans-disciplinary Research for India’s developing Economy (STRIDE- COMPONENT I). We are one among the 34 Colleges that have been chosen by UGC for this Scheme. The College has proposed the research Project on the Study of the Cultural diversity of Coastal Karnataka.  
12.  Under the PARAMARSH Scheme of the UGC, the College has been selected to be a modal mentor College to support 5 NAAC non-accredited Colleges in training and preparing them for NAAC accreditation.

Facilities:

• The institution has excellent infrastructural facilities with two centres extending over 50 acres of land. An adequate number of classrooms, well-equipped laboratories, cutting-edge electronic gadgets, the high-speed internet connectivity with Wi-Fi facility and adequate libraries, both at UG and PG levels have been widely acknowledged by various expert committees.
• The College has more than 7000 students at various levels. Our students have excelled not only in academics but also in cultural, sports & games and many other fields of performance. The college has all the wings of NCC and NSS units. In fact, our college is the only one college in the university area to have all the three full-fledged wings of NCC. 
• The emphasis on skill development, personality development, language proficiency along with academics has enhanced employability skills. There have been many add-on programmes which add value to the degree programmes. The creditable achievements of the students include passing the NET examinations, research entrance examinations of reputed institutions of excellence and placements.
• Students have been offered facilities like sports, recreation, photocopying, health check-up, disabled-friendly structures, drinking water and sanitation. There are separate student hostels in each of the centres for both men and lady students. The student cooperative store caters to the stationery needs of students.
• The Vision and the Mission of the college lays thrust on social consciousness. Only a compassionate and empathetic person can be instrumental in the inclusive development of society. In this direction, the social extension activities undertaken by the college deserve a special mention. The college has created a separate Centre for Social Concern (CSC), which regulates, monitors and promotes social empowerment activities.
• Each undergraduate student has to fulfill social service activity as specified for 20 hours in each of the first two years. The programme is titled “SAHAAYA”.
• Postgraduate students have to spend a minimum of one week in a remote village selected for this purpose under “Village Exposure” programme actually staying with families accompanied by teachers.
• Radio Sarang 107.8 FM, the Community Radio reaches out to the surrounding areas of Mangalore for 16 hours a day in five different local languages through several programmes promoting and spreading awareness on local culture, language, health & hygiene, economic and social aspects of life. The community radio has bagged multiple National Awards for promoting local language and culture.
• The college has a sprawling and aesthetically designed campus with several green zones and eco-friendly systems.
• The world-renowned paintings in the college chapel attract thousands of foreign and domestic tourists. The college museum with rare collections is an added attraction. 

Alumni – SACAA

The college has a vibrant Alumni base engaging itself continually in the projects and activities of the college. SACAA, the St Aloysius College Alumni Association has been responsible for bolstering the infrastructure, and public image and liaising with the Alumni networks all over the world.

The College feels proud that some of the excellent talents in leadership, entrepreneurship and social service of national and international repute have been the products of this college.

Sri K S Hegde, Former Speaker of the Lok Sabha; Sri George Fernandes, eminent political leader; Sri Justice Santhosh Hegde, Former Lokayukta; Sri K V Kamath, BRICS Bank Chairman; Dr K V Rao, International Physicist; Sri T M A Pai who has been instrumental in establishing the renowned Manipal University; Sri K. K. Venugopal, the present Attorney General; Sri Aravind Adiga, Man Booker prize winner; Sri Anant Agarwal, CEO of edX; Dr K Ullas Karanth, leading Conservation Zoologist; K L Rahul, Cricketer; are a few personalities among many others who have made a mark in public life by living a life that is typically Aloysian.