final year project (few tips for juniors)

I am writing this post at the time when I am just moving towards final module of our final year project. The memories before one year are still vivid in my mind when I was hell confused about what to do about my project? which company to go for? which technology? Also at that time I was confused between IBM-ISL and Symantec. I went for second option and I still don't know whether it was correct or wrong decision. But to avoid confusion here are some tips especially for the juniors at CoEP regarding how one should go for B.Tech project.

1. Does project really matter at the time of placement in college?
Ans : It doesn't matter a lot as companies come in 1st semester of final year for placements. We ourselves are not much clear about the project title and overall scope of project. But companies coming in post Jan-Feb definitely ask for it. But one should not choose project for placement kind of perspective.

2. What is a good combination for a group? Should I form group with technically sound people or friends?
Ans : Two boys and two girls forms the best team for the project. As girls are sincere there should be at least two girls in the team. Also as you have to be with your project mates for 6 months you should choose mixture of technically sound people and your friends as your project mates. If you choose geeks as your team mate then they'll complete the project themselves and you have nothing to do. Also one more thing very few companies select students individually and later selected students have to form the group. So here you'll have to choose amongst selected people. So approach other people as soon as result is out so that you can get good project mates.



3. Which all domains are there? Which should I go for?
Ans : Well, one should think upon his/her interests. Domain could be like application development, System level project, Open source project, RnD kind of project, Web or automation. And choosing the domain totally depends on your interest.

4. How is the mentoring done in industry projects?
Ans : Don't expect that you'll get good mentoring in companies. That depends on mentor. Some mentors just ask you to do various things and expect a lot but don't guide you at all. So don't choose company hoping that you'll have good mentors for sure. But in on-site projects (kinda internship) you have to go to company every day and your project track is kept so you have to work sincerely.

5. Internship(on-site project) vs Industry project vs In-house projects.

Internship :

You can go for :

CRL (Tata's Computer research lab.) : This is the best company for internship and project. But they select only 2-3 best people from the whole comp-IT batch.

Nvidia : 8 months internship. Rs. 8000 p.m. stipend. Also projects are good. But getting selected at Nvidia requires preparation and some luck :)

Tibco : offers project in application domain. Mostly work in java related technologies. It does not come to CoEP for project recruitment but you can apply externally. One more thing is you have to apply as a group. So here is a good chance for keeping you group intact.

Amura : Amura is startup by CoEPians. You'll get to learn many things if you opt for internship here. If you want to work on web based technologies or java related technologies then this is the best opportunity but keep one thing in mind that you'll have to work very hard if you join amura for project cum internship.

Industry projects :

Syamantec : Some projects offered at symantec are really good. If you want to do work in system domain, security or automation then you should go for symantec.

TRDDC : They offer very good project in R & D domain. Also you can do your project work at company. On completion of project there is project competition amongst TRTDC project groups. This is really sad but in our college you have to struggle for resources like availability of lab, PCs, internet connection while doing your project work. Also laptops are not allowed in labs except SnV lab which is much crowded.

Also this year three project groups from COEP got prizes in categories like Best Design (Rs. 15k), Best Research (Rs. 15k) and Best Presentation (Rs. 10k).

Calsoft : Here you can implement your own ideas and have mentoring from calsoft people. So if you have any ideas in mind just turn them into reality with the help of calsoft.

Few other companies : John Deere, IBM-ISL (Remote Mentoring), Persistent.

In house projects:

- For open source or linux related projects, project offered by Abhijit Sir are really good.
- Attar madam offers really good projects in Data Mining and database field.
- If you want to work in Natural language processing then go for project offered by Lehkar madam.

- Inamdar(Joshi) madam offers project in Image processing domain.

REMEMBER : Don't keep in-house projects as last option.
If you are really interested then in-house projects are way better than company projects. You may publish paper out of it.

6. Selection procedure.
Ans : Some companies like symantec conduct aptitude test consisting of sections C,CPP, Data Structure, Java, Quant. If you crack apti then just form group with selected people.
Some companies conduct test followed by group interviews. e.g. nvidia
Some companies directly take group interviews. e.g. calsoft.

7. Few suggestions.

If you want to go for MS then do your project seriously, sincerely and try to publish paper on your work.
Try for on-site project if you are really serious about project stuff. (CRL, Nvidia, Tibco)
First meet faculties about in house projects and then decide whether to go for industry projects or not.
One more advantage of industry project is company may offer you the job after successful completion of your project. So you can have backup for placement and you can sit for selected companies in college.

Also try to attend B.E. project contests in and around Pune. You may get some ideas of projects there. Interact with seniors about project title. And while doing project in final semester do participate in various project contests because this helps you identifying flaws in your project and judges at project contests are experienced industry people so their suggestions helps you making your project better and better.

One final note : Things explained above are just my personal views. Before appearing for any company just ask the corresponding senior working with that company. I'll not be responsible for any of your decisions taken based on this blog. This blog is just to avoid your confusion. Do take advice from 3-4 more seniors.

You may contact me on my email id for more details.