With climate change looming around the corner, sustainable and eco-friendly designs are the need of the hour to save the world. Understanding the importance of intelligent professionals that can create sustainable structures, Mumbai-based Thakur School of Architecture & Planning (TSAP) is nurturing virtues of ‘Environment Consciousness’ by sensitizing the students, towards the fine nuances of the profession. “We believe an environment conscious approach to design is a smarter way, to provide solutions, that go beyond the agenda of green design, while delving into the nuances of a complete solution. The approach that respects the uniqueness of each design situation and aims to provide the most appropriate stakeholder-centric solution,” shares Mr Karan V. Singh, CEO of Thakur School of Architecture and Planning. Mumbai.
TSAP, as an emergent school of architecture, is conscious about positioning itself on the global platform. The institution has an MoU with ETSAB, Barcelona, Spain and has engaged with Politecnico Milano, Milan, Italy, for the immersion program for its students. TSAP has travelled across five countries covering 8 international cities, to explore the global trends in architecture education and practice. Mr Karan Singh explains, “The International immersion programs are an effective way to provide exposure and develop a comfort level in the students for exploring international Internships, placements and pursuing post-graduation programs. The regular visit of internationally renowned faculty members to the institution, has contributed to the development of skill sets, required for meeting the expectations of the Industry globally.”
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From a Group that Created Eminent Institutions
Thakur Education Group is a Visionary Founding of Shri V.K. Singhji as the Chairman of the Trust. Starting with the first school in 1989, the trust now has more than 21 Institutions under its banner. The trust is serving a student strength of over 50000, studying under a variety of programs and levels from KG to PhD programs. For instance, Thakur College of Engineering and Technology (TCET) is a well-established institution with a NAAC A grade and a history of laurels for patenting, innovation, placement, research and awards at National and international levels. Thakur Institute of Management Studies & Research (TIMSR) is NAAC A+ accredited institution with a high ranking. Thakur Global Business School (TGBS) is an emerging institution, with involvement in international exposure and collaboration.
Established in 2014 by Thakur Education Group (TEG), TSAP is certified under ISO 21001-2018 and fast becoming an outstanding as well as the most preferred architecture college, in the city. Thakur Education Group is committed to contributing to nation-building. It believes in providing high-quality education standards and offers its students the opportunity to learn in a competitive and challenging environment.“The trust provides state-of-the-art infrastructure at par with international standards. All Institutions under the group have brilliant placement, and career records of the graduates while the alumni members are gaining appreciation, as well as stalwart positions in Industry, national and internationally,” claims Mr Karan Singh.
Offering Modern Architecture Education on a Global Scale
TSAP is strategically located in the residential neighbourhood of Thakur Village in Kandivali (East) of Mumbai. The lush green self-contained well-planned township. offers safe, self-sufficient, calm, and serene neighbourhood. The institute has state-of-the-art infrastructure facilities at par with international standards. “We have always strived to fill the Institute-Industry gap by involving professionals and experts from the Industry by actively participating in the decision-making process while shaping the institutional pedagogy. The involvement of architects like Ar. Yatin Pandya, Ar. Arvind Kanetkar, Ar.Shyam Khandekar, Ar.Nitin Killawala, Ar. Tushar Desai, Ar. Vijay Kale, Ar. Sanjay Patil, Ar.Shakti Parmar and more as industry experts and given direction through their visit to the institution,” shares Mr Karan Singh.
Academic Connect with authorities to conduct specialized training programs is a unique system at TSAP. The institute has undertaken certified training programs with Hunnarshala (Bhuj), Laurie Baker Centre (Chennai), IIT (Kharagpur), CEASID Pune, Footprints Earth (Ahmedabad), Manav Sanghralaya (Bhopal) to identify a few. TSAP has MoU with the Fire Safety Association of India to foster Institute-Academia collaboration and exchange. The partnership enables the institute to partake in activities and engagements with the Industry. TSAP has launched the Students Chapter in collaboration with Indian Green Building Council (IGBC). to initiate various Industry collaborated activities towards the enrichment of curriculum and inculcating virtues of environment consciousness. Mr Karan Singh shares “TSAP strives to address the demand for generating a creed of environment-conscious professionals in the specialized domain.”
TSAP has over 85 Professional firms spread all over India and internationally with Architectural Practice in connect for recruitment and placements of interns. The institute is supported by the Maharashtra Chamber of Housing Industry (MCHI) for the placement of its graduates and interns, at key positions in the real estate segment. However, owing to the robust emphasis on entrepreneurship and engagements with professionals, most TSAP graduates either opt for a post-graduate program or start with their own collaborative practice. “It has prompted TSAP to set up an incubation centre where students can work on their startup idea” shares Mr Karan Singh. Most of our graduates take up lateral placements in the firms of their choice and see it as a launch pad for the niche-specific progression that they set themselves to initiate their own independent practice. Only a fraction of the students opt for placement through the institution, and we have 100% placement records for them,” shares Mr Karan Singh.
Providing Opportunities to Thrive
TSAP faculty members come from various backgrounds, including construction management, conservation, urban planning, urban design, environmental design, general architecture, advanced architecture and more. Mr Karan Singh says, “We ensure good mix of faculty members covering a wide spectrum of advanced knowledge areas to enrich and address the current need of Industry requirement.” The pedagogical approach of the institute is scientifically developed to deliver the identified graduate attributes mapped under the outcome-based education model. Besides, the faculty members are trained in the ISO quality assurance system to ensure the successful compliance of the Quality Management that, TSAP strives to maintain.
“Faculty members at TSAP are well versed and proficient with the use of on-board drawings as a pedagogical approach for delivering the contents through sketches and drawings on board,” shares Mr. Karan Singh. At TSAP, the Lecture sessions are a blend of hybrid learning, taking the best of the offline and online modes of content delivery. The state-of-the-art digitally enabled infrastructure with e-ready classrooms and studio adds to the learning ambience at TSAP. Mr Karan Singh adds, “The unique practice of TSAP is a mentor-mentee system that allows for keeping procedural track of each student’s performance through proctored mentoring and addressing special needs through real-time response. The emphasis on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and focus on Nurturing Environment Consciousness in every single endeavour is the unique value addition that makes TSAP stand apart.”
TSAP has a unique policy to reward outstanding and advanced learners in the institution that has helped the students to up skills and have a complete 360-degree development. The advanced learners of the institute are identified on academic and co-curricular performance and specially nurtured for advanced learning and preparation for competitive skills. “The students identified as advanced learners by Institute are promoted to participate in National and International competitions by providing them the required infrastructural support facilities and an ecosystem for advanced learning,” states Mr Karan Singh. TSAP’s advanced learner scholarship policy has provided a launch pad for the students to achieve higher goals and set higher benchmarks. The students have won various competitions that have helped them establish their career graph ahead and provided an advantage in the selection during the Master’s program.
The institute has a scholarship assistance cell that offers guidance and support for the students to avail of financial benefits through various schemes provided by the government. The students who do not qualify for any economic benefits under the scholarship portals are offered a scholarship of Rs. 1 lakh from the trust, based upon the overall academic and co-curricular performance on a merit cum means basis. Mr Karan Singh says, “We believe and practice inclusivity through enrichment of curricular and co-curricular activities involving the active participation of the students’ representative teams. The Institute supports students from other cities as campus ambassadors for guiding and facilitating the students migrating for higher education.”
TSAP’s Campus Ambassador program has achieved immense success and popularity and is well received by the students’ community coming from other cities and towns. The Equal Opportunity Cell and Learner Centric Curriculum are well balanced to provide opportunities for advanced and slow or challenged learners through meticulously planning and implementing policy in teaching, learning and evaluation systems. Mr Karan Singh adds, “The Institute provides advanced learners to undertake specialized courses, participate in competitions and represent the institution at various forums. The Institute offers slow learners refresher programs and recovery sessions through a meticulously planned mentor-mentee program.”
A Campus Life to Remember Forever
The Students Welfare Development Association of TSAP is a vibrant body formed by students. The SDWA team conducts various activities throughout the year. Mr Karan Singh says, “The Annual Activity Calendar is drives wide spectrum of events involving all diversities’ participation. The inclusive participation by involving the celebration of representation of festivities of each region is a unique culture of TSAP.” The institute every year receives students from other states and linguistic backgrounds. These students are the brand ambassadors of the region and are given leadership roles, to ensure the inclusion of their regional flavour in the students’ activities.
The Institutes cultural fest of ‘EPOCH’ is the biggest annual gathering and involves weeks of preparation leading to the mega event. The program involves setting up the exhibition, art installation, guest seminars, creative hands-on workshops and more. The students create innovative art installations and experiment around the event’s theme. The skill sets involved in creating each installation are unique, and the idea is to generate installations involving important societal issues or concerns. The students are also promoted to undertake workshops on special skill sets for their peers and faculty members. The key event of the program is the multi-cultural evening that includes performances from years.
Apart from the annual fests, TSAP celebrates cultural festivals, anniversary of national leaders, architects and likewise. The institute has won various trophies at the National Association of Students of Architecture competition. Besides, the institute has Social Entrepreneurship & Rural Engagement Cell (SESREC) under the Mahatma Gandhi National Council of Rural Education (MGNCRE) of the Ministry of Education to undertake various Social initiatives involving Mentoring, Social Responsibility, Swachhata and Care for the Environment. “The students’ body has been actively engaged in the activities of the neighbourhood and beyond as a continuous endeavour. The Institute ensures learning’s from such engagements groom the emerging professionals with empathy and the ability to converse effectively with diverse segments of the social structure,” explains Mr Karan Singh.
TSAP has recently formed Institutional Clubs to promote hobbies and create a social network amongst the student community. The activities are flexibly planned by each club, and the institute supports them by providing the required infrastructural support and logistics. “The Institute has initiated a Students Chapter of the Indian Green Building Council to provide a direct exchange platform between the students and industry experts. The Students are engaged in outreach activities with the team of IGBC,” adds Mr Karan Singh. Besides, TSAP conducts annual tours for every batch to a specific rich venue. The students have travelled to more than 12 Indian and 6 international cities. “The practice has greatly benefitted the students of the Institute in gaining deeper insights while adding to the enrichment in the understanding,” pinpoints Mr Karan Singh.
Where the Future is Bright
Today, TSAP is actively working on consolidating the existing program as a robust base for launching several market-ready certification programs. Mr Karan Singh explains, “The Institute has identified gaps in the Institute-Industry expectations, that cannot be completely filled within the curricular activities of the prescribed curriculum. However, TSAP covers this gap through flexibility in the system and additional certificate courses offered within the curricular structure.”
There is a growing demand for Industry ready professionals that can take up the challenges of the Industry backed by thorough market knowledge, acquired proficiency and skill sets that are of certified nature. TSAP collaborates with established professional bodies, international certification authorities and institutions of excellence to create short-term, intense market-ready programs that are clubbed with industry immersions that offer its learners the opportunity of field experience while developing core competencies. “The strengthening of institutional networks based on curricular and co-curricular collaborations is the area that TSAP is aggressively working to intensify its role as the leaders in providing quality education,” concludes Mr Karan Singh.
For More Info: https://www.tsapmumbai.in/