In the pursuit of higher education, the transition from high school to college can be pretty daunting for students. For a vast majority, it is their first ever move away from home. To combat turbulence of any kind during this phase, at IIITH we have the student Apex body. From welcoming parents and their wards on campus to handholding them throughout the registration and induction process, this group goes the extra mile to make freshers comfortable in their first year on campus.
It’s not uncommon for Apex members to be asked a wide range of questions – from academic queries and club activities to food and hostel facilities. While freshers are provided with a Student Kit (apexbody.github.io) containing important information about the city and campus, it becomes evident that there are many practical and personal concerns that can only be addressed through informal interactions with approachable seniors.
What is the Apex?
It was primarily in response to the growing incidences of ragging on campus that a student body working in conjunction with faculty and the administrative staff was formally constituted. The group titled Apex is an off-shoot of the Student Life Committee (SLC), the official body responsible for conducting all activities and events related to student life. Prof. Abhijit Mitra, who was the SLC chair at the inception of the Apex terms the student induction process as undergoing a paradigm shift. “It was either 2005 or 2006, my first admissions handling (as SLC chair),” he says. In a previously published interview, he said, ”We could change it (..ragging) within a couple of years into a paradigm of red carpet welcoming.” According to Prof. Dipti Sarma, a former chair of SLC herself, ”The idea was to involve senior students in welcoming the new students, engaging with them and making them feel comfortable. This was an approach towards building interbatch relationships and making students feel responsible towards new students, thus addressing ragging as well – though the latter was not the only goal.” Newcomers officially shed their ‘fresher’ tag at the culmination of the Freshers Night, typically a month after setting foot on campus. But they continue to be mentored and supported through teething troubles of any kind over the course of the entire year by the Apex body.
Structure and Qualities of Apex Members
The core Apex body consists of 18 students who are either in their B.Tech 3rd or 4th year. With the tenure of an Apex member being 2 years, every year around 9 new students are inducted into the committee while those who have completed their 4th year leave. Students are opted into the body through a 2-step selection process. Aspirants are first interviewed by existing members and in the next stage are interviewed by the SLC chair. A necessary prerequisite for applying is that these candidates should have a blemish-free reputation in the ragging or bullying or any other kind of disciplinary issues. Some of the other traits that an Apex member should possess besides a certain degree of extrovertness, is an adequate knowledge of the working of the institute. This includes being well versed with administrative procedures for obtaining an ID card, steps to be followed in case an admission letter doesn’t come through, events and activities conducted by various clubs, and so on. Finally, proactive participation matters and makes one stand out. The Apex body is supported by an army of “mentors” belonging to different batches, but mostly UG 2nd years.
Freshers on campus are assigned to a cluster, each consisting of a few newbies headed by an Apex member and ably supported by a few mentors and 1 Faculty mentor. In this manner, there are 18 such clusters of students. The criteria for selecting mentors is very similar to that followed for the Apex members. The mentors are selected by the body after a round of interviews. The idea behind smaller groups is to help new entrants open up, voice concerns if any, and eventually help them in easing into the IIITH ‘family’. To stay in touch, WhatsApp groups are created, meets are held, city tours are conducted and talks by faculty and other seniors are organized. While no formal reservation for girls exists in the Apex body, a conscious effort is made to ensure a fair and equitable representation of the fairer sex in accordance with the gender ratio on campus.
What They Do
The Apex body typically swings into action at the end of the Spring semester. Its work can be witnessed in 2 major parts – before Registration (of new entrants) and after Registration. Before the new batch arrives, Apex members begin planning with the faculty to finalize the induction schedule and logistics. This includes preparing the Student Kit and coordinating communication with parents who may reach out with concerns.
During registration, the Admissions Department handles formal processes like biometrics and so on, while the Apex members welcome students and parents, guide them across the campus and assist wherever needed. The academic induction process itself is a 2- to 3-week long one and its culmination coincides with the conclusion of Freshers Night. There are other events too such as Karaoke Night which doubles up as a DJ Night and a Talent Showcase Night.
Welcoming Healthy Interactions
What previously used to be a harmless practice of welcoming newcomers in institutes of higher learning has over the last many years earned notoriety, thanks to the obnoxious conduct of a few. Since it was for the express purpose of dealing with this ‘annual initiation ritual’ that the Apex body was constituted in the first place, student members go out on surprise walks in the night during the first few months. They act on tip-offs and intervene whenever they hear large riotous gatherings in rooms of seniors. While positive interaction between juniors and seniors is encouraged, any behavior
that causes discomfort is promptly addressed. Freshers are urged to speak up if they ever feel uneasy, and seniors are advised to keep their interactions respectful and considerate. Apex members put extra effort into ensuring they are approachable and accessible, creating an environment where freshers feel comfortable bringing up any such issues without hesitation. The hope is that the Apex members and mentors will be sought out as a sounding board for anything that is on the juniors’ minds. Both alumni and senior students confirm that there has been a drastic reduction in ragging over the years. According to Radhika Mamidi, the outgoing chair of the SLC, “It (ragging) is not as it used to be earlier. Nevertheless, the intention is to have a zero-ragging campus. Either the mind-set of the new generation is changing or they’re using their free time for something more productive”.
Apex For Post Grads
If you thought that a PG student didn’t need a welcoming protocol on campus, you couldn’t be more wrong. “When I came across new PG students who were as lost as 18-year-olds, I thought of having a dedicated Apex for them. It was formed first with the help of some PG volunteers. We introduced some fun activities like city orientation, campus tours and even PG sports which is more of an ice-breaker ,” says Radhika. With this, the PG Apex came into being in 2018. Much like the UG Apex, the roles and responsibilities of the Apex members at the PG level are categorized into the pre-admission and the post-admission phase. In this case, the tenure of members is for one year and they are selected from across disciplines such as 3 from MTech and 3 from MS/PhD.
PG Apex’25 (row-wise from left to right):
Row 1: Naveen (MS), Deepti (Ph.D), Janaksinh (MS)
Row 2: Ram (M.Tech), Richa (M.Tech), Eswar (M.Tech)
Giving Back
Ask any of these Apex members what their motivation to join the student body was, and they almost reply in unison about giving back all that they once received as freshers. The patience and willingness of those seniors to help left a lasting impact, inspiring them to extend the same support to the next batch.
There’s also a common misconception that the responsibilities of an Apex member conclude after the initial induction period. However, the ideal approach emphasizes remaining approachable and actively engaged even after the first
semester or first year. The aim is to ensure that freshers always know they have senior students they can comfortably reach out to throughout their journey at the institute.