Southern Regional Campus, Kottayam
An Overview
Indian Institute of Mass Communication’s Regional Centre in South India was founded at Kottayam – the land of letters, latex and lakes – in 1995. It was established in small scale to impart quality training to working journalists, Public Relations professionals and State Information Officers. It was re-established in full throttle in the year 2012 when it was re-located to the Mahatma Gandhi University, in Kottayam and for the first time opened its doors to graduate students with the introduction of Postgraduate Programme in English Journalism.
In the year 2017, Postgraduate Programme in Malayalam Journalism was also launched in the regional campus with a view to set new quality standards in journalism training in the regional milieu. This is the first-ever Journalism Course in Malayalam medium, with specific focus to impart quality training in language media, on a national scale. The course has earned good reputation with its alumni pursuing careers in major media organizations within the country.
In view of the COVID Pandemic and related restrictions in Kerala, both the courses are conducted in blended mode i.e. part of the course is online and practical sessions are organized offline.
Campus Infrastructure
In August 2019, the campus was shifted from the Mahatma Gandhi University premises to its own permanent campus in Pampady, Kottayam,
The campus has an Academic-cum-Administrative Block, a Students’ Hostel-cum-Guest House, and staff quarters. Besides, there are provisions for Seminar Hall, Canteen, Students Mess, Library, Computer Lab, provisions for TV studios, Community Radio Station, Rainwater Harvesting, etc.
The academic cum administrative block is a three-storey building with a total plinth area of 2317 Sqm. The Hostel Block is having a total plinth area of 1442.87 sqm. It can accommodate 48 Students with double occupancy. This block also has three guest rooms and two suite rooms.
Courses Offered
PG Diploma in English Journalism
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17 Seats
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PG Diploma in Malayalam Journalism
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17 Seats
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Academic Activities at the campus
The residential campus offers a stimulating one-year Post Graduate Programmes (2 courses at present) aimed at providing well-rounded education and honing of skills for a challenging job in the field of mass media and communication.
Besides the classroom lessons, special lectures, lecture-demonstrations, hands-on-the job experiments, institutional visits, national seminars, online interactions and webinars are organized for the students throughout the academic year. All the courses are taught by the in-house faculty, supplemented by sessions by experts from the industry and academia.
Eminent Scholars and experts in the field of mass communication both from English and Malayalam are regularly invited for interactive sessions with the students. Ample exposure to students on the technical aspects of journalism under expert guidance is ensured. This is in addition to the mandatory three-week internship which the student has to undergo before the diploma is awarded. In the past, there have been instances of students from the Kottayam campus topping IIMC’s all India rank list in English Journalism.
Publications: The Institute has published an academic text-book on Malayalam Journalism, Marunna Madhyamangal, Maratha Moolyangal, a collection of essays on various facets of media by eminent journalists and experts. It also publishes monographs on relevant topics in the field of media and mass communication. More books on Media are in the pipeline.
Devji Bhimji National Oration: IIMC Kottayam has instituted the oration in English to commemorate the founder of the first comprehensive newspaper in Kerala. The inaugural lecture was delivered by Dr. C.V. Anandabose on 15 July, 2021 on the topic “Nation, Nationality, and Media: Issues and Challenges” in online mode.
Chengalath Kunhirama Menon Oration: IIMC Kottayam has instituted the oration in Malayalam to commemorate the contributions of Shri Chengalath Kunhirama Menon, the editor of ‘Kerala Patrika,’ one of the first newspapers published in Kerala. The inaugural lecture was delivered by Shri K Jayakumar, Former Chief Secretary, Government of Kerala on 20th January, 2021 on the topic “Might of Media and the Rights of the Reader” in online mode.
Journalism Mentorship: It is a voluntary programme to be undertaken by the students during the first semester break. The students are sent to various media organizations and experts to get trained and mentored. This is initiated with a view to ensure that the students are moulded into industry-ready professionals at an early stage of the course itself.
Seminars and Workshops: Many workshops and seminars are conducted periodically at the centre. As part of the mission to fight against misinformation and fake-news, IIMC’s Kottayam Campus with Google News Initiative (GNI) in providing in-depth and hands-on source verification training to its students. The two-day workshop aims to help the students familiarize with the online tools, resources, and methods to verify the authenticity of news-content.
Lab Journals: As part of the training to write for, edit, and design newspapers and magazines, the students of IIMC Kottayam design and publish a number of Lab Journals in English as well as Malayalam, IIMC Voice and Ezhuthola respectively. Both the journals are made available on the campus blog, again designed and uploaded by IIMC students as part of their curriculum.
Alumni: Today, the former students of Malayalam and English Journalism are working in diverse national and regional news organizations. The constantly updated and industry linked curriculum of IIMC prepares its PG Diploma students to take up challenging assignments in the fields of journalism, new media, advertising, public relations etc. The Southern Regional Campus is proud that it could provide placements to more than 80% of its MJ students since the commencement of the course in 2017.
On Social Media: IIMC Kottayam’s social media presence has been strengthened by the verification/authentication of its official Twitter Account, Facebook Page, and Instagram Account. The accounts now have a blue tick mark which is the sign of authenticity and official status. In addition, the regional campus is active in Instagram also.
Roadmap for Future
With the permanent campus, IIMC’s Kottayam Campus envisions to enhance its stature by initiating a bunch of new short-term courses for communication professionals from public and private sector. In addition, with the Deemed to be University status, IIMC Kottayam will go many steps further in fulfilling its vision towards building a knowledge-driven information society and also living up to its stature as an institute of excellence in the field of mass communication and media training.
CONTACT
Dr. Anil Kumar Vadavathoor
Regional Director / Academic Head
Email: anilvadavathoor@gmail.com
Rajith Chandran M.R. IIS
Joint Director
Email: rajith.chandran@gov.in
Office Address
Indian Institute of Mass Communication
Southern Regional Campus, 8th Mile, KK Road, Pampady, Kottayam, Kerala - 686501.
: 0481 - 2502520
Email: iimckottayam2012@gmail.com
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