Dr Gayathri Aditya is presently working as HOD-Planning at Nitte School of Architecture, Planning and Design, Bangalore. An architect and planner by profession, she has worked in many design firms prior to her research career. She recently received the prestigious BHAVAN fellowship award and was a research affiliate at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley. With a PhD from the Center for Sustainable Technologies at the IISc, Bangalore, her research looks into building integrated photovoltaic systems and climate responsive architecture. 

Nitte School of Architecture, Planning and Design

What are your roles and responsibilities towards the students?

“Strategizing daily academic activities and curriculum”

As any other HOD, I take-up the responsibilities of academic curriculum and ensure that the overall day-to-day operations run smoothly. I plan the course curriculum and update it on a regular basis to make sure students retail the latest education of the industry. Students have joined in trusting us and we need to give them the best in terms of knowledge, exposure and opportunity. This adds a huge responsibility on us.

How do you tend to establish healthy relations within your college?

“Improving student-faculty interactions and instructional processes”

I believe in nurturing a space for both faculty and students that facilitates co-learning and co-creation. Faculty is given freedom for self growth which in turn helps students’ to grow. As a HOD, I am vigilant and do everything in my capacity to avoid unhealthy competition and bias. We nurture a respectful attitude in student-faculty relationships. It’s basically an exchange of information through systematic and smooth communication. We focus on creating a space where students are motivated and develop a desire and passion for the subject, and an urge to learn from each other and instructors through mutual interactions. We lay emphasis on Group learning and Team building for projects and competitions. Students have full freedom to go with their designs and are treated as team members in projects for better learning. 

How do you try to bring in an industry oriented approach towards subjects?

“Bridging and leveling the industry-academia gap”

Planners work towards communities, health and well-being for both urban and rural, by addressing the use of land, resources, facilities and services with consideration to physical, economic and social efficiency. Unless we work on live projects, students don’t understand the intricacies of problem solving. We introduce them to the concepts and theories, and involve them in real time projects, through which they not only learn the concept but also see the applicability in the industry. All subjects have assignments that are real time projects or tenders that are floated. Students are trained professionally through exposure to industry experts, training programs and workshops, working on live projects and internships. We help scaling up the threshold capability of every student by raising the previously set benchmark by their proctor and mentors, skill mapping orientation and training. 

How do you strategize the curriculum to make it befitting for the students?

“Students are market ready through our practicum course structure”

We are affiliated to VTU, and the first and only college that offers the B-Plan Programme. We have designed our syllabus with a good blend of traditional and contemporary subjects. Syllabus from the best planning schools across the country and internationally has been incorporated. We have designed the programme course contents that ensure students are industry ready. The students develop and learn the ability to work with the public and function as a mediator or facilitator when community interests conflict. The knowledge of interaction among the economy, transportation, health and human services, and land-use regulation is incorporated in them. Syllabus is updated as and when new areas of studies percolate into Planning Stream or Govt. brings up any study area. They develop the ability to solve problems using a balance of technical competence, creativity and hardheaded pragmatism, and to envision alternatives to the physical and social environments. 

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What are the best practices you offer which help students gain necessary skills?

“Experiential and Existential Learning, projects and start-ups”

At our college, we give full independence to our students. Site study and field trips are organized by students and faculty accompanies them. NOSPLAN is an event for planners across the country, and the student council organizes it quite well. Involving students in live projects like surveys, government projects with HUDCO-Housing and Urban Development Corporation, small industrial projects, etc.. This is apart from the total 12 weeks internship they do as part of their curriculum. We encourage their participating in competitions and publishing blogs, articles and write-ups on Planning during the academic phase. We encourage students in doing team work, and try to show them how different and multiple brains working together would produce a better output. Our students share space with architects, engineers and management students on our integrated campus and with other colleges of repute. We extend our support to students towards establishing start-ups, which would encourage students in thinking out of the box – this is a great opportunity for them to think laterally and to execute their ideas. We engage students in various professional activities like involving in live projects, training them on personality development and soft skills, etc. Our students are given the opportunity to work in our Collaborative Incubation Cell on live current and futuristic projects as well. 

What are your views on higher education of students from your department?

“An ocean of opportunities and specializations”

There are few courses that build and develop multiple skills in the student. Planning is one such course. We have subjects like Planning Communication, which enhances their soft skills and presentation skills. We nurture students to be more creative, versatile and ingenious as it is a blend of both architecture and engineering. It gives the students a wide knowledge on the areas of spatial planning, designing, technology oriented and knowledge that enable the health and well-being of urban and rural communities. We brief them about the possible advantages of choosing either higher education or a job or their own start-up. The Bachelors of Planning program offers a great path in both private and the public sectors. Planners can be employed in the Development Authorities, Planning Commission, NITI AAYOG and in private organizations like L&T infra ltd, JLL, BRIGADE etc. The course also offers prominent career options after Bachelors to pursue Masters in preferred specializations.

How do you enhance the skills and expose the students to real world challenges?

“Great number of collaborations and real-time exposure”

We involve our students in the live projects that we do with many other organizations. Their internships also give them the required exposure to the real world. We have signed many MOU’s and have collaborated with a large number of establishments, have been designated as IIC - Institute Innovation Center by the Ministry of Education Govt. of India, and have registered our CIC with MSME. Real time projects are given to the students as their studio works. They are sent as support to the planners in the city to work along for experiential learning and articulating planning issues to a wide variety of audiences. Our students along with faculty have participated in Vijayawada, Bangalore, Kota and Bhopal. We encourage them to participate in NoSPLAN (a National Students Body) which ensures them of getting the required exposure and awareness of the competition outside.

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What would be your top priority for the next 05 years for your department?

“Planning as an international profession and practice”

I am looking forward to uplifting the quality of education and making people aware of the Planning programme. Public needs to realize the pivotal role a Planner could play in times to come. We are working on the rational analysis i.e. need of the sector and unlock strategy for India, Multi-functional use of Real Estate. Through education, communication and professional development, we aspire to serve and guide thousands of planning professionals in their role of creating better communities. We are working towards making our students recognized by all the renowned institutes by giving world class standards of education and learning.

How does the department enhance the skills of the faculty?

“Improvement through research oriented and developmental practices”

We encourage our faculty to participate in various QIP’s, Faculty Development Programmes and design competitions. We rope in industry experts during the progress of curriculum who share their knowledge with our students and faculty. The promotion for teachers is based on the number of publications and scale of the live projects done, to motivate them to do better and participate more. Peer mentoring and development, time value management are encouraged besides improving the threshold capability of faculty members on a rider scale.

What do you see as the department’s greatest strengths?

“Diverse disciplines and quality amenities for urban and rural work areas”

Bachelors of Planning is a dynamic and diverse course, individual skills vary depending on a planner’s role and area of specialization they like to choose. Knowledge and understanding is given on urban spatial structure or physical design of cities, analyzing demographic data, plan making and project evaluation. Social and environmental impact of planning decisions on communities, people’s participation, Legal foundation for land use regulation, etc. are areas where students work in. We educate them about local, state and government programs, schemes and processes, along with software tools for presentation, GIS, AutoCAD, Photoshop, Sketch up, etc. Also, the department has a good infrastructure, library and resource centre. Especially for planners, we have the state of the art GIS lab and the students do their studio projects using GIS. We have good knowledgeable faculties as well. 

What valuable advice would you like to give to the students?

“Be a risk taker and change maker”

In the planning stream, the students are required to be pragmatic. It allows them to enjoy working with different community interests. The course engenders responsibility to work on social and environmental effects in the communities. They can be change makers. Be open minded, there is a lot to learn and explore. Show interest and be passionate about whatever you’re doing. Give 100% to whatever you do, success will follow you.