Andhra University

Andhra University was founded in 1926, making it one of the oldest universities in India.

It is located in the port city of Visakhapatnam, in the state of Andhra Pradesh – an area on India’s southeast coast, popular with ecotourists and Hindu pilgrims alike.

The university’s motto, taken from the Upanishads, translates as: ‘May the Divine Light Illuminate our Studies’. Its emblem is The Rising Sun, based on a design by Sri Koutha Ramamohana Sastry, which also symbolises Upanishadic ideals.

Andhra’s stated vision is ‘To Create New Frontiers of Knowledge in Quest for Development of a Humane and Just society’ and the institution prides itself on social inclusiveness, as well as high standards in education and research.

The university offers over 300 courses in Arts and Commerce, Science and Technology, Law and Engineering and Pharmacy. It’s also home to the College of Engineering for Women and the School of Distance Education, which comprises 32 separate study centres across the state with another located in the capital, New Delhi.

The Colleges of Arts and Commerce are the university’s biggest schools, providing more than 40 courses (including four Diploma courses) across 20 departments.

The university itself is split into two sections: a south campus that houses its Arts, Humanities and Sciences faculties, and a north campus where its engineering college can be found.

Andhra students are largely drawn from the five districts that comprise Andhra Pradesh state.

The two campuses combined are spread over 422 acres of lush green land and 120 buildings that contain the university’s academic, administrative and student support services. Its library, established in 1927 and renamed the V.S.Krishna Memorial Library in 1968, is housed in an impressive building covering 60,000 square feet and overlooking the sea.

Alumni of the university include the film actor Nandamuri Taraka Rama Rao and the celebrated mathematician Calyampudi Radhakrishna Rao.