Symbiosis University Of Applied Sciences, Indore

Symbiosis University of Applied Sciences, Indore is a state private university on the Super Corridor near Indore airport, and NIRF 2025 put it second of the three names in its Skill University table without publishing a score for any of them. It runs its own entrance papers, bills a B.Tech in computer science and IT at Rs 2,90,000 for 2026-27, and grades coursework 70% on skills and 30% on theory. Its latest NIRF data filing reports a median salary of Rs 4,50,000 for the three-year undergraduate batch that finished in 2024-25.

SUAS describes itself as a self-financed university established under the Government of Madhya Pradesh Gazette (Extraordinary) No. 2 of 2016 dated 13 June 2016, in accordance with the MP Niji Vishwavidyalaya Adhiniyam, 2007 (About Symbiosis Indore). Its 2024-25 Annual Report describes the instrument differently, as Act No. 23 of 2016, gives the parent law its full title, the Madhya Pradesh Niji Vishwavidyalaya (Sthapana Avam Sanchalan) Adhiniyam, 2007, and records that UGC recognised the university under section 2(f) of the 1956 Act by a letter dated 03rd November 2022, after an expert committee inspection (SUAS Annual Report 2024-25). The UGC's own state-wise list of private universities places it at Bada Bangadda on the Super Corridor in Indore, under Madhya Pradesh (UGC list of private universities).

Anyone searching "Symbiosis" will meet Pune first, and the university's own FAQ does not help: asked whether Symbiosis Indore and Pune are the same, it answers that they are, adding only that Indore focuses on skill development (SUAS FAQ). The UGC's consolidated register treats them as three separate universities, putting the Indore private university under Madhya Pradesh and listing Symbiosis International (Deemed University) at Lavale and Symbiosis Skills and Professional University at Kiwale under Maharashtra (UGC consolidated list of universities). The shared founder is real, since SUAS credits the vision of Dr. S. B. Mujumdar and Dr. Swati Mujumdar, but a SNAP cutoff, a Lavale fee or a Pune NAAC grade tells a family nothing about the Bada Bangadda campus.

How the Skill Model Is Built

The skill label shows up in the rulebook, not just the brochure. The 2025-26 student handbook weights every course 70% to the skills component and 30% to theory, demands 100% attendance in skills and practical sessions against 75% for lectures, and has the skill component marked at semester end by a panel that includes industry experts (Student Handbook 2025-26).

On the National Skills Qualifications Framework (NSQF), the government ladder that grades vocational qualifications by level, SUAS makes a specific claim for its computer science B.Tech: the curriculum "has been designed in NSQF format" with QP/NOSs mapped, meaning the Qualification Packs and National Occupational Standards that sector skill councils write for each job role (B.Tech CSIT programme page). In the data it filed for NIRF 2026, the university reported qualifications embedded in all 7 of its 7 programmes and 308 qualifications developed by it and approved by NCVET, the national vocational training regulator (NIRF 2026 data submission); the year before, the same field read 187 (NIRF 2025 data submission). Those counts are self-reported, and the handbook still organises every programme into credits and semesters. The FAQ adds that courses are modular with multi-entry and multi-exit, and that the policy for exits is set by the university's statutory bodies (SUAS FAQ).

The campus size depends on which page you read: the infrastructure page says 25 acres (infrastructure), while the Annual Report says 30 acres and an investment of over Rs 200 crores (SUAS Annual Report 2024-25). The administration page currently lists Dr. Durgesh Mishra as Vice Chancellor (Officiating) and Mr. Sandeep Gupta as Registrar (administration).

SUAS publishes one annual fee per programme for 2026-27, with a separate column for foreign students (fee structure).

Set against the 2025-26 prospectus, most fees rose in one year: the B.Tech CSIT went from Rs 2,75,000 and each MBA from Rs 6,25,000, while the B.Sc in data science stayed at Rs 2,00,000 (SUAS prospectus). That prospectus also sets the terms that sit under the table. The academic fee covers tuition, medical, journal, library, laboratory and development charges and the first attempt at regular exams, with backlog exams billed separately. A refundable university caution money of 10,000/- is added, transport is notified separately, and the academic fee may be increased up to 15% every year during the programme at management's discretion. A SUAS graduate who stays on for a postgraduate programme gets a 10% discount on the academic fee each year.

The fee is paid annually in two instalments through the student portal, and the university states that it takes no cash, no donation and no capitation fee (fee structure). Two catalogue items have no fee line at all: the Diploma in Advanced Manufacturing Excellence (10+3 years) and the Diploma in Manufacturing Automation (12+2 years), which the diploma page pitches in particular at girls entering manufacturing (diploma programmes). The PhD sits in the fee table even though the NIRF 2026 filing reports 0 doctoral students, full-time or part-time, up to 2024-25 (NIRF 2026 data submission).

For loans, the university lists tie-ups with Union Bank of India, ICICI Bank, Axis Bank and GrayQuest, with ICICI noted as offering collateral-free loans up to ₹ 20 Lakhs (education loan).

SUAS runs admission itself, programme by programme. The online form costs Rs 1000 for undergraduate programmes and Rs 1500 for postgraduate ones, and the selection steps differ by degree (admission process).

MBA and SKILL CAT

For the MBA, SUAS accepts CAT, SNAP or CMAT, and asks candidates without a national score to sit its own SKILL CAT, an online proctored paper of 60 minutes and 50 marks split into verbal ability and reading comprehension, logical reasoning, quantitative aptitude and a specialisation-based skill section (eligibility criteria). The same page states two different academic floors, 50% in Class X, XII and the bachelor's degree for the SKILL CAT and 60% in all three for the MBA itself, and the FAQ gives a third version, 50% with 45% for Madhya Pradesh reserved-category candidates (SUAS FAQ). Get the applicable figure in writing from admissions before paying the form fee.

SKILL CAT is not an Indore-only paper. Its 2026-27 information brochure is issued jointly with Symbiosis Skills and Professional University, though each university's own admissions committee is the competent authority for its seats. That brochure sets the merit formula: the entrance percentile carries 50%, the group discussion or assessment 30% and the personal interview 20%, with Class XII marks breaking ties. CAT, SNAP and SKILL CAT percentiles are placed on one scale, so a 99 percentile in any of them counts the same, although every round gives preference to SKILL CAT takers (SKILL CAT brochure 2026-27).

B.Tech, BBA and B.Sc.

The B.Tech needs a Class XII pass with 50%, drawn from a long list of accepted subjects that runs from physics and mathematics to agriculture, business studies and technical vocational subjects, and candidates are selected on a national, state or SUAS entrance test; bridge courses in mathematics, physics and engineering drawing are offered to students from other backgrounds (eligibility criteria). Second-year lateral entry takes a relevant engineering diploma or a B.Sc. with 45% (40% for reserved categories), and B.Sc. entrants must also clear first-year engineering graphics and mechanics (lateral entry).

The BBA requires 50% in Class 12 for general-category candidates from Madhya Pradesh, 45% for the state's reserved categories, and a personal interview. The data science B.Sc. is open to any Class 12 pass who meets a minimum percentage that the page says the university prescribes but does not print, and students without mathematics must attend a compulsory two-week bridge course held in the evenings after induction (eligibility criteria).

The M.Tech in CSIT asks for a B.E. or B.Tech with 60%, or 50% for Madhya Pradesh reserved-category, EWS and PwD candidates, plus a valid GATE or SUAS entrance score, and NRI or international applicants need an AIU equivalence certificate. Under the B.Tech, B.Sc. and BBA rules the same page reserves 5% of seats in every division for NRI and international candidates as a supernumerary quota (eligibility criteria).

SUAS publishes no closing rank or cut-off score for any programme, and the admission steps on its site name no external counselling round (admission process). Seats are settled on SUAS's own merit lists: B.Tech candidates are selected on their performance in a national, state or SUAS entrance test (eligibility criteria), and the MBA list is built on the composite score described in the admissions section.

The single published threshold that works like a cutoff is in the MBA rules: candidates scoring above 60 percentile in the case study or personal interview go on the merit list, and those between 50 and 60 percentile go on the waitlist (eligibility criteria). The SKILL CAT brochure shortlists on normalised percentile without naming a minimum (SKILL CAT brochure 2026-27), and no SEET qualifying mark is posted, so the eligibility percentages above are the only other hard numbers.

The fullest outcome record is the one SUAS filed with NIRF, which counts graduates, placements and median salaries for three batches at each level (NIRF 2026 data submission).

The postgraduate median jumped to Rs 8,50,000 on a batch of 20, and that small batch traces back to admissions: the same filing shows 20 students admitted in 2023-24 against a first-year intake of 60 (NIRF 2026 data submission). The four-year batch shrank the same way, from 97 admitted in 2019-20 to 36 in 2021-22, so the Rs 5,50,000 B.Tech median rests on 29 placed graduates.

The placement cell's table in the 2024-25 Annual Report counts differently, starting from all eligible students and subtracting those who chose higher studies or a family business (SUAS Annual Report 2024-25).

The two records do not reconcile, and the gap is large enough to matter. The report shows 101 of 220 eligible students choosing higher studies and 73 placed, while the NIRF filing's 2024-25 rows count 27 higher-study students and 122 placements in the three-year undergraduate group alone. The report's own column also separates 4 students marked ineligible under placement policy or not applying. Ask the placement office which batch and which programmes each document covers before quoting either one.

Campus recruiters named in the report include Barclays Bank, Airtel Payments Bank, AON, Capgemini, HDFC (AMC), ICICI Bank, JM financial, Niva Bupa Health Insurance, Persistent System, RBL Bank, TCS, UBS, Zensar Technologies and Palo Alto Networks (SUAS Annual Report 2024-25). Internships are yearly and written into the curriculum, with students coming back to campus after each year's stint (placement).

Vocational certificate courses produce a separate stream of numbers in the NIRF filing: its last row reports 954 students admitted and 906 placed, at a median of Rs 5,60,000, though that row repeats the year label 2023-24 already used on the row above it (NIRF 2026 data submission).

SUAS publishes no programme-wise or category-wise seat matrix. What exists is the sanctioned intake by programme length that it reported to NIRF (NIRF 2026 data submission).

The filings disagree with each other on the early years. The NIRF 2025 submission reported a postgraduate intake of 60 for 2022-23 and a three-year undergraduate intake of 120 for 2021-22, both of which the 2026 submission leaves blank (NIRF 2025 data submission).

The nearest thing to a programme breakdown is the Annual Report's enrolment table, which gives the students actually on roll in each year of each programme in 2024-25 (SUAS Annual Report 2024-25).

Computer science carries the engineering side almost alone; mechatronics took 14 first-year students and had no second-year cohort at all. The NIRF filing gives a lower total strength for the same year, 515 in three-year undergraduate programmes, 277 in four-year ones and 113 in postgraduate ones, and records 0 students from outside the country despite the 5% supernumerary quota for NRI and international candidates (NIRF 2026 data submission).

NIRF ranks SUAS in one category and publishes a rank but no score for it.

The 2025 table lists institute ID IR-S-U-0921 in second place, between Symbiosis Skills and Professional University in Pune and Shri Vishwakarma Skill University in Palwal (NIRF 2025 Skill University). The public table stops at the Indore university's name, city, state and rank; a family comparing it with the Pune and Palwal entries has an order to go on and no marks. The 2024 table ranked three other skill universities and did not include SUAS (NIRF 2024 Skill University), so 2025 is its first appearance. SUAS has posted its NIRF 2026 data submission on its NIRF page (SUAS NIRF), and that year's Skill University table has not yet appeared on nirfindia.org.

The one other national rating on file is older: in ARIIA 2021, the Ministry of Education's innovation ranking, SUAS was placed in the "Promising" band for private and self-financed technical universities (ARIIA certificate).

The equipment is where SUAS's skill claim is easiest to check. The laboratories page describes a Centre for Industry 4.0 (C4i4) lab, also called the iFactory Network Lab, which it says is the first of its kind in Madhya Pradesh and was opened at the Induction Ceremony 2025, alongside a LUCAS lab that combines control systems, electronics and mechanical engineering, an automation lab with PLCs, an EV shop, an electronics vehicle lab, a CNC shop and a fabrication workshop (laboratories). The handbook adds a mock bank, a retail lab and a retail window for the management schools (Student Handbook 2025-26).

Computing runs on 400+ nodes across 14 computer laboratories behind a Fortinet 500D firewall, with dedicated CATIA, MATLAB, AutoCAD, SPSS, Tally ERP 9 Gold, high-performance computing and cloud computing labs (infrastructure). The same page lists an air-conditioned seminar hall of 2,680 square feet, an auditorium of over 800 capacity, a language lab, an on-campus medical centre, city bus routes and a gym, with judo, taekwondo, kabaddi, softball and baseball among the sports offered. The central library holds over 5,000 volumes (library).

Money follows the workshops rather than the books: in 2024-25 SUAS put Rs 81,37,793 of capital into laboratory equipment and Rs 9,02,317 into its library, by its own NIRF filing (NIRF 2026 data submission). The alumni page also describes an incubation centre recognised as a host institute under the Ministry of MSME scheme for supporting enterprises through incubators (Centre for Alumni Engagement).

Hostel

Living on campus is optional; the FAQ says plainly that hostel is not compulsory (SUAS FAQ). The boys' and girls' hostels are twin buildings of 6 stories that can take 700 boys and 700 girls, with attached bathrooms, solar hot water, biometric attendance and four meals a day (hostel facilities).

The hostel page does not date its fee table. The 2025-26 prospectus priced a two-seater non-AC room at 1,95,000/-, stated that hostel charges include mess, and set a refundable hostel caution deposit of 15,000/- (SUAS prospectus).

The teaching bench is small and recently hired. The Annual Report counts 36 faculty in 2024-25, made up of 6 professors, 10 associate professors and 20 assistant professors, with 20 of them women (SUAS Annual Report 2024-25). Its year-wise chart shows student admissions more than doubling, from 230 in 2023-24 to 579 in 2024-25, while faculty went from 27 to 36.

Turnover is the thing to notice in the NIRF 2026 faculty list. Of its 63 names, 20 carry a leaving date, every one of them in 2024 or 2025, including six at director level, and 10 are marked adhoc or contractual (NIRF 2026 data submission). Dr Jaymala Ashok Patil, who joined in November 2016, and Dr Neha Gupta, who joined in August 2017, are among the few still listed from the early years.

The faculty profiles page groups staff into management and engineering benches; Dr. Ram Singh and Dr. Alkesh Verma are listed as Director and Professor on the management side, and Dr. Durgesh Mishra and Dr. Satpal Singh Wadhwa as Directors in engineering (faculty profiles). The Annual Report credits Dr. Durgesh Mishra with editing Springer proceedings volumes on data science and registering UK design patents (SUAS Annual Report 2024-25).

At a glance

Quick facts