My first day at CIEFL Campus in Hyderabad

I remember the first day, I visited the campus of 'English and Foreign Languages University' which was then known as 'Central Institute of English and Foreign Languages' [CIEFL] in Hyderabad. It was in the year 2003. I was very new in the Nizam city of Hyderabad. A friend of mine, who also stayed with me in the same hostel volunteered to help me find out the exact location of CIEFL. She was a student of Bio-informatics at Osmania University. We boarded a bus from the city towards Osmania University. We got down at the bus stop very close to her College building inside the campus of Osmania University. After she signed her attendance, she came out and joined me. We both walked till the campus of CIEFL, which is located at the end of Osmania University and is located very close of Secunderabad city. My friend showed me the way towards entrance and went back to attend her classes. For me, it was like a dream come true to see the entrance of CIEFL.

To become a student of CIEFL was my long cherished dream. I remember it was raining profusely as it always happens in the month of July. I was almost drenched though I had an umbrella with me. I walked inside the campus. As I walked through the entrance gate and moved towards the reception, I remembered one of my Professors during my Master Degree course in English at Andhra University, Visakhapatnam. He was the one who had showed me and to all students of my batch, the way to CIEFL. In his words, CIEFL is the "Mecca and Madina" of all students of English. He had said that the day anyone touches the dust of CIEFL, that day would be the most auspicious day of that student's life. So, it was the most auspicious day of my life as I had already reached the campus of CIEFL and my pilgrimage [in the words of my Professor] was about to begin. I thanked him from the bottom of my heart for his inspiration that paved my way to the campus of CIEFL.

As I moved ahead, I got a glimpse of the students' culture there. For a second, I felt if I was standing in India or in any foreign land as majority of the students were foreigners. There were students from Russia, France, Germany, Japan and the middle Eastern Countries.I was absolutely mesmerized.

Finally, I reached the reception office and enquired about the admission procedure of M. Phil. As I spoke to the very kind and helpful lady at the reception, she introduced me to two different courses tailor made for students who have completed their M.A. in English and wish to pursue a career in teaching of English before embarking upon M.Phil.

She showed me the brochures and the two courses were:
1. Post Graduate Certificate in Teaching of English
2. Post Graduate Diploma in Teaching of English.

I found the information very interesting and was highly motivated to explore these two courses as my career goal was to become a Teacher of English.She even motivated to join the School of Foreign Languages and learn either French or Spanish. I was thrilled with the idea. As French language is the major contributor towards the growth and development of English language, I decided to try joining the beginners level of French language.She gave me all the application forms and showed me all the important dates of application submission and commencement of the courses.

I sat down with all the brochures, application forms and Prospectus on a sofa nearby. As it was raining heavily outside, I preferred to sit in the lobby and wait for some time till the rain comes to a halt. The cool moist breeze from the widely opened door, groups of students and visitors coming in and going out made an interesting view. I pondered for a while and decided to go ahead with my admission for PGCTE [Post Graduate Certificate in Teaching of English] course. I prayed to God for giving me the strength and ability to fulfill the requirements of both the courses and earning the status of a student of CIEFL.

After I finished my self talk, I thought of reading the literature about CIEFL and about all other courses it offered, in the prospectus. As I sat there and read, I came across few important points about the history and present status of CIEFL. I quickly tried to note down few facts about CIEFL.

Five Stars Accreditation by NAAC :
I was delighted to read that CIELF was granted Five Stars by the National Assessment and Accreditation council of India [NAAC] which is an autonomous institution under the University Grants Commission [UGC] of India.

Important Milestones:
I also came to know that CIEFL was founded in the year 1958 by the Government of India. So, today I can proudly say that is standing tall for the past 54 years. It was founded with the name of CIE [Central Institute of English]. It was founded primarily to improve the standard and quality of teaching and learning of English.

The Institution was renamed as CIEFL [Central Institute and Foreign Languages] in the year 1972. The Foreign Languages department came into existence with courses to be offered in Arabic, Italian, Spanish, French, Japanese, Chinese and German.

It was very interesting to know that CIEFL already had two regional centers in India, one in capital city of Uttar Pradesh, Lucknow and the other in the capital city of Meghalaya, Shillong. The Shillong center [1973] was established much earlier than the Lucknow center[1979].

Educational Media Research Center [EMRC] was established in 1985 with an agenda of utilizing the media of Television for creating awareness of English throughout the country considering the huge potential of TV as an audio-visual medium.

Today, as I look back at my days as a student of PGCTE [Post Graduate Certificate in Teaching of English] and [French Level 1.1] at CIEFL Campus, I feel a deep sense of pride and achievement. I feel extremely honoured to write a few words about CIEFL today here at ISC.

The Government of India renamed CIEFL as 'The English and Foreign Languages University' [EFLU] in 2007 empowering it with the status of a Central University.