The Sophia Irene Heredia Centre for Women’s Studies and Development (SIHCWSD)

The Sophia Irene Heredia Centre for Women’s Studies and Development (SIHCWSD), launched in 2001 has proven to be a stimulating and engaging Centre with multidisciplinary activities happening throughout the year. The Centre is rooted firmly in the principles of academics, advocacy and action. Based on this the Centre has five major focus areas based on this, they are

1. Courses and instruction
   • Diploma in counseling and Safeguarding of children & Senior Citizens
   • Post Graduate Diploma in Nutrition, Diet and Fitness
   • Master of Arts in Gender Studies
   
2. Library and documentation services
3. Research and publications (In-house multidisciplinary peer reviewed journal Urdhva Mula published since 2002)
4. Consultancy and Collaborations
5. Outreach Activities

Please follow the given link for more details of the Center
(The Sophia Irene Heredia Centre for Women’s Studies and Development(SIHCWSD))

GYMKHANA AND SPORTS FACILITIES

Sophia College has a tradition to provide an all-round development for students and has made available infrastructural facilities for different kinds of sports activities. The gymkhana offers opportunities to both Junior and Senior College students to play indoor and outdoor games. Carrom, chess and table tennis can be played in the basement of the main building. A badminton court is located in the Multipurpose Hall and there are volleyball and basketball courts on the campus. Football and swimming are encouraged and off-campus arrangements are made for these activities. Throwball, tennis and cricket are also popular. Hiking and adventure camps attract many participants. Students are coached to compete in intercollegiate, state and national events.

Sports Talent Scholarships are awarded to those who show remarkable talent in sports. Junior and Senior college students are encouraged to participate in sports for both individual and team events.

The Gymnasium has the latest equipment and the services of instructors and a nutritionist are included in the nominal fee. These facilities are constantly upgraded with new additions and renovations. Aerobics, Yoga and Martial Arts (Karate and Judo) classes are also conducted. Students are encouraged to use these facilities.

Sophia College (Autonomous) has won laurels in sports besides always being in the forefront of academic achievements. College students have represented the college and university at various state and national levels.

Hostel

Sophia College (Autonomous) offers efficient, well-managed and clean hostel accommodation to about a hundred and five out-of-town students. The hostel is located on the first floor of the main building and the topmost floor of the rear extension. It is truly a home away from home, where each student receives personal attention and is encouraged not only to develop her academic skills but also to become a well-balanced and caring person. Participation in extra-curricular activities is expected, so that students realize that the learning process goes beyond academic study.

The aim of the hostel is to create an enlightened educational atmosphere, to encourage stable emotional growth in keeping with the goals and mission of the college. The hostel gives students an opportunity to meet peers from other regions and cultures.

The hostel is an integral part of the Sophia College (Autonomous). It has a vibrant community, of over one hundred full-time students, from all parts of India and sometimes even abroad.

Admission to the hostel is competitive and there are particularly high expectations from resident students – especially with regard to attendance, academic performance and participation in the life of the college as a whole.

Continuation in the hostel is based on the appraisal of each resident on a yearly basis. Selection to the hostel is based on a personal interview of the prospective resident along with her parents/guardians.

The College Library

SOPHIA COLLEGE - M. K. TATA TRUST INFORMATION CENTRE

The Sophia College Library is a part of the institution since its inception in the year 1941.

Extension of the library Reading Room was built in 1975-76.

Later in 2006, with the help of grants from M.K. Tata Trust the library was renovated, computerized and named Sophia College - M.K. Tata Trust Information Centre.

Renovation of the Internet Counter was carried out with the generous support of our alumni, Late Mrs. Sarla Malhotra, in July 2007.

Further, the library has also significantly benefited from the RUSA (Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan) Grant received by Sophia College, which allowed the purchase of more computers and printers and ID card and Barcode Printer. In keeping with the current needs several Kindle readers have been purchased and a Kindle corner has been established.

A significant feature of Sophia Library is that you as a user has open access to library cupboards in the general Reading Section. This means that you can browse books and then decide what you wish to pick up for reading or for home issue. Understandably then, it is important that you replace books in exactly the same location, after browsing. Maintaining the arrangement and order of books on cupboard shelves is necessary in the interests of other users.

The library goals are based on the first two goals of the College namely – academic excellence; scope for critical thinking and value-based convictions. To enable each user to develop their full intellectual potential through the use of library resources and offer them scope for critical thinking and discernment thus leading to the development of value-based convictions and academic excellence.

The library is located on the second floor of the Arts Heritage Building near Room No. 12.

TIMINGS

The College Library is open for all its users.

The library is closed on Sundays and public holidays.

FICTION SECTION

Timings:

MONDAY to FRIDAY : 1.00 p.m. to 3.00 p.m.

CANTEEN AND COFFEE SHOP

A centrally-located canteen serves staff and student needs. There is a separate room for the staff in the canteen. Vegetarian and non-vegetarian food is available at the College Canteen. The Canteen is a reasonably-priced, self-service canteen. Hot/Cold Beverage counters are provided in the canteen extension and near the central lawn.

Students are requested to stand in queue when paying for food tokens or collecting food/beverages and have to return plates, cups and cutlery to designated tubs. Students are encouraged to bring their own mugs (for beverages) to help minimize the use of paper / plastic cups. Appropriate bins are kept for disposal of wet / dry wastes. Student volunteers monitor the cleanliness of the canteen. Rearranging canteen furniture is only permitted for authorized class/club events.

A Canteen Suggestion Box is kept in the canteen, for any student (or staff) to provide constructive suggestions, feedback and/or complaints. A canteen committee with teaching/non-teaching faculty and students is responsible for overseeing the smooth running of the canteen and for implementing any changes.

COMPUTER CENTRE

(Sophia – M. K. Tata Communications Technology Centre)

The Computer Centre comprises four air-conditioned laboratories that are located on the 1^st Floor of the Arts Building (opposite the Audio Visual Room/above the canteen). These laboratories are equipped with 95 computers, 5 printers (B/W and colour), 2 scanners and 3 projectors. Access to internet facility is available at a nominal rate.

These laboratories are equipped with 105 computers, 5 printers (B/W and colour), 2 scanners and 3 projectors. Access to internet facility is available at a nominal rate.

Ordinarily Computer Laboratory 1 is used for academic or personal work. Computer Laboratories are often used for I.T. Practical sessions, for junior college (Labs 1 and 2) and the BMM department (Lab 4). It may also be booked in advance by faculty members - for special/guest lectures/practical, exams, quality control data entry, online form-filling or meetings; at such times, access to some laboratories is restricted. In addition, there is a computer laboratory for the use of B.Sc.IT course

The computer centre conducts several short term courses. For details kindly follow link:

(Sophia Add On Courses conducted by Computer Lab)

For detailed rules and regulations for use of the Computer labs please refer to the respective handbooks

(Senior College Handbooks- 2023-24)
(Junior College Handbooks – 2023 - 24 )

RESEARCH FACILITIES

The Suman Tulsiani Research Centre was set up with the kind donation from Mrs. Suman Tulsiani in 2008. It is equipped with high-end equipment purchased from several grants awarded to the college, including DST-FIST, UGC Innovative program, Star College and RUSA, and is used as a common research facility by all science departments.

It includes:

• ● A fully functional animal tissue culture facility with a biosafety cabinet and CO2 incubator
• ● A microscopy facility with a cryostat, fluorescence microscopes, stereo microscopes and an inverted microscope.
• ● A molecular biology research lab with all basic equipment including PCR and RT-PCR and gel documentation system.

It also houses a conference room for meetings and presentations, four departmental research laboratories and a preparation room.

Laboratory Facilities - Department of Chemistry

The Department of Chemistry has 3 UG labs on the ground floor – one main lab, 1 physical lab and 1 Analytical lab cum balance room. 1 lab on the first floor shared with Junior College, 1 MSc wet lab and 1 instrumental lab. Suman Tulsiani Staff Research lab on the 4th floor of the Science building. 

 These labs are equipped with a range of instruments and glasswares that are needed for conducting regular UG and PG practicals.  

Under DBT Star and RUSA grants, some high end instruments have been acquired this year. Both main labs on the ground floor and the first floor are equipped with Fumehood facility to ensure safe working environment. The fumehood in the ground floor lab has been upgraded this year under DBT grant.

The following is the list of some of the instruments in the labs:

Waste treatment 

All the Organic derivatives prepared by the students in the lab are recrystallized and given to the students for Organic spotting/Estimation/derivatization/other experiments. 

Broken glassware are collected in a separate bin and sent for recycling. 

If only the tip of the burette is broken we get it mended and use again. 

All qualitative experiments performed in the lab are performed at micro scale level. 

Safe working environment: Green initiative 

Both the ground floor and first floor main labs are equipped with fumehood facility. Any experiment which involves evolution of harmful gasses is carried out in the fumehood. 

Laboratory Facilities - Department of Life Sciences

The Department of Life Sciences has 2 laboratories. The main UG laboratory that can accommodate around 40 students is located on the 3rd floor of the Science building. The department also has a research lab on the 4th floor within the Suman Tulsiani Research Centre where the high-end equipment are housed. 

In addition the department has a zebrafish facility and a behavioural lab on the landing between the 2nd and 3rd floor and the 3rd and 4th floor.  

Book shop / Facilitating Centre

The College Bookshop caters to the multiple needs of all students and staff of Sophia College (Autonomous) and our campus institutions. It was established to serve the requirements on campus. Students are encouraged to purchase textbooks, reference material, study material/notes, stationery from the bookshop. Prescribed textbooks for all Junior College courses, which are sanctioned and published by Balbharati (Maharashtra State Textbook Bureau), Pune are available. For some courses there are journals and workbooks also.

Photocopy and Document Printing Counters

Photocopy and document printing facilities are available for all students and staff. These counters are located in the College Library, Sophia Andersson Annexe and near the central lawn. Practical journals compiled by various departments and provided to students are printed in-house and not outsourced. Learner resources for degree college students are available at the counter in Sophia Andersson Annexe. Learner resources for junior College are available at the counter near the central lawn/Sports Club.

Convention Centre, AV Hall, AV Room and Multipurpose Hall

The college has several audio-visual facilities catering to the different needs.

Sophia Bhabha Auditorium

This auditorium is regularly used for professional plays and the college can book it for use at a minimal cost. The auditorium has a capacity of 813 with state-of-the-art lighting and audio facilities

Suman Ramesh Tulsiani Convention Center

The Convention center can accommodate 150 people and has an excellent sound system for conduct of Conferences, Seminars, Workshops etc. It is situated in the basement of the Science Building. It is used for formal college activities.

AV Hall

The AV Hall situated on the 2nd floor of the Sophia Anderssen Annexe is an air-conditioned room equipped with good audio-visual facilities. It can accommodate 200 participants. Since it doesn’t have fixed seating, the arrangement can be done as per need of the event. It is sometimes used for classes that require screening of presentations or movies.

AV Room

The AV Room is situated on the first floor of the Arts Extension building near the Computer Centre. It is air-conditioned and has a capacity of 250. The room can be separated into 2 separate facilities for events with smaller seating requirement. The AV Room (back ) is routinely used as a classroom at other times.

Multipurpose Hall (MPH)

The Multipurpose Hall is a covered enclosure that is used for events that do not require very high-quality audio effects. It lends itself to events that require a large open space. It is extensively used for Kaleidoscope events and other informal activities of the college.

Studio

A state-of-the-art studio has been constructed in 2022-23 from the RUSA 2.0 grant received by the college. The studio is equipped with all the necessary equipment and acoustics for preparation and conduct of on-line courses.