The Harkirat Files

This post is based on my personal experience and conversations with other students. I'm sharing this so future students can make an informed decision.

1. False Marketing & Broken Promises

* We were promised Full Stack + DevOps in Semester 1 and Web3 in Semester 2.

* After two semesters, even the Full Stack curriculum wasn't completed.

* Many promises made during admissions were either delayed or never fulfilled.

2. Extremely Low Faculty Involvement

* Harkirat personally conducted only 20 classes in one semester and 18 in the next.

* Considering the fees charged, this works out to roughly ₹10,000 per class.

* Most teaching was delegated instead of being personally delivered.

3. Poor Quality of Teaching

* Several topics were rushed simply to finish the syllabus.

* Concepts were rarely covered in depth.

* One instructor mostly read directly from presentation slides and was unable to provide practical explanations or industry insights.

* Some TAs were inexperienced and often unhelpful.

4. Favoritism

* Referral opportunities appeared to be given repeatedly to a small group of preferred students.

* Students who questioned decisions often felt ignored or sidelined.

* Favoritism was also visible in hostel related decisions and TA interactions.

5. No Career Support / Poor ROI

* Students expected strong placement or referral support.

* Meanwhile, students from the Super 30 batch seemed to receive referrals among themselves.

* Most other students received little meaningful assistance in getting interviews or jobs.

6. Poor Management & Lack of Accountability

* Management rarely listened to student concerns.

* Rules were changed without prior notice whenever it benefited management.

* Fees were increased without proper communication.

* Staff frequently entered hostel rooms without informing students beforehand.

7. Students Were Penalized for Speaking Up

* Students who questioned management decisions were often targeted.

* Public shaming of students happened on multiple occasions.

* After the previous Reddit post and 1:1 meetings, some students who were skeptical about continuing were removed from the hostel the same day even though they had already paid the hostel fees of 10 more days.

* Instead of addressing criticism, management often blamed students.

8. Fee Refund Issues

* During admissions, students weren't informed that the campus would be relocated.

* After students saw the new campus (which is a converted girls' hostel rather than the promised campus), some requested refunds.

* Even though this was around a month before the semester started, they were reportedly offered only a 50% refund.

9. Hostel & Living Conditions

* Only around 7 toilets were available for over 100 students.

* Washrooms were frequently in poor condition.

* Students were forced to vacate hostels nearly two months before the semester officially ended, while some preferred students were allowed to stay.

10. Food Quality

* The mess food quality was consistently poor.

* Students reported insects, stones, rats, spoiled food, food poisoning, and diarrhea.

* Food frequently ran out before everyone had eaten.

* Students paid around ₹6,000/month, but we were told only ₹4,000 per student was actually allocated to the mess, resulting in poor quality and no second servings. But Harkirat himself earned 4 lakhs per month because of this.

11. Health & Safety Concerns

* Nearly 15 students reportedly suffered from dengue.

* Students repeatedly complained about mosquito problems, but little action was taken.

* There were also complaints about alcohol and marijuana use on campus, which students felt management ignored despite reports.

12. Poor Campus Culture

* Students who questioned management often became targets.

* Decision making felt arbitrary rather than transparent.

* Management presented itself as student-friendly but rarely acted on student feedback.

13. Questionable Hostel Priorities

* Students from MIT Kerala were accommodated while existing