Discovering Kalvium
I was registering for Lovely Professional University when I first came across Kalvium on their website. The ideology behind it caught my attention – the practical implementation of learning. That’s exactly what I felt was missing throughout the Indian education system.
My mother has always been fascinated by software engineers. She thinks they’re empowered, disciplined people who solve real problems and contribute to the world. She’s my role model, honestly. She always wanted me to be an engineer, and that shaped a lot of how I think about this field.
I had computer science in school, HTML, CSS, some JavaScript. But here’s the thing about school. They’d explain a piece of code and ask us to copy it or create something similar. There was no freedom to actually create anything on your own. The freedom of creation – that’s what was lacking. Now, after a year at Kalvium, when I look at what I knew then versus what I know now, it’s like we know so much more.
This was my first time away from home. My parents are very protective, so this was huge for me. But the hostel became like a family away from home. My roommate is older than me, so she feels like an elder sister. The first few weeks were exciting and confusing at the same time. We realized pretty quickly that this program isn’t going to be easy. It’s rigorous. You need to give it all you have.
A Workspace, Not a Classroom
The classrooms here are completely different. They’re designed like office workstations – compartments where you can interact with people but also sit in peace and work. Over this year, I’ve learned there’s a line between being professional and being friendly, and we’ve learned to balance both perfectly. I’m not afraid to interact with anyone, but within professional boundaries. That’s something they actively teach us here, and it shows in how the whole classroom feels.
Our mentors are like seniors with a lot of experience. They feel like a support system. Whatever problem we have, we can go discuss with them. But the best part is that we solve problems together. It’s not just them solving it for us it’s all of us working through it. That’s very different from traditional teachers who limit what you can think about. They give you a specific subject, a specific area to stay in. With mentors here, we’re free to ask whatever we want, do whatever we want to learn. It’s our choice, and they support that.
Building Real Products
One of our first big projects was Foodfolio. All 34 of us collaborated on it – an app that lists all the food places to eat in LPU and helps you figure out where to eat based on which location you’re at. It was our first professional project, and it felt amazing to build something real that people could actually use.
The assessment system here is different too. We don’t have midterm or end-term exams. Instead, every three weeks, we have continuous assessments. They’re online, and we get feedback each time. The whole idea is that you’re being evaluated regularly on what you’re learning, not waiting six months to show everything you learned in one big exam. It keeps your performance high because you have to stay on top of what you’re learning every three weeks.
When the class is under a lot of pressure, we organize fun activities. I’m part of the Culture Club, so we’ve put together things like Treasure Hunts – writing clues, hiding them around campus, dividing everyone into teams. The winning team gets treated to pizza. We’ve made videos of ourselves dancing with random people on campus, doing ring-a-ring-a-roses with strangers, taking pictures with security guards. There are these fun hours where everyone just gathers and jokes around. It’s like a friendly roast session. It breaks up the intensity.
Preparing for Industry
We were all super nervous about internships. It was the result of all the hard work – ours and the Kalvium team’s. We were excited and terrified at the same time. After we created our profiles, companies would shortlist students, and some of our peers weren’t getting shortlisted initially. That added so much pressure. You start wondering what’s wrong. But you have to be patient with the process. You can’t control who shortlists you. What you can control is giving your 100% when you do get that interview. Selecting which companies to apply to was also challenging – there were so many options, and you had to decide which technologies you wanted to learn, which company culture would be right for you.
I got my first internship at Slippy. It’s a UK-based company that works on improving the unboxing experience for online shopping. They make the whole process more customized, interactive, and engaging. They have this feature that integrates with Shopify – you can record a video that creates a QR code, and when someone receives the parcel, they scan it and get your personalized message. It makes unboxing actually memorable instead of just ripping open a box.
I was a back-end developer there, working on building the interactions between Slippy and platforms like Shopify. What attracted me was the tech stack – they work with TypeScript, which is really similar to the JavaScript I learned. And honestly, the whole idea of making gift-giving and unboxing more personal – that’s just fascinating to me.
When the Difference Shows
When I told my parents about the internship, they were super happy. My mother said, “Your hard work paid up.” But then she immediately became an advocate for the company – telling me that if they’re paying me, I need to work for them with all my dedication, be disciplined, give it everything.
Their trust in Kalvium now has real proof behind it. It’s not just an idea anymore – it’s happening. They’re proud to recommend it to others now because they sent their child here and it’s real, it’s working.
I’ve changed too, in ways I didn’t expect. I used to speak very loudly. Now my parents ask me, “What happened to you? You’re speaking so slowly.” It’s because here, we’re taught to be mindful in professional spaces, to not disturb others. I’ve learned time management in a real way.
From Intern to Developer
After Slippy, I went on to work with KnG Group in Australia and then joined Napses Technologies, where I’ve been building MVPs as a full-stack developer. I’ve worked on projects that serve hundreds of users, built reusable systems that cut down development time, and learned what it takes to ship products that people actually use. Right now, I’m also working on a research paper about DSA-GPT – an intelligent tutoring system that adapts to how students are feeling while they learn data structures and algorithms. It’s exciting to see how far I’ve come from that first “Hello, World!” moment.
Outside of work, I started the Activate8 Fitness Club at the hostel – a space for women to focus on wellness through small, consistent habits. I’ve also been a teaching assistant at Kalvium, helping 500+ students with their Docker coursework. It feels good to give back to the same learning environment that gave me so much.
Who Should Consider This
I would not recommend Kalvium to someone who’s not passionate about computer science. Because it’s that passion that drives you forward. This is rigorous. It demands a lot. It needs that internal drive.
What I really appreciate about this place is the feedback system. Each piece of feedback actually matters. If something can bring constructive change, it gets priority. We have the power to speak. Our voices get heard. If feedback is good and makes sense for the institution, it gets implemented right there. That’s rare, and it makes you feel like you’re part of building something, not just going through it.
When I look back at where I started versus where I am now, the growth has been real. And honestly, it’s just the beginning.
Want to know if Kalvium’s approach to engineering education is right for you? Connect with our Academic Counselors.
Call Kalvium: 94832 00300