SOA Bhubaneswar - Siksha O Anusandhan Bhubaneswar

Siksha 'O' Anusandhan (SOA) is not one college with one fee and one rank. It is a deemed university built from 10 separate constituent institutes. Each institute has its own NIRF category, its own entrance route and its own price. A rank or a fee you read for "SOA" almost always belongs to one specific institute, not the whole university.

📚CoursesFull programme list across SOA's 10 institutes, by level and duration.See SOA courses💰FeesCourse-wise fee structure and payment terms.Check SOA fees📊CutoffSAAT, JEE Main and NEET cutoff patterns by institute.See SOA cutoff📝AdmissionSAAT dates, eligibility and the application steps.SOA admission process🎓ScholarshipMerit and NEET-percentile scholarship routes.SOA scholarship options📈PlacementRecruiters and the placement process by institute.SOA placement record🏆RankingsNIRF category-wise ranks, NAAC, QS and THE.SOA ranking🚗How to ReachAirport, railway station and campus routes.How to reach SOA

SOA is a Deemed to be University in Bhubaneswar, Odisha. It holds UGC Category-I graded autonomy status and a NAAC A++ grade in its third cycle (soa.ac.in). SOA grew out of the Institute of Technical Education and Research (ITER), an engineering college. The Ministry of Human Resource Development approved ITER in 1996. SOA then earned deemed-university status on 17 July 2007, under the UGC Act, 1956 (IEEE Open partner profile).

Today SOA runs 10 constituent institutes on one Bhubaneswar campus network. That network spans about 127 acres (IEEE Open partner profile). The institutes cover engineering (ITER), medicine (Institute of Medical Sciences and SUM Hospital) and dentistry (Institute of Dental Sciences). They also cover pharmacy, law, nursing, management and computer applications. Agricultural sciences and hotel management round out the list, backed by 18 advanced research centres across the network.

Who SOA suits. A student set on medicine or dentistry fits well. SOA's NIRF Dental rank was 9 in 2025, close to the country's best dental schools. Its Medical rank climbed from 21 in 2024 to 15 in 2025 (SOA NIRF page). SOA also suits a student who wants lectures, hostel and hospital together, under one brand and one entrance test, SAAT.

Who should check twice. SOA's NIRF Management rank was 66 in 2025, and its Research rank was 49. Both trail well behind its Dental and Engineering standing. A student comparing SOA's MBA or research programmes against a specialist institute should weigh that gap. Do not assume the university's overall reputation carries every one of its 10 institutes equally.

What do you get for the SOA fees?

The answer depends entirely on which institute you join. A BTech CSE seat at ITER costs ₹1,57,500 a semester for the 2026 batch (SOA 2026 academic fee circular). A BDS seat at the Institute of Dental Sciences costs ₹6,00,000 a year in course fee for 2026-27 (SOA fee circulars). A management or paid MBBS seat at the Institute of Medical Sciences and SUM Hospital costs ₹22,95,000 a year in 2026-27, for 4.5 years (ims.ac.in fee structure). See the SOA fees and payment schedule page for the full detail.

Who should choose SOA, and who should check twice?

Choose SOA if a single-brand, multi-institute campus with its own hospital and research centres fits your plan. Also check that your target institute (dental, medical, engineering) has a NIRF rank you are comfortable with. Check twice if you are comparing SOA on one institute's number while planning to join a different one. The two rarely match.

Is SOA Bhubaneswar good for dentistry?

Yes, on the NIRF measure. SOA's Institute of Dental Sciences carries a NIRF 2025 Dentistry rank of 9. That is one of the strongest single-category ranks inside the university (soa.ac.in/nirf).

Total Tuition Fees and Average/Highest Package are not shown here because they vary by institute by a factor of 20 or more. See the SOA fees and SOA Bhubaneswar placement pages for the institute-by-institute detail.

SOA runs over 170 undergraduate, postgraduate and doctoral programmes across its 10 institutes (admission.soa.ac.in/programmes-offered). Course length ranges from a 4-year BTech to a 5.5-year MBBS. Each institute sets its own fee, not the university as a whole.

What is verified: BTech CSE at ITER costs ₹1,57,500 a semester for the 2026 batch. That is ₹12,60,000 for eight semesters. The Institute of Dental Sciences BDS course fee is ₹6,00,000 a year for 2026-27 (soa.ac.in/fees-structure-ids). MDS fees range from ₹8,00,000 to ₹14,00,000 a year, depending on the specialisation. MBBS on a management or paid seat costs ₹22,95,000 a year for 4.5 years in 2026-27 (ims.ac.in). The NRI MBBS seat costs USD 50,000 a year.

Hostel and mess fees are extra. See the full SOA fee structure page for every programme. The SOA ROI section shows what the BTech CSE cost means against the latest pay.

Are SOA fees the same every year?

Not always. Treat any fee figure as tied to its own admission year. The BDS fee is ₹6,00,000 a year for 2026-27, the same as for 2025-26. Check the circular for your own batch.

Does SOA charge the same fee across all 10 institutes?

No. Fees at SOA vary by institute and programme, not by a single university-wide figure. A dental seat and a medical seat are priced independently, and each institute publishes its own circular.

Which SOA course costs the least?

Of the programmes in SOA's 2026 academic fee circular, BHMCT and the MBA in Hotel Management cost the least. Each costs ₹50,000 a semester. BSc Paramedical Sciences and several MSc programmes cost ₹55,000 a semester (SOA 2026 academic fee circular).

SOA admits most undergraduate and postgraduate students through its own entrance test, SAAT (SOA Admission Test). Engineering admission also accepts JEE Main scores, and medical, dental and nursing admission runs on NEET. For BTech, SOA requires at least 60% marks in 10+2 (55% for SC/ST/OBC candidates). Physics and Mathematics are compulsory, with at least 50% in those two subjects (45% for SC/ST/OBC candidates) (admission.soa.ac.in/engineering-2026).

SOA has not announced SAAT 2027 dates. Its admission calendar lists SAAT 2026 only, where Round 1 applications opened on 7 December 2025 (admission.soa.ac.in/important-dates-1). See the SOA admission process and dates page for the full sequence.

Can you get into SOA through JEE Main alone, without SAAT?

Yes, for engineering. SOA's own eligibility page for the 2026 batch lists both SAAT and JEE Main as accepted routes into its BTech programmes. A JEE Main score alone is enough to apply.

What percentage do you need in Class 12 to apply to SOA engineering?

You need at least 60% overall in 10+2 (55% for SC/ST/OBC candidates). You also need at least 50% in Physics and Mathematics (45% for SC/ST/OBC candidates), per SOA's own 2026 eligibility page.

SOA's placement cell publishes updates through its own portal, placements.soa.ac.in. Its own chart shows a highest salary of ₹43 lakh in 2023-24, against ₹18 lakh in 2018-19 (placements.soa.ac.in/placement-statistics). Recruiting companies went from 123 to 210 over the same years. Both figures peaked in 2022-23, at ₹46 lakh and 235 companies.

The portal shows no average or median pay. SOA's NIRF 2026 data does give a median for ITER BTech graduates. It is ₹6,75,000 for the 2024-25 batch, with 1,998 of 2,157 graduates placed (ITER NIRF 2026 data). See the SOA placement page for medians by institute and the confirmed recruiter list.

Does every SOA institute place students the same way?

No. Placement is run by each institute's own training and placement cell. An engineering placement drive and a management placement drive at SOA involve different recruiters and different timelines.

SOA gives an undergraduate scholarship of ₹35,000 a year to students admitted from 2026-27. You need at least 80% in Class 10 and Class 12 (SOA UG Scholarship notice, dated 8 December 2025). BDS students also get ₹50,000 to ₹1,00,000 a year for four years, by NEET percentile band or category (soa.ac.in/fees-structure-ids, 2026-27 scheme). See the SOA scholarship page for the full detail.

Does SOA give a scholarship for every course?

The UG Scholarship covers undergraduate students, and the notice names no excluded course. The BDS route is separate. The SOA pages do not state a scholarship for MBBS, MDS or postgraduate programmes.

SOA holds eight separate NIRF 2025 ranks: 9 in Dentistry, 10 in Law, 15 in Medicine, 15 in the University category, 25 in the Overall category, 22 in Engineering, 49 in Research and 66 in Management (soa.ac.in/nirf and soa.ac.in's Overall-rank notification). That is a wide spread inside one institution, and it moved. SOA's own research page shows NIRF 2024 Overall rank at 14, Engineering at 26 and Medical at 21 (research.soa.ac.in/about-soa). The same 2024 source puts Dental at 9 and Law at 9. Medicine and Engineering both improved between the two years, Law slipped one place, and the headline Overall rank fell from 14 to 25.

SOA is also one of four Indian institutions listed in the Times Higher Education World Reputation Rankings 2025. IISc Bengaluru and two IITs are the other three (soa.ac.in). NIRF 2026 ranks are not out yet, so this page uses NIRF 2025 (nirfindia.org). See the SOA rankings page for every category and both international lists.

Did SOA's NIRF rank improve or fall in 2025?

It depends on the category. Medicine improved from 21 in 2024 to 15 in 2025, and Engineering improved from 26 to 22. Law fell by one place, from 9 to 10, over the same two editions.

Is SOA ranked internationally?

Yes. SOA sits in the THE World University Rankings 2027 band of 1001-1200. It also sits in the QS World University Rankings 2027 band of 1201-1400. It is also one of four Indian institutions in the THE World Reputation Rankings 2025. See the SOA rankings page for the sources.

Exam list compiled from SOA's own admission portal structure. The MBA row also used third-party divergence checks against Shiksha and Collegedunia listings, so it carries lighter sourcing than the engineering and medical rows. Those two are confirmed directly on admission.soa.ac.in.

Which SOA entrance exam does your course need?

If you are applying for engineering, you can use either SAAT or JEE Main. If you want medicine or dentistry, only NEET-UG counts. Every other stream at SOA runs primarily on SAAT.

SOA's campus network in Bhubaneswar covers about 127 acres (open.ieee.org and soa.ac.in). It houses 10 constituent institutes and 18 advanced research centres. It includes its own teaching hospital, SUM Hospital, which is NABH accredited, and a NABL-accredited diagnostics laboratory. The university reports roughly 15,000 to 17,300 students, including students from more than 30 countries, and about 1,600 faculty members.

Does SOA have its own hospital?

Yes. SUM Hospital, run by SOA's Institute of Medical Sciences, is a NABH-accredited teaching hospital on the same campus network. It sits alongside a NABL-accredited diagnostics laboratory.

How many students study at SOA?

SOA reports roughly 15,000 to 17,300 students across its 10 institutes, including students from more than 30 countries, per figures on the university's own listings.

What Do Students Say About SOA?

Students rate SOA 4.4 out of 5 on Google. On Reddit, most posts are about the engineering institute (ITER), and they say placements depend on your own skills, batches are very large and campus life is quiet.

SOA runs 10 institutes under one name. Almost all detailed posts are about ITER, mainly B.Tech CSE. Read each point for your own institute and branch.

What Do Students Say About Placements and Internships at SOA?

Students say placements at SOA depend on your branch, your skills and your marks. They disagree on how good the overall result is, and many say the very large batch makes it harder.

🏢Students Like ThisCompanies Visit, and Strong Students Get OffersCurrent students and recent graduates say companies come every year. They say students with a high CGPA (many say 8 or above) and real coding skill get offers. A final-year CSE student says several companies had already arrived for internship-plus-job offers before the main season began.💻Students Like ThisCSE and CSIT Lead in PlacementsReddit posts and older Quora answers say CSE and CSIT are the branches that get most campus offers. One 2025 poster does not advise other branches if you expect a campus job.💪Students Dislike ThisSelf-Study Decides the ResultStudents say classes alone will not get you hired. They advise learning data structures, coding and projects on your own from the first year, and keeping a good link with the placement cell.👥Students Dislike ThisLarge Batches Stretch PlacementsA 2024 graduate says some companies delayed or cancelled joining and did not convert some internships. Other students say the intake keeps growing, so offers do not grow at the same pace.🏭Students Dislike ThisMostly Large Service CompaniesStudents and alumni say most offers come from mass recruiters. They say product companies take only a few students, so the best offers go to a small group.📉Students Dislike ThisClass 12 Marks Can Block InterviewsSeveral posts say many companies set a minimum Class 12 percentage. Students with low board marks say they get fewer shortlists, even with good college marks.⚖️Mixed ViewsOverall Verdicts Are SplitSome 2024 to 2026 posts call placements very good. Others call them underwhelming or say they have gone downhill, and a final-year student advises against joining. Older Quora answers are more positive than 2025 Reddit posts. Many positive replies come from one alumnus who posts often, and some come from applicants.🔍One Student's ViewDoubts About Fairness and FiguresTwo anonymous posts in different threads question how fair the placement cell is and how placement figures are counted. Each is a single, unverified claim, and others in the same threads disagree.

What This Means for You

What Do Students Say About Teaching, Faculty and Marks at SOA?

Students say faculty quality depends on the teacher, and many tell you to study on your own. They say good marks look reachable, but the evidence on this is thin.

🎓Mixed ViewsFaculty Quality VariesSome students call teachers supportive and say they share notes. A Google reviewer calls faculty supportive too. Others call faculty average. A 2025 alumnus says some professors are very good and some are hard on internal marks, so keep good ties with teachers.📚Students Dislike ThisDo Not Depend on Classes AloneSeveral students say the syllabus and teaching may not match what companies ask. They advise online courses, outside coaching or serious self-study for current skills.📈Mixed ViewsGood Marks Look ReachableTwo posts say a high CGPA is not hard to reach with steady study. One adds that marks alone do not make you job-ready.🗣️Mixed ViewsLanguage in Class Can Be a HurdleOne 2025 student says a professor taught mostly in Odia with little English. Another says little English is spoken on campus, which can hurt in interviews with recruiters from other states.🗓️One Student's ViewWorkload Builds Year by YearA student write-up from 2023 says year one is light, year two adds core subjects, year three is the hardest with placement preparation, and year four is lighter with projects.

What This Means for You

The SOA courses page lists the programmes and branches.

What Do Students Say About Batch Size, Peers and Campus Life at SOA?

Students say the batch is very large and college life is quiet, with few fests. They disagree on clubs, sports and the quality of the peer group.

👥Students Dislike ThisVery Large BatchStudents say the CSE batch is very large and feels crowded. Others say admission has few barriers, so the intake keeps growing.🎪Students Dislike ThisFew Fests and EventsMany students and alumni say college life is quiet, with few fests and little campus culture. One student says it improved a little in 2025.🎭Mixed ViewsClubs Exist, Quality Is MixedStudents list coding, robotics, drama, fashion and art clubs. One calls club activity average. A recent Google reviewer says events happen often in the main auditorium.🏀Mixed ViewsSports Space Is DisputedOne student says the campus has only one basketball court and a small cricket net, so players go to other SOA campuses. Another rates sports well and calls the sports teams strong.🧑‍🤝‍🧑Mixed ViewsPeer Group Is MixedSome students say some classmates are not serious, and that your friends depend on whom you choose. Some of these comments come from students of rival colleges, so weigh them with care.

What This Means for You

What Do Students Say About the Hostel and Food at SOA?

Students write little about hostels and food, so these points are thin. Google reviewers are positive, and one Reddit post calls hostel life average.

🛏️Mixed ViewsHostel Views DifferTwo Google reviewers call hostel and food very good, and one calls hostel life fun and good for study. A 2025 Reddit post calls hostel life average.❄️One Student's ViewAC and Non-AC Rooms, With Wi-FiOne reply says hostels have Wi-Fi and you can choose AC or non-AC rooms by budget. Questions about coolers and power cuts got no reply.🍛One Student's ViewFood Near Campus Has GrownOne 2024 graduate rates the food near campus well and says food courts have grown since he left.🚌One Student's ViewCollege Transport Is CostlyOne current student says the college bus service is expensive.

What This Means for You

What Do Students Say About Fees and Value at SOA?

Students say SOA costs less than KIIT, but they still call it costly. They warn against loans and say government colleges give better value if your rank allows.

💸Students Like ThisCheaper Than KIITStudents from 2023 to 2026 say SOA is the more affordable choice when both offer CSE. A 2026 post says fees are the one area where ITER clearly beats KIIT.⚠️Students Dislike ThisStill Costly, So Avoid LoansStudents say fees have risen and that middle-class families should think twice. One advises against an education loan for a private B.Tech at SOA or KIIT.🏛️Students Dislike ThisGovernment Colleges Seen as Better ValueStudents and alumni say OUTR and VSSUT give better return than SOA if your JEE rank allows. A VSSUT alumnus says its students are stronger in core engineering.

What This Means for You

How Do Students Compare SOA With KIIT, Silicon and CV Raman?

Students see KIIT as ahead on brand, campus and exposure, and SOA as the cheaper choice. They split on Silicon and CV Raman Global University.

🏫Students Dislike ThisKIIT Seen Ahead on Brand and CampusReddit and Quora posts say KIIT has the bigger campus, more exposure and a stronger brand. Many of these posts come from KIIT students.⚖️Mixed ViewsKIIT Placement Lead Is Disputed in 2026Some 2026 posts say KIIT placements weakened and many companies came to ITER. A KIIT student says the number of unplaced students is similar at both.🆚Mixed ViewsSilicon and CV Raman Seen as More Study-FocusedSome alumni of Silicon University and CV Raman Global University call their colleges stricter, with a more serious crowd. Others say SOA places better. One 2025 post says Silicon placements fell sharply.

What This Means for You

The SOA ranking page has the official rank data.

What Do Students Say About Law, Management, Agriculture and Medical Programmes at SOA?

Almost all detailed reviews are about ITER engineering. Views on other institutes are few, mostly second-hand and mixed.

⚖️Mixed ViewsLaw: Mixed, Mostly From OutsidersIn a CLAT forum thread, several posters advise against SOA law and say NIRF rank means little. Most are aspirants, not SOA law students. One poster says friends there call it quite good.📊Mixed ViewsBBA and MBA: MixedA 2024 post says BBA teaching and placements are weak, but the degree is cheap. In 2025, two replies on an MBA thread advise staying away, citing internal problems without detail. Another says an acquaintance got a decent job in digital marketing.🖥️One Student's ViewBCA and MCA Peer GroupOne alumnus says MCA placements are good, but the peer group for BCA and MCA is not great.🌾Mixed ViewsAgriculture: Old and SplitA 2023 reply says few companies visit the agriculture institute and pay is low. Another reply in the same thread says the agriculture faculty is fine. Both are second-hand.🏥One Student's ViewMedicine: Patient Flow PraisedIn a 2024 MBBS thread, two replies say IMS and SUM Hospital has better patient flow than KIMS Bhubaneswar.

There were no usable first-hand posts on dental, pharmacy, nursing or hotel management, so this section says nothing about them.

What This Means for You

The SOA admission page lists the official entry route for each institute.

How Were These SOA Reviews Chosen?

Is SOA Worth It? Who It Suits and Who It Does Not

SOA suits students who get CSE or CSIT at ITER, study on their own, keep strong marks and want a lower cost than KIIT. It suits others less when they expect a lively campus or a placement result from classes alone.