Sree Sankaracharya University of Sanskrit

The Sree Sankaracharya University of Sanskrit (SSUS) is a Sanskrit university in India established in 1993 in Kalady, Kerala. The foundation stone for the university was laid by Bharathi Tirtha Mahaswamiji of the Sringeri Sharada Peetham. SSUS provides education in Sanskrit, other Indian and Foreign languages, Social science and fine arts. It is accredited A+ by National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC). The university has eight regional campuses across Kerala.

Campus
The university functions through seven campuses, the main one at Kalady (main campus) and regional campuses at Thiruvananthapuram, Panmana, Ettumanoor, Tirur, Koyilandy and Payyannur. Most of these campuses are located in rural areas of the State, intending to serve people from disadvantaged backgrounds. More than ninety percent of the students and research scholars in the university are from economically and socially backward communities and families and more than seventy percent are women.

Departments
The university consists of the following departments. • Sanskrit Vedanta

• Sanskrit Sahitya

• Sanskrit Vyakarna

• Sanskrit Nyaya

• Sanskrit General

• English

• Geography

• Hindi

• History

• Malayalam

• Music

• Painting

• Philosophy

• Political Science

• Psychology

• Arabic

• Ayurveda

• Economics

• Dance

• Education

• School of Vedic Studies

• Social Work

• Sociology

• Theatre

• Urdu

• Vastuvidya

Academic programmes
The university has twenty six PhD programmes, twenty MPhil programmes, twenty four PG programmes, ten UG programmes, two PgD programmes, one Diploma programme and nine certificate programmes offered by the twenty-four academic departments. The Choice Based Credit and Semester System (CBCSS) was introduced in 2005 in SSUS. In 2018, the university implemented the system of Outcome Based Teaching, Learning and Evaluation (OBTLE) at the Post graduate level, becoming the first university in Kerala to introduce OBTLE. In 2021, the university becomes a part of KALNET, a shared platform for academic resources of libraries, developed by Kerala State Higher Education Council. The university's postgraduate programme in Museology will be launched in 2021.

Accreditation
The University Grants Commission has recognized the university with 2(f) status in 1994 and 12(B) status in 2005. On 31 August 2021, the university was accredited by NAAC with A+ grade, the first University in Kerala and the first Sanskrit University in the country to earn the achievement. In September 2014, the university was accredited by NAAC with A grade, the first University in Kerala to receive the grade in the first cycle of accreditation.

Alumni

 * Surabhi Lakshmi, Malayalam movie actress
 * Dileesh Pothan, film director, actor and producer in Malayalam cinema
 * Grace Antony, film actress
 * V. P. Sanu, politician
 * Renu Soundar, Malayalam film and television actress
 * Hima Shankar, film and theatre artist
 * Sneha Sreekumar, actress and dancer
 * Vijilesh Karayad, Malayalam film actor
 * M. Vijin, politician, MLA of Kalliasseri

Faculty

 * P.K. Narayana Pillai, administrator, foundational for the university's inception
 * Sunil P. Ilayidom, associate professor at Malayalam department
 * G. Gangadharan Nair, former professor