St. Thomas College, Chennai

St. Thomas College of Arts and Science, popularly known as St. Thomas College, is a Christian college in Chennai, India. It offers Bachelors and Masters level degree programmes and is affiliated to the University of Madras. It is also a recognized educational institution by the government of Tamil Nadu.^[1]

The St. Thomas College of Arts and Science was established in 1999 as a co-educational institution governed by the St. Thomas Orthodox Syrian Cathedral Parish Trust of St. Thomas Orthodox Cathedral, Broadway. The Patron of our college is His Holiness Baselios Marthoma Mathews III, Catholicose of the East and Malankara Metropolitan. The founder Chairman was His Grace Dr. Yakoob Mar Irenios and the present Chairman is His Grace Gee Varghese Mar Philoxenos, Metropolitan of the Diocese of Madras of the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church.

The college is governed by its board of trustees and administered by its executive, headed by His Grace Gee Varghese Mar Philoxenos, Chairman; Rev. Fr. Stalin T.F., Vice Chairman; Mr. Biju Chacko, Secretary; and Mr. Alex Abraham, Treasurer.

Dr. Rev. Francis Soundararaj (1999–2002), the first Principal of the institution, laid a strong and successful foundation through his visionary and able leadership. Under his guidance, the college began its academic journey with five undergraduate programmes—B.Com., BCA, B.Sc. Computer Science, B.Sc. Visual Communication, and BBA—affiliated with the University of Madras.

Dr. (Mrs.) S. Teresa Jane assumed office as the second Principal in 2002 and served the institution from 2002 to 2003. She was succeeded by Dr. (Mrs.) Hemalatha Sundara Kumar, the third Principal, took charge in 2003. During her tenure, the college attained the status of a Postgraduate institution with the introduction of M.Com., M.Sc. (Computer Science) and M.Sc. (Visual Communication). Several new undergraduate programmes, including B.Sc. Mathematics, B.Sc. Electronic Media, and B.Sc. Psychology was also introduced during her leadership.

Prof. Mr. Avaram Abdul Hakeem served as the fourth Principal from 2005 to 2006. During this period, additional sections were introduced for the B.Com. BCA and BBA programmes to meet the increasing demand for these courses.

The fifth Principal, Dr. S. Mathuram Selvaraja, assumed charge in 2006 and guided the institution until 2009. His tenure saw the establishment of several student and staff initiatives, including the Organisation for Social Justice, the Green Club, the Women Upliftment Club, the Consumer Club, and the Staff Club.

Dr. C. Selvaraj served as the sixth Principal from 2010 to 2013. He was followed by Dr. J. Joel, who served as the seventh Principal from 2013 to 2015. Dr. Samuel Sukumar, M.Sc., Ph.D., held office as the eighth Principal from 2015 to 2018.

Dr. N. Thangavel (M.Com., MBA, PGDMM, PGDHRD, Ph.D., D.Lit.) served as the ninth Principal from 2018 to 2023.

Dr. T. S. Prema assumed charge as the tenth Principal on 21 July 2023 and served the institution until 31 January 2026. During her tenure, the institution achieved the prestigious NAAC A+ accreditation in its first cycle, and several academic developments and institutional advancements were realised.

Dr. K. Florence assumed office as the eleventh Principal on 5 March 2026, continuing the institution’s legacy of growth and academic excellence.

The motto of St. Thomas College is 'let there be light' (from Genesis 1:3).

For all courses offered at the college, the degree is awarded by the University of Madras. A semester pattern with a credit system prescribed by the university is adopted for all the undergraduate and postgraduate courses. The medium of instruction is English. The following courses are available:

UG-Shift I

• BA English
• B.Com General, Bank Management, Accounting and Finance, Corporate Secretaryship.
• BBA Business Administration
• BCA Computer Applications
• B.Sc. Psychology
• B.Sc. Mathematics
• B.Sc. Computer Science
• B.Sc. Electronic Media
• B.Sc. Visual Communication
• B.Sc. Computer Science with Data Science
• B.Sc. Computer Science with Artificial Intelligence

PG-Shift I

• M.Sc. Visual Communication
• M.Sc. Electronic Media
• M.Com.
• M.Sc. Computer Science

UG-Shift II

• B.Com General, Bank Management, Accounting and Finance, Corporate Secretaryship,Computer Applications
• BBA Business Administration
• BCA Computer Applications
• B.Sc. Computer Science

English; Commerce; Business Administration; Computer Science & Applications; Mathematics; Psychology; Visual Communication; Electronic Media; Tamil; Malayalam; Hindi;French

• Official Website