The department of English in SSN was founded in 1996, the same year when SSN College of Engineering was established.  It has gradually grown and is recognized as one of the finest departments of English in engineering institutions in the country. As a department with good reputation for research, teaching and individual growth, it has attracted candidates from institutions like the EFLU, Hyderabad, IIT, Madras, Hong Kong Baptist University, and Birmingham University, UK to join in the faculty.

As a recognized Research Centre of Anna University, the department offers PhD in the areas of English Language Teaching and Literature. It offers 2 theory courses at the first year of B.Tech/B.E and many lab courses across all branches of Engineering in varied semesters.  All the faculty members hold doctoral degrees and specialized qualifications in English Language Teaching (ELT) and Literature from Universities of repute in India and abroad.

The department has a special position amidst the student community for the initiatives it takes to promote the communication skills and personality development of the students through activities outside the curriculum. Some of them are ‘SSN Creative Writing Contest’ and The SSN Best Speaker Contest’. In addition,  the department supports extracurricular activities like English Literary Club (ELC)’, ‘Theatrical Club (LOC)’, Model UN (MUN), and ‘Entrepreneurship Development Cell (LAKSHYA)’ where communication skills play a vital role.

The department conducts need-based training programmes in English and Foreign Languages for the first year students of engineering with professional experts from outside the institution. ‘English for students admitted under the Rural Scholarship’ is a three week intensive course designed to cater to the needs of the rural students.At the entry level, the proficiency levels of all the first year students are assessed and training in English and Foreign Languages is offered. Students, with levels B2 and below in the CEFR scale of language proficiency are offered a two week training in English Language. Others with C1 and C2 levels in the CEFR are offered training in a foreign language (German, Japanese, French and Spanish).

The department maintains a good rapport with the schools in the region, one of our important stakeholders. It helps in the conduct of SHAPE, an internship for class XI students aimed at improving their awareness on higher studies and career options. A workshop is organized for the benefit of English teachers in schools to improve their teaching English in schools.

Members of the English Department are often invited to be members on the faculty selection committee, board of studies and other important offices in several universities, IITs and the NITs. The department has good rapport with Airport Authority of India Ltd, British Council, USEFI, and US Consulate.