The Department of Microbiology at Yashwantrao Chavan College of Science, Karad, established in 1975, proudly holds the distinction of being the first department at Shivaji University, Kolhapur, to offer undergraduate education in the emerging field of microbiology, leading to the B.Sc. Honours degree. It stands as one of the major departments within the college. The postgraduate section commenced its journey in 1979, once again pioneering this initiative within Shivaji University, Kolhapur. The current capacity for the Microbiology course is 48 seats for master’s, divided into two batches of 24 students—one operating on a grant-in-aid basis and the other on a non-grant basis. Over two thousand students have successfully completed the master’s program. Admission to all seats is strictly merit-based, determined through a university-conducted entrance examination, adhering to both university and government regulations. The eligibility criterion for the course is a B.Sc. in microbiology.

In 1981, the department’s laboratory gained recognition for PhD research, with six faculty members and four students earning their doctorate degrees through research conducted here. Presently, three students are engaged in ongoing research. The department boasts highly qualified faculty. Moreover, it conducts several self-financing, short-term, career-oriented courses, including one designed in-house to cater to the specific needs of the pharmaceutical industry. These courses aim to bridge the gap between academia and industry, addressing social, industrial, and environmental issues.

Actively contributing to academic discourse, the department organizes conferences, seminars, workshops, guest lectures, and student-alumni interactions. It also offers consulting services to farmers. Notable recent initiatives include the online international webinar on “Current Prospective of Microbial Disease 2020,” held on June 14, 2020, and the international conference on “Living with COVID-19,” conducted on June 5, 2020.

The department has prominent alumni holding diverse positions in various institutions and industries across India, such as the National Centre for Cell Science, National Institute of Virology Pune, National Chemical Laboratory Pune, Serum Institute of India Pune, Agharkar Research Institute Pune, Jawaharlal Nehru University New Delhi, the Advanced Centre for Treatment, Research, and Education in Cancer Mumbai, Praj Industries Ltd. Pune, Gennova Biopharmaceuticals, Hi Tech Biosciences, Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories Hyderabad, Lupin, Cipla, and Glenmark Pharmaceuticals, among others. Additionally, alumni have made significant contributions to microbiology departments at various universities and colleges and internationally at institutions like Stony Brook Medicine in New York, USA, Pennsylvania, USA, Ruhr University Bochum, Germany, and the University of Munster, Germany.