Medical students comprise a unique population at risk for MRSA acquisition.  No study has analyzed  risk factors for MRSA carriage for Indian medical students. This  cross-sectional study was designed to study prevalence of S.aureus and MRSA among second year MBBS students of Kasturba Medical College after taking appropriate institute ethical clearance and written consent. Risk factors included nasal piercing , anatomic alterations of  nose, smoking, snoring ,chronic sinusitis,chronic skin diseases,contact with individuals with chronic ,conditions,prior hospitalization (< 6 months),use of antibiotics in past 6 months ,use of nasal spray/ antihistamines or corticosteroids/ steroid inhalers and  past history of colonisation . 148 students of  age range 19-22 years were screened.63 (42.6%) were males and 85(57.4%) females .Females were more likely to carry S. aureus and MRSA. Use of antibiotics in past 6 months and snoring were found to be statistically significant in nasal carriage status of S.aureus among the students (P value < 0.05). 56% of  student population carrying S.aureus had used antibiotics in the past 6 months and 42% of the S.aureus carriers had snoring problem.30 % of female students had their noses pierced  and had significantly higher colonization with S.aureus .As only 9 (6.1%) MRSA carriers were  detected ,we could not  find correlation with any risk factors for the acquisition of MRSA. Out of 9 MRSA carriers, 6 were found to have parents who were busy clinicians suggesting  that acquisition of MRSA carriage status could be due to the close contact with their parents ,thus necessitating  screening the parents of MRSA carriers . Another MRSA carrier was found to be in close contact with a student who was a MRSA carrier. In remaining 2 MRSA carriers  reason could  be either community acquired or due to contact with  patients or carriers such as healthcare workers in the hospital . Repeated isolation of MRSA with  same antibiogram pattern in all the 9 individuals confirmed that the MRSA carriage status was not transient.