IITs may eliminate class 12th performance from the admission criteria this year

• Indian Institutes of Technology (IIT) are considering excluding class 12th results as a deciding factor for admissions this academic year.
  
• The decision is still awaiting approval from the directors of all IITs and government officials.
  
• As per the current selection criteria, the students are assessed based on their scores in classes 10th, 12th and the Joint Entrance Examination (JEE).
  
• The development comes as the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) and other state boards have changed the criteria to assess candidates amid the global pandemic.
  
• The committee is also reviewing the situation of students abroad, including those in Dhaka, Dubai and Singapore, who were planning to get admission to the IITs via JEE.

The outbreak of coronavirus has disrupted the academic calendar for students. As the Indian government looks for alternative models for the assessment of class 12th students, the country’s renowned engineering colleges — Indian Institutes of Technology (IIT) — are planning to tweak the admission criteria for this academic session.

According to a report by The Indian Express, the IITs are considering excluding class 12th performance as a deciding factor for admissions. However, the decision is still awaiting approval from the directors of all IITs and government officials.

As per the current selection criteria, the students are assessed based on their scores in classes 10th, 12th and the Joint Entrance Examination (JEE). For a general category student, it is necessary to score a minimum of 75% or in the top 20 percentile to be eligible for admission at the IIT. While the reserved category students, including scheduled castes and scheduled tribes, are required to have scored at least 65% marks in the board exams.

However, the scores in the competitive examinations play more important roles in securing a seat at these engineering colleges.

“There are very few rank holders who are denied admission every year for either not scoring a minimum of 75 per cent marks or meeting the top 20 percentile cut-off. So, doing away (with this criterion) for one admission cycle isn’t going to make a big difference,” Indian Express reported citing a JIC member (Joint Implementation Committee). The JIC includes the JEE chairpersons from all 23 IITs.

The development comes as the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) and other state boards issued different criteria to assess students amid the global pandemic. On June 26, the Supreme Court approved the CBSE’s decision to cancel the class 10th and 12th pending board exams. The students will now be assessed based on the average marks scored in the appeared subjects.

Hence, the committee is considering doing away with the class 12th performance for this year. “There was a consensus that the IITs, instead, should insist on rank holders to have passed their Board exams this year. This would be a one-time exception,” the JIC member added.

The committee is also reviewing the situation of students abroad, including those in Dhaka, Dubai and Singapore, who were planning to get admission to the IITs via the joint entrance exam.

As per the revised schedule, the JEE Main entrance exam will take place between September 1 to 6 while the JEE advanced is scheduled for September 27, 2020.