IITs May Go Back To Old Admission Process

The IITs could revert to the old entrance system. The single entrance exam can make a comeback from the two-step process which was introduced in 2012 which was part of the previous UPA government’s examination reforms, in a bid to cut selection delays and administrative hassles.

Currently, the two-step entrance process which includes JEE Main and JEE Advanced is decisive in the admission process for JEE aspirants. Prof. Devang Khakhar, Director IIT-Bombay and a member of the Joint Admission Board said in an interview to Hindustan Times that the joint admission board decided to form a committee that will review the two-stage examination process and make recommendations for consideration of the IIT senates. Another official said that most IITs are in favour of a single entrance exam.

The two-step entrance test introduced in 2012, the JEE Main is the first step that forms the basis for selection to the NITs, IIITs and all Centrally Funded Technical institutions. Candidates who clear the first step appear for the JEE Advanced exam conducted exclusively for the IITs. “The idea behind conducting a two-phase examination was that it would screen out the non-serious students in the first phase and thus lessen the burden of the IITs in selecting candidates,” an IIT professor said. However, the system made the entire process time-consuming and cumbersome and has also became a hassle for students, he added.

Earlier, the controversial percentile system that governed the candidates’ eligibility for admission to the IITs was changed last year in the month of September. The system required successful candidates to be among the top-20 percentile scorers in the Class 12 exams of their respective boards. The government changed the criterion to ‘‘top 20 percentile or 75% marks in the state board examination, whichever is lower’’ for a seat in the IITs.

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