The
Joint Entrance Exam (JEE) for the IITs now states that only the top 20
percentiles from each state board shall be eligible to sit for the exam
from 2013.
This means that students will have to change the pattern in which
they study for the exams. While some reports have claimed that the
changes will see a boom in coaching institutes, we list four facts that
all students sitting for IIT-JEE 2013 should be aware of.
The new rules also state that students who qualify to sit for the
exam in 2013 will have to sit for a main paper and advanced paper. While
critics state that the plan has not been thought out well, it seems
like students have little choice but to take note of the changes.
| 1. Students from boards where marking is stricter may be penalised |
The top 20 percentile of states differ depending on the how strictly marks are awarded. A student from Meghalaya scoring 49 percent and a student from Andhra Pradesh scoring 87 percent are both in the 20th percentiles in their respective states. However, both will have to pass the advanced paper for IIT-JEE to be eligible for IIT. |
| 2. Calculation of Percentile | A student’s percentile score is calculated by dividing the number of students below them with the number of students who appeared for the exam. This ratio is then multiplied by 100. |
| 3. Marks for getting into the top 20 percentile will change each year | Analysis of marks show that the scores students need to get into the top 20 percentile changes each year. For example, in 2008 a student in AP needed to score 81.2 percent to be in the top 1 percentile. Two years later, a student needed to get 95.2 percent to get into the top 1 percentile. |
| 4. Board exams may get more competitive | Previously, students needed to score 60 percent to be eligible for IIT JEE for the general category. From 2013, only the top 20 percentile will be eligible to sit for IIT-JEE. This will force students to study harder for IIT-JEE. |
