College admissions likely to be tough

With the state government declaring that Std X results will be as per the best-five policy this year as well, city principals say that admissions will get tough this season. Top colleges in the city are expecting their cut-offs to shoot up by 3-4%, with some of them expecting to cross even the 95% mark. Moreover, with most prominent colleges having minority or in-house quotas, only about 12-25% seats are left in the open category.

The best-five scheme was introduced to ensure a level playing field for students of the state SSC, CBSE and ICSE boards. However, many principals complained that the policy also resulted in cut-throat competition as the cut-offs soared high last year.

“There was fierce competition last year. We had more than 13,000 students scoring more than 90%. Though the government has increased the number of seats this year, the number in top colleges remains almost the same,” said Manju Nichani, principal of KC College, Churchgate.

Last year, the cut-off for science at Matunga’s Ruparel College crossed 95%. This year, it is expected to reach 97%. The cut-off at Jai Hind College, Churchgate, may also touch the 95% mark. “We are expecting the commerce cut-off to be as high as the science one — around 95%,” said Kirti Narain, principal.

Anticipating high cut-offs, students have already chalked out a strategy. “I will keep my options open by applying to the college attached to my school, colleges close to my residence, and four more reputed colleges. This will help me bag a commerce seat,” said Vaishali Valia, a student of Thakur Public School.

Principals advise students to exercise caution while selecting colleges. The principal of a Vile Parle college said: “Students need to be careful while specifying college preferences on the online forms. They should keep in mind the high cut-offs. If students with 90% specify only top colleges, they may not get a seat.”