Getting admission into an IIT is a dream for many candidates which they work extremely hard for. Kolkata's Mohammad Sahil Akhtar worked extremely hard while prepping for the Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) since class 10 but he dreamed big amid this and chose the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) instead of IIT.
Mohammad Sahil Akhtar, since he was in Class 10, put in a lot of hard work to get admission to the IIT. Mohammad Sahil Akhtar's dream was fulfilled when he got AIR 99 in the JEE-Advanced 2023. But, 17-year-old Mohammad Sahil Akhtar decided to drop out of the JEE admission process and head to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
Opening up about his reasons for doing so, Mohammad Sahil Akhtar said MIT had "more research opportunities and a flexible curriculum".
Mohammad Sahil Akhtar was quoted as saying, "Research appeals to me more than a tech job. In India, the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) was an option. But MIT offers more flexibility. Unlike in the Indian higher education system, I do not have to decide on my final major in the first year itself. There is yet so much that I have not seen."
Mohammad Sahil Akhtar wants to pursue a double major in computer sciences and physics. He is also interested in astronomy, astrophysics, and data science.
"Generally, the most sought-after route is to join an IIT in Computer Science Engineering (CSE). My parents would have suggested considering IIT Bombay," Mohammad Sahil Akhtar said, but revealed that it was at IOAA Olympiad, in Georgia, that he realised other options that were available to him.
Mohammad Sahil Akhtar has studied at the Delhi Public School (DPS) in Kolkata’s Ruby Park and appeared for JEE in April.
Mohammad Sahil Akhtar says that at MIT he hopes to dig through his interests in linguistics and philosophy. Mohammad Sahil Akhtar has got a scholarship which has also "brought the cost to how much we would spend at IIT".
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