All You Girls, You Have a Better Chance to Enter IITs

From now on, IIT entrance will become a lot simpler for girl students. There could be some changes in the existing tiebreaking formula for correcting a massive gender imbalance at these distinguished engineering schools. A member belonging to the Joint Admission Board (JAB) has categorically stated that because there is time left for JEE, the proposals could be implemented in time. JAB comprises of IIT Directors and organizers of entrance tests. He has simultaneously reassured students that all implications of the plan will be taken into account.

The tiebreak criterion in the Common Merit List (CML) as well as category lists that have been adopted to award ranks to candidates who have scored identical aggregate marks is stated below:

For every subject, the calculation of average marks will be based on the marks obtained by those students who have scored equal to or more than Minimum Qualifying Mark for Ranking (MQMR) in a particular subject.

Among the students with identical marks, a student will receive higher rankings than others will, if he or she has higher scores in the subject with the lowest average marks as per the above calculations. If a tie exists after this process, then the marks secured by the tied students in a subject with the 2nd lowest average marks will be taken into consideration, following which the there will be a repetition of the above process. Students who are tied even after this process will receive the same rank.

Presently, IITs utilize a tiebreak formula that draws a comparison between scores obtained by students with identical overall scores. The three subjects that are tested in JEE include Physics, Chemistry, and Mathematics.

Scores obtained in the subjects that candidates found hardest that year are compared first. These scores are reflected in the lowest average performance among the 3 subjects. Therefore, if candidate A and candidate B have scored identical marks, but candidate A scored higher in the subject that saw the most poor performance overall from all exam candidates, candidate A will be receive a higher ranking. If candidates who obtained identical overall scores perform equally well in the most difficult subject, their scores in the following difficult subject are compared.

However, under the new procedure for admission, JAB is now considering girls among the student groups with identical scores will be ranked automatically higher. The present tiebreaker formula will be used only to draw a separation between girls, and also independently between boys. Therefore, if candidates A, B, and C are girls and candidates D and E are boys, and all five obtain identical scores totally, candidates A, B, and C will receive rankings among themselves on the basis of the tiebreaker formula. However, all three girls will receive higher rankings than candidates D and E (Boys) will, even if the boys delivered a better performance than all 3 girls did.

According to the present formula, this is how IITs break ties in JEE. This formula was applied to increase the number of female students gaining entry into these world-famous engineering institutes.