Students qualifying for international olympiads may soon get direct entry to IIT Kanpur

The alternative way of bagging a seat in the premier institute does not guarantee admission as final decision lies with the respective departments.

Students qualifying for international olympiads may soon be getting direct entry to the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur without cracking the JEE Advanced. However, the alternative way of bagging a seat in the premier institute does not guarantee admission as final decision lies with the respective departments.

As per a report published in The Times of India, students who crack international olympiads go through rigorous preparation and selection processes, however, most of them decide to pursue their higher education abroad. The IIT Kanpur is planning to retain this talent in India by offering them an alternative mode of admission. 

Students qualifying for Olympiads can apply to the department of their specialised subjects, however, the decision making bodies of different departments of the IIT are yet to give their nod to the proposal. 

The IIT has introduced an alternative mechanism based on principal agreement and there is no guarantee regarding admission of these candidates yet, said Nitin Saxena, chairperson of undergraduate academic programme review committee at IIT Kanpur. He told the newspaper that several measures would be put into place to ensure that only most qualified candidates got entry into the institute through this alternative route. 

In 2018, IIT Bombay had introduced a similar concept for the candidates who cleared international mathematics olympiad. Candidates who qualify for the International Mathematics Olympiad can apply directly to the BSc mathematics programme. The IIT had earmarked six seats to be offered under this route. 

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