Only vanilla BSc to see cut-off dip, BCom & BA may not vary much

MUMBAI: The first cut-off list for degree colleges brought cheer to some even as others waited anxiously hoping their names will figure on the second list. Principals, however, advise such students to secure admissions in any one institution rather than wait in anticipation for their name to appear on the merit list in the college of their choice.
At most premier city colleges, cut-offs for most courses fall by a mere percent or two by the time the seats are filled up. The plain vanilla BSc is probably the only course where admission opens at a high score but cut-offs fall dramatically —sometimes by even 20% —when medical and engineering aspirants pull out to join professional streams.




“For Arts, our first list has as many candidates as the number of seats in our college. But for science, we shortlist more than the number of seats as many students go away,” said St Xavier’s College principal Agnelo Menezes.

“I would suggest that students take admission in the college they have been allotted a seat and not wait for our second list as they may be fishing in a dry pond,” he added.

With students having the choice to apply at multiple colleges, scores tend to dip at the not-so-sought-after colleges. But at popular colleges, the story is different—the dip is, usually, marginal.

“Students who are unsure about their choice and also want a backup apply to many colleges. Top scorers too get shortlisted in multiple places. These students open up seats in subsequent lists. At our college, the difference between the first cut-off and closing cut-off is only about 1-2%,” said Ashok Wadia, principal, Jai Hind College, Churchgate.

Similarly at Mithibai College, Vile Parle, the two cutoffs—first and final—differ only by about 2-3%.

“Especially in the arts and the commerce stream, we don’t see much of a dip in cut-offs. The first list cut-offs this year are up by around 2% and the final cut-offs too will be higher than last year,” said principal Rajpal Hande.

The science stream cutoffs are the ones that mostly change dramatically. “Students who apply for engineering or medical courses also apply to BSc. As soon as the professional college admissions happen, the students leave. Sometimes the class strength is down by half. We also do not get the best of students for the course,” said Marie Fernandes, principal, St Andrew’s College, Bandra.