Couldn't clear IIT? You may get a chance

If you failed to get into an IIT, you may soon have a chance to get an IIT equivalent degree through a virtual university if you have appeared for IIT Joint Entrance Examination (JEE).

The HRD Ministry is working on proposal to put in place India’s first virtual IIT Technical University, where students who have appeared in JEE and have taken admission in engineering colleges, can opt for this course along with the regular engineering course. “Having two engineering degrees is not prohibited under law,” a ministry official said.

The virtual university, the HRD ministry officials say will improve the employability of the engineering graduates, which, according to a NASSCOM report, is very low about 20 per cent of the four lakh engineering graduates. “We want to improve the knowledge level of non-IIT engineering students to that of IIT students,” an official explained.

The ministry with the help of IITs has got a concept note prepared, which says that IIT B.Tech and M.Tech courses should be made available on the internet and the examination should also be conducted through the ministry’s portal – Sakshat.

Former IIT professors would deliver online lectures on the IIT courses. Then, the students would do experiments in the labs with the help of the college faculty. The students, who take admission, will be required to appear for similar examination as the one for IIT students and they would be graded in the pattern similar to the one followed by IITs.

However, the students will get more time to clear the examination and once that is done, they would be awarded with a degree of IIT virtual university, the official said.

To ensure that he virtual university can deliver results, the government wants that only those who have appeared for IIT-JEE examination and students in M.Tech courses should be admitted. Later on when the virtual university gets established, all engineering students, irrespective of whether they are have appeared JEE or not, can be allowed admission, he added.

But, putting the university in place will take some time, the ministry officials said. “We will have to get financial approval and after that the method of course delivery of IIT level and monitoring of students’ performance will have to be prepared,” an official said.