Ambitious engineering applicants do not actually need to study physics, chemistry, or mathematics in class 12 to qualify for the course. In recent developments, the All India Technical Education Council (AICTE), the Technical Education Regulator, has made these subjects optional for admission to UG engineering courses, BE and B. Tech.
The updated rules have been announced in the recent approval process Handbook 2020-2021 of AICTE. Under the current law, students are required to take 10+2 with three of the following subjects: Physics, Mathematics, Chemistry, Computer Science, Electronics, Information, Telecommunications, Genetics, Computer Science, Biotechnology, Technological Vocational subject, Agriculture, Architecture, Graphics, Business Studies, Entrepreneurship.
This new shift will encourage students from a variety of backgrounds to engage in engineering. “Universities will deliver acceptable bridge classes, such as Algebra, Physics, Chemistry, etc., for students from a range of backgrounds to reach the optimal learning results of the curriculum,” says the handbook.
The engineering course is also eligible for students who complete a three-year diploma test with at least 45 percent marks. AICTE continued that, once the lateral positions are exhausted, their entry will be subject to vacancies in the first years.
As class 12 in mathematics is known as the basis for engineering, the latest reforms from AICTE faced many critiques. Since the bridge course is just a remedial course and the engineering programme includes mathematics until the fifth semester, it will not be likely to substitute class 12th mathematics.
The Chairman of AICTE says, “This is not optional, but the subject-matter choices of technical engineering discipline have increased.
The Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) — the entrance exam for admission to undergraduate engineering courses at technical institutions such as the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) and National Institutes of Technology (NITs) — exam syllabus may change in the future, according to AICTE vice-chairman MP Poonia.
According to education analysts, a variety of new courses, such as computer science and artificial intelligence, would require a great deal of knowledge of mathematics. They feel that students who have learned Physics and Mathematics would have a greater understanding of the discipline when seeking further education than candidates who do not have practical knowledge of subjects. AICTE must therefore reconsider the changes made in the regulatory process manual 2021-22.
