An Analytical Study of the Procedures Followed in Admitting Students to the Medical and Engineering Courses in Assam

Government of Assam holds a Combined Entrance Examination (CEE) for admission to the MBBS/BDS/BAMS/BE and B.Tech. programmes in different government and private medical and engineering colleges/institutions of Assam. Admission of students in these programmes is done on the basis of the scores obtained in the CEE only. The performance in the +2 level Board examination is taken only as the eligibility criterion. As a result, a number of students securing high positions in the Board examinations conducted by Assam Higher Secondary Council (AHSC) or CBSE fails to qualify in the CEE. They cannot pursue engineering or medicine in spite of securing high positions in the Board examination. Moreover, the Combined Entrance Examination (CEE) put emphasis basically on theoretical knowledge, whereas the programmes in engineering and medicine demand practical skills along with the theoretical knowledge. Thus a need is felt to re-examine the criteria for admission to the engineering and medical courses offered in different institutes of Assam. The study reveals that no minimum cut-off marks in CEE is specified for a candidate taking admission in the BE/B.Tech courses. A candidate may be placed in the merit list even if she/he gets zero in the CEE. There is a provision of awarding bonus marks to the sons and daughters of the employees of the Department of Technical Education for admission to the engineering courses. However, such provision is not given in case of medical admission.