Confused Dad Seeks Advice: Drop Year or Choose Among Upes, BML Munjal, SRM, and Shiv Nadar for CSE?

Ans: Please don’t lose heart. Scoring 102 marks as an OBC-NCL student definitely gives you some chance of getting into the newer or lower IISERs, especially through the IAT (IISER Aptitude Test) channel.
Every year, the cutoff changes based on difficulty level and number of students — but in general:
• For top IISERs like Pune or Kolkata, the cutoff tends to be higher, even for OBC students.
• For newer IISERs like Berhampur, Bhopal, or Tirupati, the cutoff is usually a bit lower, and with 102 marks under OBC-NCL, you might be on the borderline — not a guarantee, but definitely worth waiting for later rounds or spot admissions if you don’t get in the first list.
• Be open to joining any IISER — once you're in, you can explore great research and career opportunities.

Ans: Firstly, you are good enough. Just because your friend is getting into a top private college and you’re not right now doesn’t mean you’ve failed or that you’re any less capable.
Everyone’s journey moves at its own pace. You both took a drop, but life isn’t a race. Sometimes the result doesn’t reflect your effort, and that’s okay. It happens to many, and it doesn’t decide your future.
What truly matters is what you do from here on. You can be in an average college and still do extraordinary things — through self-learning, projects, internships, and staying consistent. A college name can open doors, but your work, your growth, and your attitude are what keep those doors open.
So yes — you can absolutely remove this barrier. And honestly, this phase of self-doubt? It’s temporary. You’ll look back one day and be proud that you didn’t give up.

Ans: Since you don’t have a strong preference for either branch but want to study in a government institute and are focused on placements, here’s a simple comparison:
CUSAT SOE – Civil Engineering
• CUSAT is a well-known government university with good infrastructure and faculty.
• But Civil Engineering placements are a bit limited these days — especially if you’re expecting high packages or private jobs right after graduation.
• Many civil students go for government exams or higher studies (MTech or GATE).
GEC Gandhinagar – Biomedical Engineering
• GEC is also a government college, so that checks your main priority.
• Biomedical Engineering is a niche field — so jobs are fewer, but companies in medical tech, devices, and even IT (after some upskilling) hire from this branch.
• Some students also switch to software roles or go abroad for higher studies in bio/health tech fields.

Ans: Congratulations to your son for getting such good options.
About VIT Chennai (AIML Branch)
• VIT Chennai has grown well in recent years.
• Good campus, structured academics, and decent placements — especially for branches like AIML and CSE.
• However, VIT Vellore is still ahead in terms of reputation and placement.
About COMEDK – Rank 13400
With this rank, he has a good chance in some very decent Bangalore colleges. And since Bangalore is the tech hub, exposure to internships and companies is definitely better.
You can consider:
1. Dayananda Sagar College of Engineering (DSCE) – Good reputation, placements are solid for CSE.
2. Sir MVIT – Slightly outside the city but good CSE faculty.
3. BNMIT – Smaller campus but good teaching and placement.
4. RNSIT – Known for discipline and decent placements.
5. JSSATE – Has improved in recent years, good option for CSE.

Ans: Please don’t stress too much.
• You got 89% in boards, which is very good.
• COMEDK rank of 44,468 — you may not get top colleges like RV or BMS with this rank, but you can still get admission in decent private colleges.
• BITSAT session 2 is pending — still give it your best shot, but it’s okay to be realistic.
Take a drop only if:
• You are fully sure you can give your best for 1 more year—no regrets, no pressure.
• You have a clear goal (e.g. aiming for NITs, BITS, IIITs, or a better branch in a better college).
• You’re ready to work hard consistently for the next 10–12 months without losing focus.
Take admission now if:
• You’re not sure if you can go through another year of the same preparation.
• You want to start college, get practical experience, and build skills alongside (like coding, internships, etc.).

Ans: Well done on scoring 90% in boards, and 100 in NATA is a decent start too. Based on this, you can definitely apply to quite a few good architecture colleges. While top-tier colleges like SPA Delhi or CEPT Ahmedabad usually need a higher NATA score, there are still many well-recognized colleges where you stand a good chance.
Here are some colleges you can consider:
• Manipal School of Architecture and Planning (MAHE)
• R.V. College of Architecture (Bangalore)
• SRM School of Architecture.
JJ College of Architecture (Mumbai) – tough but if from Maharashtra, worth trying.

Ans: 1. UPES (Dehradun) – BTech CSE
UPES is known for its niche and industry-oriented programs. It has a decent reputation for CSE, especially if your daughter is open to specializations like cybersecurity, cloud computing, etc. Placements have improved in the past few years, but it’s still not at the level of top-tier colleges. Companies do visit, but the very high packages are usually for a small percentage of students.
2. LPU – BTech (Hons) Computer & Data Engineering
LPU is very large in terms of student body and infrastructure. They do push placements and claim high numbers, but again, top packages are limited and competitive. The curriculum is broad, and the Hons with Data Engineering is a useful option if she is interested in data science or analytics. But again, coding and data handling will be important here.
3. Symbiosis Nagpur or Hyderabad – BTech CSE
Symbiosis is very well-known for its law and management programs. Their engineering schools are newer and still growing. Placement-wise, they are behind UPES and LPU for now, especially in tech. The exposure and peer group might be good, but placement networks are still developing.
• If she wants more structured placement support and industry tie-ups, UPES is a slightly better choice than the others at the moment.
• If she’s confident, self-driven, and okay with a big campus environment, LPU with Data Eng could be good, especially if she wants to lean into data science in future.

Ans: Hello, dear.
With the mentioned score, he has a good chance of gaining admission to reputable colleges in Pune, Mumbai, Nashik, etc. You may need to compromise on the CSE/AI DS branches at government colleges. However, we cannot provide the list of colleges right now.
Best of luck.
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Radheshyam

Ans: Option 1: Bachelor's in Europe (Poland, Croatia, Czech Republic, Italy)
• These countries are affordable and offer English-taught programs, especially in public universities.
• You’ll get international exposure from the start.
• It may be easier to move around Europe later for internships or master’s.
• But: Some universities may not have the same global reputation, and research/industry connections may not be as strong as UK/US.
Option 2: Bachelor’s in India + Master’s Abroad (UK, US, Germany, etc.)
• You’ll save money during your bachelor’s.
• You can build a strong academic base here.
• Later, you can apply to top-ranked universities for master’s when you’re clearer about your field of interest.
• Also, your master’s degree carries more weight for jobs/research, so doing that abroad makes sense.