Confused Shaik BC-E: Which category to choose for state quota with general-EWS reservation?

Ans: Relisha, my suggestion is to focus mainly on your interest and the type of work you enjoy when making a career decision, because long-term satisfaction and financial stability depend on how much you like your work, how continuously you improve your skills, and how well you build connections. Over the next four years, work on improving both your technical and soft skills related to your chosen field, build a strong LinkedIn profile that clearly shows your skills and achievements, and create a good professional network by connecting with people in your domain. Keep checking job market trends regularly through LinkedIn and other reliable sources so you stay updated. Also, choose your college carefully by looking at the placement records of the last 2–3 years. If you decide to go for mechanical engineering, then focus seriously on skill development and personal branding, because these efforts together will play a big role in your long-term career satisfaction and financial growth. ALL the BEST for Your Prosperous Future!

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Ans: The percentile you mentioned is for JEE Main, which is used primarily for admission to NITs, IIITs, and GFTIs, not IITs. Admission to IITs is based on JEE Advanced ranks, which are separate. You have not mentioned your grandson's home state also. At your grandson's rank, top NITs/IIITs and popular branches like CSE/ECE are generally unlikely; chances are better in some lower-demand branches in newer/lower-cutoff NITs or IIITs, and especially in several GFTIs. Category-wise cutoff trends published from JoSAA data also show many mid/lower-tier institutes extending much further than top campuses. Apart from your grandson's home state, have other States' NITs/IIITs/GFTIs also as backup options if son is interested in any particular branches. To get detailed information about opening and closing ranks for the last 2-3 years, please visit the official JoSAA website. There, you can input details such as Round Number, Institute Type, Institute Name, Academic Program, and Category to view the corresponding cutoff ranks.

By reviewing this data, you can identify near-realistic institution and branch options that match your rank. This will help you strategically fill the maximum number of choices during the JoSAA counselling window to improve your son's chances of admission. It is advisable to fill choices for both JoSAA and CSAB Special Rounds and keep state-level and private institute options ready as backups. ALL the BEST for Your Son's Prosperous Future!

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Ans: He has good/strong chances of admission to ECE, EE, or possibly CS/IT at mid-tier NITs and good IIITs (like IIIT Gwalior), which have strong placement prospects.

Good luck.
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Radheshyam

Ans: Try with lower branches (Civil/Mechanical) in newer NITs like NIT Mizoram, NIT Nagaland, or NIT Arunachal Pradesh.

Good luck.
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Radheshyam

Ans: Chances with top NITs are slim, but you can try with lower or newer NITs with less demanding branches. At present, try to focus on the advanced exam.

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Radheshyam

Ans: Poonam Madam, With a CRL of 53,700 and an OBC-NCL rank of 16,000, the most realistic JoSAA option appears to be NIT Kurukshetra under Haryana Home State quota, primarily for lower-demand or newer branches. In 2025, NIT Kurukshetra’s OBC-HS cutoffs closed around: 15,224 for Production & Industrial Engineering, 15,885 for dual-degree Civil Engineering & 17,735 for Sustainable Energy Technologies. Among these, Sustainable Energy Technologies seems the most achievable option, while Civil and Production & Industrial Engineering are borderline. Admission to core or top branches at NIT Kurukshetra and regular-round IIIT Sonipat is unlikely at this rank. However, IIIT Sonipat could become possible during CSAB Special Rounds, where 2025 CRL cutoffs ranged between 61,875 and 67,471. Have other States' NITs/IIITs/GFTIs also as backup options if son is interested in any particular branches. To get detailed information about opening and closing ranks for the last 2-3 years, please visit the official JoSAA website. There, you can input details such as Round Number, Institute Type, Institute Name, Academic Program, and Category to view the corresponding cutoff ranks.

By reviewing this data, you can identify near-realistic institution and branch options that match your rank. This will help you strategically fill the maximum number of choices during the JoSAA counselling window to improve your son's chances of admission. It is advisable to fill choices for both JoSAA and CSAB Special Rounds and keep state-level and private institute options ready as backups. ALL the BEST for Your Son's Prosperous Future!

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Ans: If he is interested in Stats then ISI looks like a good option. Else BS from IIM Sambalpur for Data and AI. For tech - Computers then maybe Polaris

Ans: There are chances at good NITs like NIT Warangal or NIT Calicut, and CSE/ECE at top IIITs like IIIT Gwalior or IIIT Lucknow. Yet keep a close eye on the counselling process and go through the previous year's cutoff of these institutes for better understanding.

Good luck.
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Radheshyam

Ans: Suggesting you to focus on core branches at newer/mid NITs like NIT Rourkela (home state advantage) or NIT Agartala, consider IIITs for ECE/CSE, and keep strong state/private college backups while avoiding very low-tier institutes.

Good luck.
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Radheshyam