Ludhiana: JEE and CBSE boards examination date clash leaves students anxious
Providing a potential solution, Paramjeet Kaur, NTA coordinator in Ludhiana, advised the students to write to the NTA head office with details of their board exam dates so that the agency can adjust its JEE slots accordingly
With the Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) Mains session 2 scheduled between April 1 and April 8, Class 12 students are facing an unexpected overlap: a clash with their Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) board exams, scheduled till April 4. This has sparked major concerns for those who have worked to secure a strong JEE score while also preparing for their board exams.
The biggest fear among students is the possibility of being assigned a morning JEE slot on the same day as a board exam. In such a case, they would be forced to choose between the two, potentially missing out on the opportunity of attempting the prestigious engineering entrance exam and therefore delaying their college aspirations by an entire year.
Jasleen Kaur, a Class 12 Non-Medical student from Bathinda, shared her distress over the situation. “I have my Punjabi language exam on April 2, and if I get the morning shift for JEE on the same day, I’ll have no choice but to skip one. That’s a risk I just can’t afford,” she said. Jasleen, who achieved a remarkable 97.3 percentile in JEE Mains session 1, is preparing for session 2 in hopes of getting an even better score.
Another student, Anhad Kaur, echoed similar concerns, emphasising the tremendous effort students have put into both board exams and JEE preparations. “We have worked hard for both exams, and skipping either is not an option,” she stressed.
Parents, too, are worried. Sukhdev Singh, whose child is appearing for both CBSE boards and JEE, has already reached out to the National Testing Agency (NTA) and the board, urging them to reconsider the schedule. “Both these exams are crucial for students aiming for top engineering colleges. We hope the NTA ensures no overlap between the two,” he said.
Addressing these concerns, Rahul Maheshwari, a mathematics educator at an institute in Ludhiana, explained that 90% of JEE aspirants appear for both sessions for better scores. He reassured students that the NTA usually takes board exam dates into account when allocating slots for JEE. However, he acknowledged that those who haven’t attempted session 1 and miss session 2 due to this clash would be left with no choice but to wait until next year.
Providing a potential solution, Paramjeet Kaur, NTA coordinator in Ludhiana, advised the students to write to the NTA head office with details of their board exam dates so that the agency can adjust its JEE slots accordingly.
