(Apr 9, 2018): For the first time ever, around 40% of the candidates appearing in West Bengal Joint Entrance Examination (WBJEE) 2018 will be from outside the state of West Bengal. The total number of registrations for WBJEE 2018 has been 1,25,075.
Here is all you need to know about WBJEE 2018
Out of these, 50,030 candidates hail from outer states. This number has been higher than ever before, and signifies the increasing popularity of this engineering entrance exam.
When we talk about WBJEE 2017, only around 36% of the total 1,17,544 candidates appearing in the WBJEE exam were from outside the West Bengal state. Most of which were from Jharkhand and Bihar.
The board conducting the exam has declared that the candidates belonging to West Bengal will be allotted an examination center, which would be within 30 minutes of travelling time from their residence address mentioned in the WBJEE 2018 application form.
To make this happen, the board has included 100 additional examination centers. Through this addition, the total number of WBJEE 2018 examination centers would be 339, which was 239 for WBJEE 2017.
Candidates appearing for WBJEE 2018 are required to carry a valid photo identity proof with them along with WBJEE admit card 2018. Failing to carry the same will not let them take the exam.
They can carry school/college identity card, PAN card, Aadhaar card, driving license, voter Id card, passport, admit card issued by the respective board for exam, or any other document issued by some competent authority, carrying the photo of candidate as identity proof.
The board chairman of WBJEE 2018, Mr. Malayendu Saha, said the sharp rise in number of applications from outside was expected.
He stated - “There has been constant criticism regarding brain drain. Vacancies in engineering colleges have led to comments that youngsters are no longer interested in the stream. The number of applicants this year negates both.
Also, this is the first time so many students from outside Bengal have evinced interest in studying here.”
Unconvinced Academism in Bengal
Many experts even cited other reasons behind the rise in applications for the WBJEE 2018 exam from other states.
For instance, Mr. Partha Pratim Biswas, the professor of Construction Engineering in the Jadavpur University stated that the primary approachable private engineering colleges for the students from Jharkhand, Bihar and Sikkim are in Bengal only.
Mr. Biswas said - “Beyond Bengal, there aren’t too many options to study engineering in private colleges. Hence, there is a rush for seats here. But they are discerning. They aim for branded engineering institutes. Thus, it is unlikely to fill up many seats in private engineering colleges that went vacant last year.”
Another professor from Indian Institute of Engineering Science and Technology (IIEST), Shibpur stated that there was a rise in the number of students willing to study engineering courses from JU, CU and other good quality private colleges.
They stated - “In JU and CU, apart from high-quality education, the expenses are relatively less than institutes in Karnataka, Tamil Nadu or Maharashtra.
As the economy slips into a slowdown, job prospects will get difficult. Hence, there will be a renewed interest in job-oriented courses like engineering”.
The officials of WBJEE 2018 board stated that the rise of 6.4% in the number of applicants from 2017 to 2018 is a proof of increased level of confidence of aspirants in WBJEE.
A WBJEE board official stated - “Till 2016, the WBJEEB was involved in taking entrance test for both medical and engineering aspirants. From last year, we only conduct the engineering exam.
The number of candidates who applied for admissions in engineering this year gives a more accurate picture of the technology courses and its demand in the state”.
Source-Collegedunia
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