Seven corporation schools students qualify for IIT-M online course

Coimbatore: Under the ‘Anaivarukkum IIT-Madras’ (IIT-Madras for All) initiative, seven students from Coimbatore Corporation schools have secured seats at the Indian Institute of Technology-Madras (IIT-M) for the online Bachelor of Science (BS) degree in Data Science and Applications.
Of the 67 students who appeared for the exam, seven qualified and will be joining the course.Among them, three students belong to the SC community, whose fees would be borne by IIT Madras and the Tamil Nadu Adi Dravidar Housing & Development Corporation (TAHDCO).
“This achievement is the result of a collaboration between IIT Madras, Coimbatore Corporation, and TAHDCO, where we trained and motivated students to aim for IIT. Under the ‘Anaivarukkum IIT-Madras’ initiative, school students who appeared for Class XI final exams could apply for the course, regardless of their board,” project head N Hari Krishnan said.
Those who qualify can join the programme after completing Class XII. The programme is open to anyone who has completed Class XII, regardless of age or professional background. Launched by IIT-M in 2021, the programme provides an alternative path to obtaining a prestigious degree.
“IIT-M provides coaching for the qualifying exam. The exam questions are based on the four-week coaching conducted by IIT, so separate coaching isn’t required,” Krishnan added.
The four-year course costs Rs 3.51 lakh. IIT is offering a 75% concession to students whose family income is less than Rs 1 lakh and a 50% concession to students whose family income is between Rs 1 lakh and Rs 5 lakh. Students also have the flexibility to take extended breaks between academic years to manage financial responsibilities.
The next batch of the IIT-M BS programme starts in September 2024, and applications are currently open. For more information, students can visit https://study.iitm.ac.in/.