1st junior college merit list keeps to last year's cut-offs

MUMBAI: Students had reason to celebrate after the first junior college merit list was released online on Saturday evening. Cut-offs for the most part stood at last year's levels or even dropped a percentage point or two in some instances. Only a handful of colleges saw a rise of one or two percentage points.

"The rise or dip in cutoffs is not significant this year, and this is a welcome change," said Kavita Rege, principal of Sathaye College in Vile Parle. "The past two three years, the cut-offs have kept going upwards."

The cut-off in the science stream in Sathaye was 94.6%, a minor rise compared to last year's 94%. At DG Ruparel College, it was 93.63%, the same as last year.

At Birla College in Kalyan , the science cut-off dipped. "Our first list for science shut at 94% last year, whereas this year it is 92.54%," said the vice-principal of the college.

While, most colleges had witnessed a dip in the first merit list cut-offs last year as well, this year the number of students with 90-plus percentages increased.

"The highest score in the merit list is 98% and a total of 533 students with 90-plus scorers have made it through the first list," said Indu Shahani , principal of HR College , Churchgate. "While the cut-offs have gone down, the number of students with 90% scores in our batch will definitely increase."

She said that most students who made it through the first list were from CBSE and ICSE.

As many as 43,549 students made it to the college that was their first preference in the first list.

Madhav Mehta, a former St. Mary's High School student , looked disappointed after he saw the first list at HR.

"I didn't do too well in my ICSE exams, so I didn't expect to get in," he said. "I will wait for the second and third merit lists."

Students on the first list can confirm their admissions till Wednesday.

The second list will be announced on Sunday, June 30.

"I'm worried about the students who scored 80-85 % because it doesn't look like the cut-offs will go down in the next two merit lists," said Manju Nichani, principal of KC College.

(With inputs from Pallavi Surana and Sanchi Ravishanker)