Meet Phily Philip

He has exploded the myth that IIT is inaccessible to Indian exaptriate students from the GCC.

The Indian Institute of Technology has a draconian entrance examination (IIT JEE). And it is considered next to impossible to get in.

Phily Philip, a student of Sharjah Indian School, is one of the top scorers of IIT JEE 2005, but chose not to join, as he did not get the stream of his choice.

He has finally picked the B.Tech course specialising in electronic and telecommunication from National Institute of Technology ( Calicut).

How tough is the IIT entrance exam?

I would say it is very tough. But someone who is very focused can make it, with required hard work.

Do you think that a student who is based in the UAE can make it?

A student based anywhere, including the UAE, can crack the IIT JEE. He or she has to work for it.

What extra efforts did you take?

I tried to allocate maximum amount of time for studies. I cut down on my television hours and even cut down on my sleeping hours to six. However, a little entertainment is essential for a break.

Why did you choose India to study?

India has some of the greatest institutions in the world and it even attracts people from other parts of the world. Also, I didn't want to have the feeling that I didn't belong by studying in a new environment.

The change in the IIT-JEE - from a two-tier to a one-tier exam, what will be the impact?

I feel the pattern is better now as we can finish the exams in one stretch.

Earlier there were subjective questions before and the correction depended on the examiner to a certain extent. Now we don't have such a problem, as there are only objective questions.

- Subramanian K., head of the Dubai branch of Career Launcher, one of India's largest education companies

What is IIT?

- It was created as a centre of excellence for training, research and development in science, engineering and technology in India.

- The seven IIT campuses are located in Delhi, Kanpur, Kharagpur, Chennai, Mumbai, Rourkee and Guwahati.

- Admission is through the Joint Entrance Exams (JEE), which is taken by over 175,000 students out of which only 4,000 get selected.