Anuradha Gokulakrishnan’s daughter scored 96.6 per cent in the Higher Secondary Examinations, the results of which were announced on Friday.
But, as it becomes increasingly crowded at the top with scores increasing each year, parents like her are spending anxious days hoping to get their children admitted to their desired courses and colleges.
“Despite the good marks, we did not really rejoice because we are not sure if she will get a course she wants to pursue in a good college,” she said, adding that good career guidance from experts can help students make informed choices. S. Sundaram, school education consultant and former principal of SRF Vidyalaya said that there are plenty of options today.
“We need to guide children on the variety of career options available at the school level itself,” he said.
Career consultant Jayaprakash Gandhi said students had a wide variety of options ahead of them. He said that students who opted for biology in class XII could look at courses such as B. Sc Agriculture or Horticulture or Forestry.
Those who studied computer science in their higher secondary could opt for B.Tech in agriculture, he said. Those who cannot make it to the top engineering colleges could pursue core engineering subjects at tier-II colleges and prepare for examinations such as GATE from the first year. “Courses such as B. Sc in Geology and later an M. Sc in Geology, B.E. Metallurgy and B. Tech in Fashion and Apparel Technology also offer good scope,” he said.
In the results of the Higher Secondary Examinations that were announced on Friday, the top score was 99.4 per cent. The number of centums in subjects such as physics, mathematics and commerce also rose significantly. In physics, it rose from 36 to 2,710, in mathematics, from 2,352 to 3,882, in commerce, from 1,336 to 2,587 and in business mathematics, from 430 to 605.
Sneha, a suicide prevention centre that offers counselling through its helplines, received around 100 calls since the results were announced. The Sneha helpline is 24640050.
