Small is big: students from tier I cities no longer dominate NLSIU

But personal backgrounds still impact performance of students, finds independent study.

Survey finds there has been a rise in the number of students from tier II, III and IVcities gaining admission to the National Law School of India University. File photo: K. Murali Kumar

The National Law School of India University (NLSIU), Bengaluru, may no longer be a bastion of students from the ‘big’ cities. The ‘NLS Diversity Census 2015’ conducted by the students of the university has found a shift in the student demographic.

‘The Elusive Island of Excellence: A study on student demographics, accessibility and inclusivity at National Law School 2015,’ an independent initiative by the students, has found that the number of students coming from tier I cities has been consistently falling.

While the batch that passed out in 2016 had 45.21 per cent students from tier I cities, the one that will pass out in 2020 has 28 per cent. There has also been a corresponding increase in the number of students coming from tier II, III and IV cities. It was found that overall, while 34 per cent of all students on campus were from tier I cities, 42.93 per cent were from tier II cities.

The survey had 389 (out of the 397 students on campus) respondents from the five undergraduate batches (2016 to 2020).

But though the big cities may be losing sway, the backgrounds of the students follow the pattern established in past batches.

Caste matters

The survey found that 59 per cent of the students were from upper castes, while 54 per cent came from families with an annual income of above Rs. 12 lakh. Less than seven per cent had an annual family income of below Rs. 3 lakh.

Only 13 out of the 397 did their high school in non-English-medium schools, while a mere six were first-generation college-goers in their families.

The female-to-male ratio too was found to have fallen over the five batches, with the junior-most batch having 39 per cent women, compared to 52 per cent in the senior-most batch.

But do their backgrounds have a bearing on their academic performance? It was found that students who did their schooling from tier I or II cities, or abroad, those whose annual family income was above the overall average, and those from the upper castes performed far better than the others. These factors also appeared to play a role in the participation and performance of students in extracurricular activities.

“The study indicates that the law school is diversifying; it is a positive change even if limited by high fee structure and entrance fee. The challenge that now lies before the administration is how it responds to this growing diversity. It needs to create structures and support mechanisms to make the law school an even more equalising and democratic platform,” said Chirayu Jain, who conducted the study along with Spadika Jayaraj, Sanjana Muraleedharan and Harjas Singh.