With the Karnataka Examinations Authority (KEA) conducting combined counselling for medical, dental, engineering and farm science courses this year, students will have to exercise caution before they key in their choices.
With the first round of medical counselling being held before the engineering counselling, the KEA has designed the choices in a way that no candidate will hold two seats. Last year, many students blocked engineering seats and chose to give them up after obtaining medical or dental seats.
With simultaneous counselling being held, the KEA authorities said the candidates who exercise Choice 1 for medical or dental seats would have to join such a college and would not be eligible to undergo counselling for other disciplines.
If candidates exercise Choice 2 for medical or dental seats and have participated in engineering or farm science courses, but not allotted seats in these disciplines, the medical or dental seats will remain. However, if they have been allotted seats in other disciplines, the outcome will be based on the choices entered for the other disciplines.
The KEA expects to soon publish these guidelines, once it receives approval from the government. “We hope that the students will be careful in exercising the options and [will] do so after reading all the possibilities,” a KEA official said.
