IIT Admission without JEE Advanced: Olympiad Route Explained

Four IITs offer admission without JEE Advanced and via the International/National Olympiads. These IITs are IIT Madras, IIT Kanpur, IIT Gandhinagar, and IIT Bombay. Know what is eligibility criteria are for admission to these IITs, how to apply, what the selection criteria are and more details in this article.

IIT Admission without JEE Advanced

IIT Admission without JEE Advanced: It is possible to get into an IIT without JEE Advanced. For all those candidates who have participated in national/international level Olympiads, can bypass the JEE Advanced exam for admission to IITs. However, currently, there are only four IITs that accept the Olympiad mode of admission they are IIT Madras, IIT Kanpur, IIT Gandhinagar, and IIT Bombay. Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) Advanced is a highly competitive route for IIT admission. The Olympiad route can offer some relief when it comes to facing the competition.

In this article, we will discuss the Olympiad route to IIT admission that bypasses the JEE Advanced route. The advantage of gaining admission to IITs through Olympiads is that there is less competition compared to other routes. IIT admission via Olympiad is equally challenging as the JEE Advanced exam. The difficulty level of these Olympiads is very high and is almost at par with the JEE Advanced exam. Each IIT, including IIT Madras, IIT Kanpur, IIT Gandhinagar, and IIT Bombay, has its own unique admission process for Olympiad qualifiers. Below, we explain the IIT admission processes via olympiads for each of these institutions, covering eligibility requirements, courses offered, how to apply, and additional details.

IIT Admission through Olympiads

IIT Madras, IIT Kanpur, IIT Gandhinagar, and IIT Bombay accept the following Olympiads for admission to various UG courses:

1. IMOTC: International Mathematical Olympiad Training Camps
2. OCSCs: Orientation-cum-Selection Camps for Science subjects (Chemistry, Physics, Biology)
3. IOITC: International Olympiad for Informatics Training Camp (IOITC)
4. INChO: Indian National Chemistry Olympiad (INChO)
5. INPhO: Indian National Physics Olympiad (INPhO)
6. INBO: Indian National Biology Olympiad (INBO)
7. INMO: Indian National Mathematical Olympiad (INMO)

In the table below, candidates can check the IITs and the courses they offered via various olympiads as mentioned above:

💡Recommended: List of IIT Courses After Class 12 PCM Without JEE Advanced

Now, let us check one by one the IIT admissions without JEE Advanced and via Olympiads at IIT Madras, IIT Kanpur, IIT Gandhinagar, and IIT Bombay.

IIT Madras Admission without JEE Advanced via Olympiad Route

Science Olympiad Excellence (SCOPE) admission at IIT Madras is a mode of admission to selected BTech courses without JEE Advanced ranks. 

IIT Madras Eligibility Criteria for Admission via Olympiad

• The candidate should be an Indian national (by birth or naturalisation) or an OCI/PIO candidate whose OCI/PIO card was issued before 4th March 2021.
• The eligibility criteria in terms of passing year of class 12th and age, etc, remain the same as that of JEE (Advanced) for the respective year. The candidate should NOT have been admitted to an IIT in the previous years.
• In addition to the above, in the last 4 years, the candidate must have participated in at least one of the following:
  1. Mathematics: International Mathematical Olympiad Training Camps (IMOTC) organised by Homi Bhabha Centre for Science Education (HBCSE)
  2. Physics, Chemistry and Biology: Orientation-cum-Selection Camps (OCSCs) for Science subjects, organised by Homi Bhabha Centre for Science Education (HBCSE).
  3. Informatics: International Olympiad for Informatics Training Camp (IOITC) organised by the Indian Association for Research in Computer Science (IARCS).

How to Apply?

The candidates are required to apply through the IITM-SCOPE admission portal (https://ugadmissions.iitm.ac.in/scope/) for admission under excellence in Olympiad performance to IIT Madras. The candidate should be ready with all the necessary documents before starting their application on this portal. The application process consists of the following steps:

1. New User Registration
2. Upload Documents
3. Choice Filling (This step includes filling the choice of courses in the order of their preference by the candidates. The candidate will be shown the list of programs for which they are eligible to apply based on the subject olympiads chosen by the candidate in the new user registration.)
4. Payment of Registration Fee
5. Download the Application Acknowledgement

IIT Bombay Admission without JEE Advanced via Olympiad Route

IIT Bombay offers only one course via the Olympiad route - BS in Mathematics. Check below the eligibility and application process to IIT Bombay without JEE and via the olympiad route:

IIT Bombay Eligibility Criteria for Admission via Olympiad

• Candidates should have appeared for their Class 12 board examinations or any equivalent qualifying examinations in the current year.
• Candidates should have been on the INMO Qualified List for the Junior or Senior Batch.

The candidates who satisfy the above eligibility criteria will have to further appear in an entrance examination, which will be conducted by the Department of Mathematics, IIT Bombay.

How to Apply?

Those satisfying the eligibility criteria should apply to take the entrance exam. To do so, candidates have to:

•  Send an email to bsinmo@math.iitb.ac.in with a copy marked to office.math@iitb.ac.in with the subject "Application for the B.S. Mathematics Entrance Examination via INMO".
• A scanned copy of the INMO Award certificate and/or letter of invitation for the IMO training camp should be attached to the email.
• Eligible candidates will be informed about the details of the entrance test by email.

IIT Gandhinagar Admission without JEE Advanced via Olympiad Route

IIT Gandhinagar offers admission to the BTech programme to students selected in the Olympiad training camps

IIT Gandhinagar Eligibility Criteria for Admission via Olympiad

• The applicant should pass class XII in the current academic session or the previous year.
• Students selected to attend one of the following training camps in this year or in any of the past four years are eligible to apply:
• Mathematics: International Mathematical Olympiad Training Camps (IMOTC) organised by Homi Bhabha Centre for Science Education (HBCSE).
• Chemistry and Physics: Orientation-cum-Selection Camps (OCSCs) for Science subjects (Chemistry, Physics), organised by Homi Bhabha Centre for Science Education (HBCSE).
• Informatics: International Olympiad for Informatics Training Camp (IOITC) organised by the Indian Association for Research in Computing Science (IARCS).
• Students who have received medals in the following International Olympiads in the current year or any of the past four years are eligible to apply, irrespective of nationality:
  1. International Mathematics Olympiad
  2. International Physics Olympiad
  3. International Chemistry Olympiad
  4. International Olympiad in Informatics
• The eligibility criteria of passing class XII (or equivalent) examination, as specified by JOSAA for admission into IITs, will also be applicable.

How to Apply?

Eligible candidates have to apply online on the official portal for IIT Gandhinagar admission for Olympiad candidates: https://iitgn.ac.in/admissions/btech-olympiad.

IIT Kanpur Admission without JEE Advanced via Olympiad Route

IIT Kanpur offers admission to the selected BTech courses based on the Olympiad course, allowing candidates to bypass the JEE Advanced exam.

IIT Kanpur Eligibility Criteria for Admission via Olympiad

Criterion 1 – Age limit: Candidates should be 25 years or less. Five-year age relaxation is given to SC, ST, and PwD candidates.

Criterion 2 – Appearance in Class XII (or equivalent) examination: A candidate should have passed their Class XII (or equivalent) examination in either the current admission year or a year before with Physics, Chemistry, and Mathematics as compulsory subjects.

Criterion 3 –Olympiad Criterion: The candidate should fulfil the eligibility criteria of the olympiad of the respective departments.

Criterion 4 – Restrictions: The candidate should not have been admitted to any IIT through JoSAA in the previous year, irrespective of whether or not the candidate continued in the program or accepted a seat at IIT by reporting online or physically at the reporting centre in the past. The candidate whose admission to IITs was cancelled for whatever reason after joining any IIT are NOT eligible to get admission through Olympiads.

The candidates who satisfy the above eligibility criteria will have to further appear in an entrance examination, which will be conducted at IIT Kanpur ONLY in CBT mode.

How to Apply?

The candidates have to visit the IIT Kanpur website for submission of their application. To apply, candidates have to register and upload the required documents. To submit the online application, candidates are required to pay an application fee as applicable.

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