q My daughter wants to earn a commercial pilot licence. She has opted for maths but not physics in Class XII. Is it possible for her to still pursue this option?
To become a commercial pilot, one must meet the eligibility criteria set by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation or DGCA. This includes passing subjects such as physics and mathematics in Class XII. Since your daughter has not studied physics, she can prepare and take the exam separately through the National Institute of Open Schooling or NIOS, which conducts exams twice a year in April-May and October-November.
Before that, however, she should pass a medical examination conducted by DGCA empanelled doctors to confirm that she meets the required standards of vision, hearing, coordination and overall health. Once this is done, she will be eligible to begin her flight training. She can then apply to flying academies such as the Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Uran Akademi (IGRUA, Uttar Pradesh), Madhya Pradesh Flying Club (Indore), Bombay Flying Club (Mumbai), or Orient Flights (Mysuru). These institutes offer a mix of ground theory and about 200 hours of flight training, leading to a commercial pilot licence.
q My son is preparing for CUET 2026. Do central universities consider Class XII marks apart from CUET? How does the selection and admission process work?
Central universities such as Delhi University, Banaras Hindu University, Jawaharlal Nehru University, Jamia Millia Islamia and others now admit students based primarily on CUET scores. Class XII marks still matter, but only as an eligibility requirement. Students must have studied the required subjects and meet the minimum percentage specified by each university, which is usually around 50 per cent for most programmes. Once this condition is met, admission is decided entirely on the basis of CUET performance.
After the CUET results are announced, each university prepares its own merit list using the test scores alone. Board marks are not considered at this stage. Students then register on the university’s admission portal or through the Common Seat Allocation System (CSAS), fill in their preferred courses and colleges, and are allotted seats according to their CUET rank. Some universities may use tie-breaking rules such as higher marks in a domain subject or in Class XII but these apply only in rare cases. In short, Plus Two board exam marks act as a basic eligibility check, while CUET scores determine who gets in.
q Can a student choose subjects in the CUET exam that are different from what they studied in Class XII?
Yes, under the new CUET guidelines, students are allowed to choose subjects that may be different from what they studied in Class XII. This gives them the flexibility to explore new areas or switch streams. However, it’s important to remember that appearing for a particular domain subject does not automatically make a student eligible for admission to that course. Each university still follows its own subject-specific eligibility rules.
For example, a commerce student can take the physics paper in the entrance test, but if a university requires physics as a Class XII subject for admission to a BSc physics programme, the student would not qualify even with a good CUET score. So, while there is flexibility in subject choice for the entrance test, the eligibility for a particular course will still depend on the subjects studied in school. The best approach is to check the chosen university’s programme-specific requirements before finalising the CUET subject combination.
Nina Mukherji is a career counsellor and certified psychometric assessor. She conducts workshops in various areas for students. Mail your queries to telegraphyou@gmail.com with “Ask Nina” in the subject line. Don’t forget to add the name of your school or college and a contact number