Times Academy officials with managing director of Jusco Sanjeev Paul (extreme right) at the launch of Destination Nasa. Picture by Bhola Prasad

Jamshedpur, Jan. 13: Want to see outer space and life of an astronaut from close range? Pass an examination and your dream would turn into reality.

Students of Jharkhand and Bihar would soon get a golden opportunity to visit National Aeronautics and Space Administration (Nasa).

Times Business School in New Delhi, a wing of Times Academy, has decided to start a programme called — Destination Nasa — through which a team of 100 students from the two states will get the chance to visit Nasa and have an experience of a lifetime.

“This is one of the corporate social responsibilities ventures where we want education to be part of a growth process,” said Rahul Beri, the founder of Times Academy.

Sanjeev Paul, the managing director of Jusco, formally launched the programme Destination Nasa at Centre for Excellence today. About 600 schools in the state would be given application forms out of which 100 students will be selected through an essay test.

The test will not be based on science because Times Academy wants to give every student a chance to sit for the examination. The students of Classes V to XII will be eligible to sit for the examination. The selection process will be tough but those with good communication skill will be preferred for the visit. The topic would vary for each class.

The exam will be of two hours duration and students with more structured essays will be chosen for the education tour.

A few teachers might also get the opportunity depending on the numbers of the students selected from a region.

This is a rare chance where students of Bihar and Jharkhand would see their dreams turning into reality. The first chance has been given to the students of these states as students of these places do not get enough exposure.

“Students of Bihar and Jharkhand are shining. They are intelligent and are proving themselves in every field. The only thing they lack is exposure. Therefore, we want them to give them the exposure and experience of the outer world. They would also come to know about the developments in science and technology. We had to start from somewhere and thought why not give the students of neglected states in terms of educational exposure a chance,” said Beri.

The students will be on a 15-day visit to the US where Nasa will host them. The boarding, lodging, travelling, medical and visa expenditure would sponsor the students.

The students have been asked to fill up forms and submit them within February 8. The tentative date for the test is April 5. After the results are announced on May 15, the 100 lucky students will be visiting Nasa in August.