Calcutta International School students have been flooded with offers from the best of universities in the UK and the US this year and one of them has cracked the entrance tests for six of the eight Ivy League universities.

The boys and girls will be enrolling into colleges of their choice in the fall session, which begins in October.

Leading the pack is Abhijoi Mitra, who got offers from Brown, Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth, Pennsylvania and Yale and zeroed in on Yale. “The curriculum offered there is very flexible. I get to combine engineering and economics before I can finally decide which subjects I can do my majors in. That is a huge bonus,” Abhijoi said.

It has been a dream come true for the boy who, by his own admission, has always “done well in academics but never been outstanding”.

Classmate Arita Acharya wants to study the natural sciences and is elated at the multiple offers in her kitty. “It’s a rare privilege to be able to choose. I’m glad the hard work has paid off. I fared reasonably well in my board exams and have been among the top five or six students in my class. I’m going to Cambridge to study natural sciences because I want to do research in biology,” said the girl, who will miss hanging out with friends during weekends.

“Having fun with friends, reading and swimming help me relax. I spend a lot of time in the pool,” smiled the Harry Potter and Twilight fan.

The senior principal of Calcutta International School (CIS), Nandini Mukherjee, described the placement offers this year as “outstanding”.

“Our students have got offers from six of the eight universities in the Ivy League and some renowned colleges in the UK as well. Other than that there have been offers from Canada and France,” said Mukherjee, who along with CIS director Satyajit Banerjee, counsellor Sania Enam and senior school section head A.S. Deb make up the guidance counselling cell at CIS that trains students in keeping with the structured needs of global admissions.

Director Banerjee stressed success is nothing new for CIS students. “Our students have always been well-placed and hugely successful in their professions. It gives us great pleasure to see them in such positions,” he said.

For Angad Mukherji, who has made it to Berkeley, there can be no formula for success. “Like most of my friends, I believe one doesn’t need to be a geek to get through international colleges. Your interests should be varied and you should be updated about all that is happening around you. I play football regularly and also play the guitar. I have my friends and we go out every weekend. It is important to strike that balance. However, I’m aware all that is going to change now. I’m looking forward to a new country and a new life!”