THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Amid raging debate over the revised KEAM engineering entrance rank list that was prepared after reverting to the 2011 mark standardisation formula, factors that played spoilsport for state syllabus students have come under the scanner.
Unlike other entrance exams, KEAM engineering entrance considers the overall score attained in the objective type entrance exam and marks scored in mathematics, physics and chemistry in the Plus-Two exam on a 50:50 basis. As students from non-state boards such as CBSE and CISCE also attempt KEAM, Plus-Two marks are subjected to a standardisation process to ensure parity.
In the mark standardisation formula followed since 2011, statistical parameters such as ‘global mean’ and ‘standard deviation’ are used. This involves comparison with marks scored by students from 2009 to 2025. Experts said liberal awarding of marks by the state board over the past few years could have led to “skewness” of the data, thereby affecting the ranks of such students.
“Simply put, if average marks scored by all state syllabus students go up, marks of each student after standardisation would go down. This in turn would put students of other boards at an advantage,” said an official involved in the mark standardisation process.
In the now-scrapped 2025 formula, state board students enjoyed dual advantage. The new method compared individual candidate’s score to the topper’s score in each board, keeping the state syllabus’ top marks as the yardstick.
“This meant state syllabus students could get the same marks they scored in the Plus Two exam without significant deductions,” the official said.
Also, the last-minute change of weightage from 1:1:1 for mathematics, physics and chemistry to 5:3:2 was another factor. This helped state syllabus students whose marks in mathematics were reportedly higher than students of other boards.
“When the norm was reverted to 1:1:1, the advantage state board students enjoyed was revoked,” the official added. The anomalies have prompted experts to call for a return to the system followed before 2011.
“Instead of going for such complicated standardisation processes, the scores of entrance exam alone should be taken as the criteria for ranking. All entrance exams for UG admission such as NEET, CUET-UG and JEE follow this,” said T P Sethumadhavan, education and career expert.