BANGALORE: Apoorva Narayanaswamy was expecting good marks, but she had never imagined she would end up in the national toppers’ league.
A student of St Paul’s English School, Apoorva has scored 98.6 per cent in her Indian Certificate of Secondary Education (ICSE) exams. “I guess studying and spending some time on hobbies helped me. I watched TV whenever I was stressed,” said Apoorva, a resident of Bannerghatta Road, who studied three to four hours a day.
At the start of the academic year, she would go back from school and study to make sure she wasn’t stressed as exams approached. Apoorva’s favourite subject is biology and she wants to pursue a career in medicine.
For Shreyas Sudhaman of Sri Kumaran Public School, who scored 98.6 per cent, the results were a shock. “I was shocked in a positive way, of course. What I believe is, if you are consistent and organised in your preparation, it is not impossible to score high,” he told Express. A resident of J P Nagar, Shreyas is looking forward to becoming an engineer. “I plan to take up chemical engineering,” he said.
The Council for Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE) considers the best scores in five subjects (best-of-five) to declare the percentage. In the Indian School Certificate (ISC) exams for Class 12, it is the best of four that is taken for calculation.
Rajat Vadiraj from St Paul’s School secured 98.4 per cent. “I’ve always loved science since I was a kid. It is very exciting for me, especially physics and mathematics,” said Rajat, who did not have sleepless nights preparing for the exams. “If you keep calm, it should be easy.”
Dipayan Sinha from Bishop Cotton Boys Schools knows what he wants to pursue. “Everyone in my family is an engineer and I want to follow them,” said Dipayan, who scored 98.2 per cent. Studying in Bangalore for eight years, Dipayan’s mantra is hard work, patience and focus. “I would revise whatever was taught in school the same day.”
With 98.16 per cent in his kitty, Tejas Kumar from Presidency School is chasing two dreams. “I am very good at computers and I think I can develop this into something by becoming a computer science engineer. Further, I want to become an IAS officer and serve the country.”