COIMBATORE: Coimbatore district ranked first in the state in higher education enrolment among Class 12 students from government schools in the last academic year.
According to official sources in the school education department, and based on the higher education department's report, as many as 10,555 students who completed Class 12 in government schools in Coimbatore during the 2024-25 academic year enrolled in higher education courses, while 503 students did not pursue higher studies for various reasons.
In higher education enrolment, Coimbatore ranked first in the state with 95.45%. Virudhunagar secured second place with 94.80%, followed by Perambalur in third place with 94.29%. Ranipet ranked last with an enrolment rate of 87.23%. Tiruchy secured eighth place, Salem ranked 10th, while Chennai and Madurai were placed 31st and 32nd, respectively," sources added.
An education department official in Coimbatore told TNIE that out of 11,508 students, more than 2,000 were initially unwilling to pursue higher education due to financial constraints, lack of interest in continuing their studies, and a preference to take up jobs to support their families.
"As part of an initiative led by Collector Pavankumar G Giriyappanavar and under the supervision of Chief Educational Officer R Balamurali, headmasters and teachers reached out to students to identify the reasons for not pursuing higher education. They created awareness among students and their parents about the importance of continuing education. As a result, around 2,000 students enrolled in higher education, diploma, and other courses. The district administration also extended support to students from economically weaker sections to help them continue their studies," he said.
"The Higher Education Department's report states that 503 students did not enrol in higher education. However, except for 137 students, the remaining students joined diploma and ITI courses, which was not updated. We were unable to facilitate admission to higher education for those 137 students due to reasons such as health issues, migration, and other personal circumstances," he explained.
He said that the student enrolment process for admissions is currently under way for the present academic year as well in Coimbatore.
