UPES B.Tech Admissions 2026
Last Date to Apply: 26th March | Ranked #43 among Engineering colleges in India by NIRF | Highest Package 1.3 CR , 100% Placements
Every year, lakhs of students appear for JEE Advanced with one dream to get into an IIT. For most, that’s the ultimate goal. But here’s a twist you may not have expected. Even top JEE Advanced rankers with ranks under 2000 are skipping as many as 9 IITs.
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Yes, you read that right. Getting into an IIT is no longer the only dream. Today’s students are becoming more selective. They don’t just want the IIT tag; they want the best course at the best college.
According to the JEE Advanced 2025 report, IT Bombay and IIT Delhi secured over 1,300 out of the top 5000 rankers. IIT Bombay itself has 73 students from top 100 students and a total of 755 students out of top 2000. Competing closely, IIT Delhi attracted 577 students. The secret to their success? Global exposure, vibrant campus life, and unbeatable placements.
Besides, a surprising trend is revealed while evaluating that top rankers are saying “no” to new IITs. The list includes IIT Bhubaneswar, IIT Mandi, IIT Jodhpur, IIT (ISM) Dhanbad, IIT Bhilai, IIT Goa, IIT Palakkad, IIT Jammu, and IIT Dharwad.
Other IITs like IIT Madras, IIT Kanpur, and IIT Kharagpur are also in the race with 478, 448 and 517 students, respectively. These IITs have a legacy of excellence but they attract less students compared to IIT Delhi and Bombay. Alongside, some new IITs are slowly getting visibility because of their focus on innovation, research, and regional influence. Those emerging IITs are listed below
The Emerging IITs:
IIT Hyderabad – 222 students
IIT Guwahati – 305 students
IIT (BHU) Varanasi – 258 students
IIT | Seats Taken |
IIT Bombay | 414 |
IIT Delhi | 303 |
IIT Madras | 265 |
IIT Kanpur | 234 |
IIT Kharagpur | 225 |
IIT Roorkee | 187 |
IIT Guwahati | 167 |
IIT Hyderabad | 99 |
Other new IITs | Very few/almost none |
Clearly, the top rankers are clustering around a few IITs, while many new ones are left almost empty.
On closing checking the data, the situation becomes even clearer. Out of the top 5000 rankers, only 200 students chose the nine IITs. Here’s is the number of students opted from top 5000 JEE advanced rank holders.
IIT | Students from Top 5000 |
IIT Jodhpur | 63 |
IIT Mandi | 60 |
IIT Bhubaneswar | 43 |
IIT Tirupati | 14 |
IIT Jammu | 4 |
IIT Goa | 3 |
IIT Bhilai | 2 |
IIT Dharwad | 1 |
IIT Palakkad | 1 |
This makes one thing clear that reputation still matters a lot. Students are not ready to compromise, even if it means skipping an IIT altogether.
So why are top rankers rushing towards Bombay, Delhi, Madras, and a few others? Here are the main reasons:
Peer Pressure: For years, IIT Bombay and IIT Delhi have been the first choices of top JEE rank holders. This year also the trend follows with 73 out of 100 top ranks opting for IIT Bombay.
Better Placements: IIT Bombay, Delhi, and Madras have proved their worth by continuously placing elite students to big firms not only in India but abroad too. This excites both students and parents.
Experienced Faculty & Labs: The older IITs have strong faculty, advanced labs, and excellent research facilities. This makes them far more appealing than the newer ones.
Today, the IIT tag alone isn’t enough. Students and parents also compare research opportunities, faculty strength, placement records, campus culture and reputation (perception in the industry) to finalise the best suited college.
On Question asked by student community
To get admission into IIT Bombay , a students belonging to economically weaker section (EWS) should score minimum 108-160+ marks in JEE Advanced examination.
Only the top 2.5 lakh students will be eligible for JEE Advanced. But the qualifying cutoff for JEE Advanced will be out once the JEE Main Session 2 results are out. At this rank, you might not be eligible for the JEE Advanced exam, so we suggest you go for
To qualify for JEE Advanced 2026, candidates must first meet the cutoff percentile in JEE Main 2026, which varies each year depending on exam difficulty and total candidates. Based on recent trends, the expected qualifying percentile for the General category is around 90–92, for EWS and OBC around 75–80, for
To be eligible for JEE Advanced 2026, you must fulfill several key criteria: you must be among the top 2,50,000 rank holders in JEE Main 2026 Paper 1 to qualify for Advanced registration. Candidates should be born on or after October 1, 2001 (with a 5-year age relaxation for SC,
For the 2026 JEE Advanced, OBC-NCL candidates require a JEE Main percentile of 75+ to qualify. If you aim for an 80+ percentile, that will give you a safer margin for qualification.
Check the JEE Advanced 2026 Eligibility Criteria for more information.
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