All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) is a national-level Apex Advisory Body responsible for promoting and regulating the technical education of students who study in India. It was formed in November 1945, and Engineering programs come under the purview of AICTE. It has the authority to revise the rules to develop technical education. Recently, it has revised its rules that engineering students who aspire to study in India must bear in mind before planning their academic journey. So, here are the revised rules:

1. Maths and Physics are mandatory?

Last year AICTE allowed students who had not studied Physics and Maths at the higher secondary level (10+2) to pursue Engineering. This move was to encourage interdisciplinary education among the students. However, upon realising the importance of these two subjects, which are fundamental to grasping the technical courses, AICTE has rolled back its decision. Therefore, Maths and Physics will be mandatory for students who aspire to be Engineers. This announcement is made through AICTE Approval Process Handbook 2022-23. 

2. Physics and Maths will be mandatory for the following courses:

• Civil Engineering
• Computer Science and Engineering
• Electrical Engineering
• Electronics Engineering
• Mechanical Engineering
• Marine Engineering
• Metallurgy Engineering
• Nuclear Science and Technology
• Mining Engineering

3. Percentage required

In addition to the abovementioned rule, which requires students to have studied Physics and Maths at the higher secondary level, students need a certain percentage to qualify for engineering courses. As per AICTE, 18 out of 29 recognised undergraduate study programs will require students to have cleared higher secondary education with a minimum percentage in Physics and Maths. 

The minimum percentage required:

• 45% for the general category 
• 40% for reserved category 

The abovementioned rule does not apply to students who aspire to study Architecture, Packaging Technology, and Fashion Technology.

4. Maths not mandatory 

As per the recent development, maths is not a mandatory subject for engineering students who aspire to pursue these engineering courses:

• Agriculture 
• Architecture
• Leather Technology
• Biotechnology
• Food technology
• Printing technology
• Textile Chemistry
• Packaging Technology
• Fashion Technology

So, if you aspire to pursue any of these nine courses after your higher secondary education, maths is not compulsory for you. 

4. Extensive range of subjects

To encourage students to enrol on undergraduate programs, AICTE has provided a diverse range of subjects for engineering students from 2021-22. So, you can choose subjects from the following list: 

• Physics 
• Maths 
• Chemistry
• Computer Science
• Electronics
• Information Technology,
• Biology
• Informatics Practices
• Biotechnology
• Technical Vocational Subjects
• Agriculture
• Engineering Graphics
• Business Studies
• Entrepreneurship

So, these are the few things that you need to remember about the revised rules of the engineering stream if you aspire to study in India. Please remember, whichever stream you select, we at Avanse Financial Services will help you with an education loan. The educational loan in India will enable you to finance your education independently. If you have any query, please remember we are just a call away.