TN Class 12 board exam: Tough maths paper to decrease cut-off marks for engineering admissions

CHENNAI: As few main subjects in Class 12 Board exam, including Mathematics, this year were tough, the cut-off marks for engineering courses are likely to decrease for 2025-2026.

The Class 12 Board exams concluded on March 25 across TN, and results are expected on May 9.

Once the results are out, the Directorate of Technical Education (DOTE), which operates under the Higher Education Department, will announce the detailed notification for engineering admissions for this academic year. “After the student’s enrolment and other formalities, including uploading their certificates, admission formalities will enter the stage for providing the merit list,” said T Purushothaman, DOTE, who was in charge of 2024-25 TNEA said. “A student’s 50% mathematics marks will be taken, and 25% each from physics and chemistry. So, the maximum marks for the merit list is 200.”

This year, mathematics, physics and chemistry exams were a bit tough. So, there is a possibility that the students securing 100% in these subjects might be less compared to previous year. “However, this is purely based on the feedback from Class 12 students who have written the exam this year,” stated B Kavitha, who is running a board exam coaching centre in the city. “We do agree that the maths paper was moderately tough. Mathematics is the only subject where more students could score a centum compared to other subjects.”

S Manoj Kumar, a Class 12 student from the science stream, wants to pursue computer engineering in Anna University. “Maths paper was tough. Most were a bit twisted. But, if students can understand the question well, they can answer it correctly,” he said.

S Natarajan, a student’s consultant for higher education, also pointed out that the reduction of cut-off for engineering courses “cannot be predicted accurately since the results are not announced. But it’s quite possible if the number of centum marks is less this year”.