Having asked this question many times over from fellow moms, what better way to answer the questions rather than a blog post! 🙂 After doing extensive research and interviewing a lot of parents to see what would work, these are my findings 🙂 With rules and regulations changing quickly and new facilities appearing, it is good to keep researching continuously.
There are quite a few options to move forward if you are from one of the two popular boards ICSE or CBSE.
- ISC for 11th and 12th grade
- CBSE for 11th and 12th grade
- PU system if you are in a state that offers the same
- International Baccalaureate® (IB) Diploma Programme (DP)
- Integrated programs(Allen, FIITJEE, BASE, Akaash and more)
Let us see each of them in a bit of detail:
ISC for 11th and 12th grade
This is probably the simplest to understand. It is just a continuation of the ICSE syllabus and if you are already in the ICSE board till Xth grade, you might know, how ISC for 11th and 12th will be!
If you are opting for ISC for 11th and 12th grade, it will also be better to pair it with other coaching such as FIITJEE, Allen, BASE etc to get professional help for competitive exams(though I am not sure about the volume of portions to study)
CBSE board for 11th and 12th grade:
If you are opting for CBSE, for 11th and 12th grade, it will again be better to pair it with other coaching such as FIITJEE, Allen, BASE etc to get professional help for competitive exams.
PU college for 11th and 12th grade:
PU(Pre-university exam) college is followed in Karnataka and I am sure in many other states. I do not have much experience with PU colleges and have not done much homework either 🙂 so, I would suggest that you look up appropriate PU colleges in your area and see if they offer integrated PU programs( and make sure it is legal too) or independent PU programs and see what works best for you.
International Baccalaureate® (IB) Diploma Programme (DP)
So, in this regard, if the child is planning to go abroad for undergraduate admission and if you do not need to dig deep into your pockets for funding – go for the IB program – otherwise, if your child is planning to study in India – my idea is to stick with the Indian boards.
Integrated programs:
Engineering and medical entrance exams and coaching were a rage when we studied and it is rage even today.
These are some of the options for students to consider after completing Xth grade in India. Most of us parents have to do a lot of homework to see what works for best for us. Sometimes, we are attached to the school and sometimes to our friends circle -so, as parents I would suggest to:
- Ask the child what he/she would like to do(like Physics, Chemistry, Math, Bio or any other subject) and that they are happy doing it
- Choose the corresponding school/college liked by both parents and the child
- Check whether the child wants to study in India/abroad
- See if it fits our budget! 🙂
- And lastly make sure it is legal
Good luck pursuing the educational dreams for you and your child!