The IIT-JEE entrance exam is one of the most challenging in India, with lakhs of students vying for a spot in the prestigious Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) each year. However, despite his top rank, Pune's Chirag Falor, who topped the JEE Advanced in 2020, chose not to attend an IIT. Instead, he pursued his admission at the renowned Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the United States.
Chirag's academic achievements are remarkable—he secured the first rank in JEE Advanced and scored a perfect 100 percentile in JEE Mains. Although he gained admission to MIT in March 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic delayed his travel plans, so he began his MIT classes online from India.
"I've decided to proceed with my MIT admission. Classes have already started, and I'm attending them online. I had prepared for JEE over four years and didn’t want to miss the opportunity to take the exam," Chirag shared with PTI.
He scored 352 out of 396 in JEE Advanced and remarked that the JEE exam was tougher than the MIT entrance, boosting his confidence to a large extent. "I attended MIT classes online at night while preparing for the JEE during the day," he said.
Chirag also has other accolades, including winning a gold medal at the 13th International Olympiad on Astronomy and Astrophysics (IOAA) in 2019 and securing the top spot in the American Mathematics competition.