Kota Factory Season 3 Sparks Debate: Was the 2015 JEE Advanced Exam Really That Hard?

The Netflix show Kota Factory Season 3 has reignited discussions about the infamous 2015 JEE Advanced exam. In one scene, characters reminisce about the exam’s difficulty, leaving many wondering if the 2015 paper still haunts students today.

The JEE Advanced exam is known for being unpredictable and challenging. In 2015, IIT Bombay, the exam organizer, even lowered the passing score after realizing many students struggled.

The Kota Factory scene shows students discussing the exam. One student, Vaibhav Pandey, gets agitated when asked if he could solve the 2015 paper. His friend jokes that he probably couldn’t even score 75% on the regular board exams.

To understand why the 2015 exam is still talked about, let’s look at what made it so tough.

Experts point to the exam’s structure and marking system. Unlike other years, the 2015 exam had no single-answer multiple-choice questions. Instead, it included complex question types like “integer type,” “matrix match,” and “multiple correct options.”

The marking scheme was unforgiving. Getting all answers right in the multiple-choice questions earned you +4 points, but a single mistake meant losing -2 points. This made the exam lengthy and increased the pressure on students.

Adding to the stress, 2015 saw the introduction of “matrix match” and “comprehension-based” questions for the first time. These new question formats, combined with the negative marking, made the exam particularly daunting.

While the exam’s difficulty was a factor, some experts believe the real pressure came from the intense competition. With over 1.22 lakh students vying for just 10,000 seats in IITs, the stakes were incredibly high.

Despite the challenges, some students like Kshitiz Goel, who took the exam in 2015, remember it as a “good and balanced” paper.

The debate about the 2015 JEE Advanced exam highlights the immense pressure students face in India’s competitive education system. While the exam format has evolved over the years, the memory of the 2015 paper serves as a reminder of the challenges students overcome in pursuit of their academic dreams.