If you are an engineering or medical aspirant, who has just passed out from school, and headed to Kota to enroll at one of the coaching institutes, please mind it there is no freedom from uniform.
A dress code for aspiring engineering and medical students is the latest fad to catch the fancy of coaching institutes in Kota. This rule is being enforced by all the institutes, big and small alike.
Some say the idea of having a uniform for coaching institutes is to ensure discipline among students; others feel it will give students a sense of belonging.
Like schools, each institute here has a different uniform. “Uniforms provide a distinct identity and help differentiate a student of Institute A from that of Institute B. It makes them feel and look the same, irrespective of their social and economic backgrounds,” said RK Verma, Managing Director, Resonance Eduventures Private Limited, Kota.
The institutes provide uniform to students at the time of admission and most of them do not charge extra for it. It is a blessing in disguise for students most of whom belong to the underprivileged section of the society. They spend a few lakhs to enroll for coaching to prepare for engineering and medical examinations. But spending another few thousands on a pair of casual dress is unthinkable for them.
Kheraj Ram Chaudhary, son of a railway coolie in Jodhpur and a former alumnus of Kota Coaching, who cracked AIPMT, said, “I spent the entire coaching period in Kota in the institute’s uniform as I did not have enough money to buy another pair of clothes.” Nitesh Sharma, Media Marketing Head of Allen Career Institute, Kota, said that the concept of uniforms prevents a feeling of superiority or inferiority among students.
Pramod Maheshwari, Chairman and Managing Director, Career Point Institute, Kota, said, “Uniform ensures unity along with discipline among students. When students wear same clothes, it helps them in connecting with their fellow students and also relate to their educational institutions.”
The concept of uniform has found many takers among aspirants. Rehana Khan, an engineering aspirant, enrolled at one of the centres, said, “It is a time-saving measure. A student will not waste time thinking what to wear to class. It will minimise distraction as all of us will be wearing the same uniform.”
Every year, more than 1.25 lakh students come to Kota, better known as the coaching capital of India, to crack the medical and engineering entrance examinations.