How to get into St. Stephen’s College — The full admission process!
An actual Stephenian’s record.
There is no doubt that St. Stephen’s College is one of the most prestigious colleges, not just in Delhi, but in India. You may have come across people talking about the high cut-off percentages, the interview process and the low acceptance rate. As a “Stephenian” myself, I’ll tell you about my journey.
Quoting Wikipedia :
St. Stephen’s generally receives around 30,000 applicants for 400 seats each year leading to an incredibly low admit rate of 1.33%.
Also, about 50% of these seats are reserved for Christian students, making it even more competitive compared to other DU colleges.
As someone that was able to make it to St. Stephen’s, I’ll break down the entire process all the way from my application to shortlist to interview to finally getting selected! I’ll also share a few tips for future applicants and the reasons why I feel I was selected.
Introduction
A little background info — I applied to St. Stephen’s for my Bachelor's degree, specifically my honours in mathematics, in the summer of 2018. Since the applications are submitted before the cut-offs are released, I had almost no idea how high the cut off will go and if I would even qualify for it. So frankly, being apathetic, I didn't have much hope I would make it in. So don't think that I had been planning for this application for ages, or had everything ready. I did it simply because — why not?
Applications
St. Stephen’s has one of the most extensive application procedures when compared to the other Delhi University Colleges. For any other DU college, you have to register and apply on the common DU admissions portal, from where you can choose your college and your course.
However, for Stephen’s, you have to not just register for DU admissions on the DU website, but also separately apply for St. Stephen’s on their own website and also fill up their lengthy application form.
While any other DU college will ask for basic information about you, like your personal details, marks etc., Stephen’s makes you go a step further. I had to fill up not just my basic details, but also almost anything and everything I had done in my life till then. This included any awards I’ve won, any accomplishments (both academic and non-academic), every extracurricular activity I’ve participated in, my goals, ambitions, hobbies and interests. If you’re a prospective student, take your time filling this section, your interview questions can be asked from here.
They would also ask you to write a short paragraph as to why you’re applying for the course that you chose. From my personal experience, your answers don't have to be fancy. A few lines as to why you like the subject are enough. Mention how you got interested in it, if you want to make a career out of it, and how you feel St. Stephen’s will help out with your goal.
Once you’re done with this lengthy application, it's time to wait for the cut-offs. These will determine if you’re going to get an interview call letter or not.
Cut-Offs
As soon as the cut-offs are released, if you've qualified the cut-off, you'll get your interview call letter specifying the date and time of your interview. For a few courses like honours in Math, Economics or most languages, you’ll be asked to give an aptitude test as well. Since I applied for honours in mathematics, my call letter had date and time for both the aptitude test and the interview.
Aptitude Test
If your course requires an aptitude test, you can expect it to happen on the same day as your interview.
What to study for the test: The syllabus related to your course subject from class 11 and 12 is usually enough for this test, but you could be given some general logic questions too. For example, for my math degree, my aptitude test consisted of questions from calculus, trigonometry, probability and logical reasoning.
Format of test: Short answer questions, maybe an MCQ or two, general reasoning. The pattern is fairly similar to your board exam questions, but the test is much shorter.
Does it significantly affect your selection: Yes! Even though more importance is given to your board results, performing well on this test can be the difference between getting selected or not. Most people sitting for the interview along with you will have fantastic grades. That's why they were called for the interview in the first place — because they qualified the really high cut off. So don’t expect your grades to be enough. Try to give your best in the test, it can be the deciding factor between you getting selected over someone else.
Interview
Your interview is more of a personality test rather than an aptitude test. I feel they just want to see if you’ll fit in at Stephen’s or not. Of course, they'll ask you questions related to your course, so definitely be prepared with your Class 11 and 12 syllabus.
What Happens:
You’ll be called in and there would usually be 3–5 senior members (professors) interviewing you. The principal may be present as well. You’ll be asked questions from your course subject, your application form, your hobbies, interests, future plans and ambitions. Be well versed with what you wrote in your application form, they may pick up any point and question you about it. Also, keep in mind your strongest topic from your applied course subject, they may ask you what your favourite topic is and question you from it.
My Interview:
I can confidently say that my interview DIDN’T go well. I was asked 2–3 math questions, which I wasn't able to answer that well. I did give fairly correct answers, but took A LOT of time and had to be given a couple of hints by the professors.
I was asked a logic-based question which I answered really well. (This might have been my saving grace).
I was also questioned about my hobbies from my application form, asked about my future plans and any goals I had for myself.
I may not have been the best at the academic section, but I did very well in all other questions, and as I said, this is more of a personality round, so you need to be confident.
Tips:
- You have to be confident.
- You need to be passionate about the subject you're applying for. Academics at Stephen’s are taken seriously. I was straight up asked if I would be willing to take up any other subject at Stephen’s if I didn't get into Math, but I refused and said that I am only interested in Mathematics. I wasn't at all interested in taking up any other subject, even if it was at Stephen’s, and I conveyed that to my interviewers.
- Don’t panic if you don't know an answer, or if you take a lot of time. I took my time answering my questions and my interviewers asked me why I took so long and I told them honestly “I was feeling nervous ”. Be honest and let them know if you don't know something or need extra time.
- DO. NOT. LIE. Don’t say you know something if you don't, don't pretend to have read books that you've not read. They can ask you about those things and you would have to answer. Just be honest.
Why I think I was selected
Here’s why I feel I was selected:
- Good Academics, being among the top scorers in your school/state really helps.
- I was very passionate about my subject, and I was able to convey that well.
- My aptitude test had gone quite well
- Even though I took a lot of time to answer the interview questions, I did manage to explain my solutions. I had also answered the logic-based questions well, both in the interview and the aptitude test.
- I had clearly mentioned about my goals in both the application form and the interview. I was confident while answering any questions related to further study and ambitions.
- I had a bunch of extracurricular activities, from sports to art and crafts. Nothing too major, but whatever I had taken up, I had done well in.
- I had won a couple of national olympiads at the school level.
- Was quite down to earth and honest throughout the interview
Is it worth it?
As someone that has studied in Stephen’s for almost 3 years now, do I think it lives up to all expectations?
Yes!
The people I’ve met at Stephen’s have been some of the nicest and most caring people I have come across in my life. The students are absolutely amazing and the Professors really care about the learning and understanding of the students. I cannot stress enough how many efforts our professors would take to make sure we were understanding the subject.
Besides the academic aspects, Stephen’s is very popular among employers and top companies. You can expect to have a lot of options when it comes to campus placements, and you definitely have the advantage of being from such a good college. I have been through the placement process and can confirm that getting a job was quite easy and smooth, Stephen’s has one of the best Campus Placement Cells and it plays to your advantage.
You learn so much by being at Stephen’s and I definitely feel it makes you a better person, both inside and out. It is one of the most prestigious colleges in the country and it lived up to all its expectations for me.
For a lot more information about life at Stephen’s, I would strongly recommend you check out the following website. You’ll find almost everything related to Stephen’s, told by Stephenians themselves.
