From being a CAT topper to running a YouTube channel for students, how Chhavi Gupta is making her mark

In 2011, she cracked JEE Advanced and was selected for BTech in Biotechnology at IIT Delhi. Subsequently, she did an MTech in the same field and graduated with an 8.57 out of 10 CGPA in 2016. Later, she cleared CAT scoring 100 percentile.

Gupta, a Delhi resident, was studying at IIM Ahmedabad when she started her YouTube channel in 2019 as many CAT aspirants wanted to know her preparation plan. “I realised there’s a big knowledge gap and students are looking for guidance. It started as a question and answer platform and then I just continued with it, making more and more information, content and learnings available,” she said.

Talking about women at IITs and IIMs, Chhavi shares how there is a tragically low number in the classroom as compared to men. “In my BTech class, there were around 10 per cent women students. The percentage during the MBA was comparatively better as there were 33 per cent of them. However, even that isn’t a great number,” she said.

Many believe that IIMs have a gender bias towards women. “As CAT is an entrance test, therefore everyone who appears for it is selected on the basis of merit. Secondly, there are some marks for gender and academic diversity because when studying business administration, we need to know the opinions from all sectors. Also, it has been introduced to encourage more women and people from different fields to take up MBA. However, the benefit that is given is not much and neither is it available everywhere,” Gupta said.

She elaborates on why there are fewer women pursuing management than men. “One of the main reasons is societal pressure. Many girls are forced by their families to quit studying after a certain age. Even in today’s time and age, I meet a lot of young women who tell me they have limited time to clear the CAT as their family is pushing them to get married. This also affects their mental strength as they are constantly anxious. Due to this, many women settle for whatever college they get even if they want a better institute. However, the good part is that the numbers are improving. Now, the resources available to women have also improved,” she said.

Talking about the government’s initiative to encourage more and more women to pursue STEM courses, Chhavi feels it is an important move in the right direction. “It is imperative that we encourage girls to take up STEM courses and break the stereotype that women can’t perform well in technical courses,” she said.