Introduction

Kashmir is a land with education bearing immense significance for determining the social and economic fate of its young generation. In a place with geographical remoteness, poor industrial development, and societal-political settings, education is one of the only alternatives for betterment. Among all classes, the Class 10 and Class 12 board exams, conducted by the Jammu & Kashmir State Board of School Education or JKBOSE, are recognized as turning points. These results determine not only educational aptness, educational channeling, and subsequent employment, but they are also tested with their socio-economic impact on the geographical split based on gender criteria.
Every year, around 1.2 to 1.3 Lakh students get enrolled for the Class 10th and 12th Board exams in the state of Kashmir. If recent trends are to be noted, it has been observed that the overall passing percentage for the 10th standard stands between 84-86 percent, whereas for the 12th standard, it remains much lower, around 74-76 percent. This clearly indicates that almost a quarter of students lack the proper completion of higher secondary education, which, being a significant aspect, lacks proper alternative career opportunities in this particular state.
One of the striking features of board results in Kashmir is that girls always outshine boys. Statistics for the last few years reveal that girls manage a pass percentage of 86 to 88 percent, while boys have an average of 82 to 84 percent. But despite better academic records, only about 35 to 40 percent of them go for higher studies outside their home districts. Socio-cultural factors like restricted mobility, safety concerns, and traditional expectations become a hindrance to transposing academic excellence into wider career opportunities for girl students, reflecting an education-empowerment gap.
The choice of stream from class 10 onwards is a critical point in determining one’s future career. Students with better grades, usually above 75 percent, mostly opt for the Science stream and make up around 30-35 percent of the class since it holds prospects in engineering, medicine, and R&D. The next 25-30 percent opt for Commerce, while 35-40 percent opt for Arts or Humanities. The reason for this is not only interest but also a dearth of opportunities. The students from rural areas, including Kupwara, Bandipora, and Baramulla districts, usually don’t have access to the availability of science labs, coaching institutes, and technology infrastructure in order to make them consider science as their career option. This is evident from the point that a child from Sopore with 68 percent marks was counseled to pursue arts despite having interest in science.
There is a rural and urban difference as well. Cities like Srinagar have always shown pass percentages 8 to 10% higher than the rural area. This is because the urban students get the advantage of private coaching, better infrastructure, and internet connectivity, while the rural students struggle for preparation in examinations and concept development. Even during the virtual learning periods, the rural students experienced a drastic gap in learning, and this gap is already visible in the board results.
Results in Class 12 are even more important since they have a direct bearing on entering college as well as other professional courses. Many colleges in Kashmir that are affiliated with Kashmir University have a cutoff ranging from 70 percent to 85 percent in popular courses such as engineering or medical sciences. National-level competitive exams such as JEE, NEET, or CUET also require a high score in Class 12. A survey conducted among Class 12 Science students in Srinagar indicated that while 40 percent of them want to become engineers or pursue a medical profession, only 10-12 percent are eligible for such exams.
Aspirations related to one’s career are significantly impacted by the security associated with government service. According to surveys, more than 70% of youth have the aspiration for government service, although job opportunities are limited. Notably, while only 80% of government entry-level jobs demand Class 12 or equivalent passes, many youth are underemployed or forced into the informal sector despite being qualified. Indeed, in Pulwama, some of the youth who passed Class 12 with reasonable marks are currently working as “daily wage labour’s” or in retail because of the absence of direction, skill, and other job opportunities. This shows that merely relying on the results of the boards will not guarantee job and career security.
Alongside academic achievement, the result scenario on the Kashmir board is also accompanied by factors related to mental health and social pressures. Around 65 percent of students are under stress due to results, because of parental expectations and how education is their only way to secure their financial well-being. Such elements influence both their results and motivation levels, making way for counseling sessions and interventions.
However, in spite of all these, some students have managed to use the results obtained at the boards to pursue successful careers. Those who join learning institutions offering skill-based training in information technology, digital marketing, tourism, or even entrepreneurship manage to gain more success in terms of employment. In North Kashmir, some students who completed Arts but could not join any professional courses due to low marks managed successful careers by utilizing skills such as Tourism Services and Online Content Writing.
In Conclusion, the results for classes 10th and 12th for the Kashmir area are extremely crucial for determining the further education, as well as careers, of the students. The statistics show that Kashmiri women have been consistently performing well, that there exists a rural-urban gap, as well as a lack of proper careers being pursued by students due to high marks. By taking real-life examples from various regions, such as Baramulla, Sopore, Srinagar, and Pulwama, it becomes clear that infrastructure, consultancy, skill-based education, and socio-cultural patterns have a much bigger influence on defining a career for students compared to the results. If so, it can be seen that results need to be converted from numbers to meaningful careers for the youth of Kashmir.

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