As the scores are low you might not end up being in the college or institute you want to. But, if you do proper research you might at least land in a better place instead of getting admission to the wrong college.

If ever you are skeptical about the eligibility criteria, always check the brochure, it usually contains the eligibility condition which the candidate needs to fulfill.

Moreover, with the latest ISI Brochure, there are no percentage/grade criteria for applying, except if you are applying through GATE score in M.Tech.

ISI Delhi is a better option than ISI Kolkata when it comes to MSQE. However, if you are from West Bengal or any nearby place, ISI Kolkata must be your first preference. Moreover, if you are looking for placements desperately then it would be best suited your first option.

But on the other hand, if you want to be an economist, then you should pursue a Ph.D. in economics without any second thoughts from ISI Delhi.

When placements are looked at, then you might feel disappointed as both campuses have average placement records. Last year, approximately 31 out of 51 students were selected for ISI Delhi and only 14 out of 17 were selected for ISI Kolkata. Moreover, there is a lot of gap in the selection percentage, therefore, it can be concluded that none of them is easier.  

One of my friends graduated from ISI, Delhi Campus. So I might be able to give you some information about it.

• For the Kolkata and Delhi campuses, I don’t believe there are separate MSQE exams. 
• When filling out the application, you must choose between Kolkata and Delhi.
• If nothing has changed since 2009, which I assume it has, you will only have to take one exam and select your campus on the application form.

However, in Delhi and Kolkata, interviews are performed at the relevant locations. That is, students who are chosen in a Delhi interview are admitted to ISI Delhi, and vice versa.

Having to know some people studying at both Simsree and KJ Somaiya and here are some things that you should know. They both are equally good.

• Both the institutes, for their MMS course, teach the same syllabus specified by the University of Mumbai. So, according to the content, there is no difference.
• This is generally a good thing that you are specializing in something that roughly 4 to 5% of the batch will specialize in. 
• It is not as difficult for the placement committee to get companies with specific profiles.
• The institutes have been there for a fairly long time and both have a steady pool of recruiters. Therefore, placements are not very problematic. 
• Having said that, placements depend on multiple factors, and nothing can be guaranteed.
• K J Somaiya has more full-time faculty members whereas SIMSREE has more visiting faculty members. But cannot say the same about the operations specialization.

Irrespective of where you go, your responsibility is to get better, participate in competitions, do certifications, and improve yourself holistically. The institute cannot impose anything if you have no intention of doing it.

While choosing between Kolkata or the Delhi campus students should apply to any one of them and not in both of them. Some commonly known facts regarding this are: -

• Both ISI Kolkata and ISI Delhi are very good for pursuing Masters in Economics.
• Both of the institutes have excellent faculty in their fields.
• Placements for both the institutes are really good, especially for PhDs.
• The interview list for ISI Delhi has been found to be bigger than that of ISI Kolkata

People believe that it is easier to get into ISI Kolkata when compared to ISI Delhi because of the location and fewer competitors for the institute which is absolutely wrong. Both the institutes have the same cutoff and entrance exam. The criteria for the selection of students is also the same in both the institutes therefore it is equally hard for the students to get into both.

According to a report published it has been observed that students find it easier to get into ISI Kolkata when compared to ISI Delhi. The cutoff criteria change every year and for last year it was: -

• For ISI Delhi the cutoff was said to be near 400 out of 600 according to the stats released in the official page.
• For ISI Kolkata the cutoff was said to be near 310 out of 600 from the same source.

Overall ISI Delhi is the better option here but ISI Kolkata is the safer one.