One of the frequently heard complaints is that the "system" restricts the choices available. Students would like to choose (in decreasing order of seriousness!):
- Their own thesis problem (often not in an area of research at this institute)
- Their own combination of courses (e.g. mixed majors)
- Their own lab experiments
- Their own time-table for classes, labs etc.
There are, of course, organisational reasons why there cannot be as many choices as there are students! However, there is another important aspect of making choices --- when you make a choice you also take responsibility for it. You cannot blame anyone else for your choices.
The story of Ramanujan is a case in point. He was an excellent student in all subjects and then he decided that he was so fascinated with mathematics that he would not study anything else. As a result he failed his examinations and could not get an academic job. With 20/20 hindsight we might try to blame his teachers, the college, the system, etc.
However, it is important to remember that he never blamed anyone else for his choice. In his opinion, Mathematics was his calling, and nothing else mattered. He wrote a lot of letters to a lot of people asking them to look at his mathematical work but the letters never said "life is so unfair --- I am a genius and no one recognises me"!
This does not mean that one can only make choices if one is like Ramanujan. It is necessary to make some choices rather than be a "Jack of All Trades, Master of None".
So IISERM insists on choices of Core Electives, Choice of Majors, Choice of Electives, Choice of Project/PhD Thesis Guide etc.
There are some additional choices available such as self-study, one's own projects, extra-curricular activities. Each of these will "steal" time from regular academics --- possibly causing a fall in grades.
One should be willing to take the consequences of following one's chosen paths.