ISM is good because its tag helps in getting better opportunities in the future. If you're average at coding, even then do not worry because at ISM you will anyway get good packages. Being a government college, the syllabus at ISM Dhanbad is better.

ISM has a placement rate of 100% for CSE in IIT Dhanbad. If you're planning to study abroad then the IIT degree will matter greatly for admission to any foreign University.

As for BITS Pilani, surely it ranks among the top educational institutes in India for engineering. It is on par with the top IITs and the placement rate is 100% like at ISM Dhanbad.

The campus keeps getting renovated and holds a photographic charm with state-of-the-art facilities. The crowd is amazing as well. You can decide based on your location, future goals, preferred weather if you will- because both institutes are at par with each other.

BITS Pilani Work Integrated MTech program is for experienced professionals who want to upgrade their knowledge in the same field. Usually, the company asks you to pursue this program or you yourself want to expand your skills. 

This course is not a good choice if you are seeking a career in academics or are willing to switch fields or companies. But if you want to climb the hierarchy in the same organization and improve your job prospects then the program is the one for you. 

The program will be a unique experience and expand your knowledge base efficiency although the degree itself might not be very useful. 

My friend shared her daily routine at BITS Pilani. She woke up at 7:30- 8 in the morning. She takes a bath and gets ready for breakfast. After a fulfilling meal, she looks up at her timetable and then proceeds to the classes. Inside the classes here you will find students. type. 

Lab sessions are interesting but here again, many students just come to pass their time. After classes, students take a short nap and wake up for snacks in the evening. 

In the evening students can be seen playing sports or hitting the gym. Soon it’s dinner time and students rush for mess registration. After dinner, students go to their rooms and play games or watch movies. Midnight cravings are catered to by the all-night canteen. In case there is a quiz the following day, all the students gather in a single room and prepare for the same.

Overall, the hostel life here is very relaxed and students get time to pursue their hobbies and interests. 

The two-year on-campus MBA in Business Analytics program at BITS Pilani is offered through its Department of Management (DOM) at the Pilani campus. The program was launched in the academic year 2021-22.

BITS Pilani MBA program is not well known among many MBA aspirants and the number of students it attracts is considerably less. Although the program has been improving every year to meet industry demand and attract more students. It can be easily compared to the MBA program of IITs. Here are a few e pros and cons of the program

Pros

• The 2 years program fee for MBA in Business Analytics at BITS Pilani is Rs.12 lakhs, which is lower than most of the top MBA programs offered in India.
• BITS Pilani MBA has three Semesters of rigorous on-campus training coupled with an option of either 6 months’ exposure to the industry through a structured Paid Internship (Practice School) or a Dissertation. So you gain work experience alongside studying.
• The students are allowed to sit for university placements and thus the placements have improved tremendously The highest salary of the 2021-2023 batch was INR 22 LPA and the average package was recorded at INR 15.9 LPA. Some of the top recruiters at BITS Pilani include Accenture, Cognizant, Toyota, Bombardier, Maybank, Zomato, HolidayIQ, KPMG, IndiaMART, etc
• The low batch strength ensures individual attention to all students. 

Cons: 

• The program is less popular among MBA aspirants
• The faculty pool is small and more professors are needed to handle the program well.
• The institute faces a location disadvantage.
• The program is not suitable for those with work experience of more than 3-4 years.
• Needs to add more electives to ensure flexibility in the curriculum.

Overall, the program is a good choice for freshers but not for experienced professionals.

BITS Pilani conducts its own entrance test, BITS Aptitude Test (BITSAT), to admit students to its various engineering and science programs offered by its three campuses at Pilani, Hyderabad, and Goa. Generally, it is seen that the cut-offs of the first round of counseling are very much high. This is because many students tend to leave the institute after they get admission at some IITs or NITs or any other college of their choice.

The cut-offs decrease significantly in the second round of counseling. Now how much it will decrease is very difficult to predict at any stage. Each year the candidate pool is different. But if you look at the 1st round cut-off and the final round cut-off you will get the picture.

Here are a few basic points of difference between IIT and BITS Pilani. 

• The competition at IITs is more intense than at BITS Pilani as it attracts better peers
• The cultural, sports and tech clubs are active in both institutes so I dont think they are comparable. BITS Goa even has club outings to beaches and treks.
• BITS Pilani has a very hectic academic environment here, especially in the first year. The duration of semesters is longer in the first year and studies take place 6 days a week against IIT Bombays 5 days a week.
• IITs have strict campus and hostel rules while life at BITS is comparatively relaxed and free of restrictions giving a sense of freedom to its students.
• BITS Pilani has slightly better placements with an average package of around INR 30.37 LPA against IIT Bombay's average package of INR 23.26 LPA.
• The hostel facilities of BITS are way better than the old IIts though the mess food is somewhat similar. IIT Bombay has better sports facilities in comparison to BITS. 
• BITS Pilani has an excellent coding culture and its large number of GSoC selections is a testament to the same. 
• BITS has a no-attendance policy while IIT Bombay has a 75–80% attendance rule in a few courses.
• BITS Pilani fees are as high as ?5.42 Lakhs for the first year alone while IIT Bombay fees are INR 218500 for the first year. BITS fees are almost double IIT fees.
• BITS Pilani has a no-reservation policy thus the students are equally smart and have been admitted solely on the basis of merit. IITs on the other hand have a reservation policy and thus the student body is a mixed bag of toppers and average students.
• IIT Bombay has a better research culture than BITS Pilani.

Overall both BITS and old IITs have their unique strengths and weaknesses and the ultimate decision should be on the basis of your personal preferences. 

No, there are no donation seats in BITS Pilani and all the students are admitted solely on the basis of merit. In fact, my friend told me about an incident here that further proved that BITS Pilani has no donation seats. A very rich person wanted his son to get admitted here and was willing to give a hefty donation for the same. The director of BITS Pilani strongly refused saying they accept students on a merit basis only and no amount of money will get him a seat no matter what. 

This brought to light the transparency of admissions here and strengthened my faith in BITS Pilani. 

Your grades don't necessarily determine your skills and capabilities. I have seen many low graders who are successful today thanks to the excellent exposure and opportunities they got at BITS Pilani. In fact, one of my friends even claims that BITS Pilani alumni have something charming about them that is missing in IITians. I attribute this to the splendid campus life of this institute. 

Life here is so dynamic and indulging that without even realizing your personality is groomed and you become a different person when you graduate. A close friend of mine had a very low CGPA and had almost given up on MS or Ph.D. After working for a couple of years he finally apple for one and got selected in the US. He realized his BITS tag and the knowledge he gained there gave him an edge over other batchmates. 

So yes grades do matter but only to a certain extent. Ultimately it is your hard work and consistency that makes you successful and stands apart from the crowd.