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Hello,
Software Engineering is a 4-year course.
To be able to become a software engineer, you need to have PCM (physics, chemistry and mathematics) combination in your class 12th. After your class 12th board examinations are over, you need to appear for various entrance examinations.
I would suggest, you should appear for IIT-JEE and AIEEE. These two entrance examinations provide admissions in IITs/ NITs and other government colleges, which are cost-effective.
I would also suggest, you should appear for individual state examinations (OJEE in Odisha, EAMCET in Andhra Pradesh/Telangana, COMEDK in Karnataka, etc.). These exams also guarantee you good colleges and serve as a backup in case things don't end up the way you've planned for IIT/ AIEEE.
Every state has its own share of good engineering colleges. So, don't underestimate or overlook them. They can prove to be vital. The more the entrance examinations you appear for, the more the options you will have for choosing colleges.
Certain private colleges like SRM, KIIT (Odisha), GITAM (Vishakhapatnam) and ITER (Odisha) conduct their own entrance examinations. You can opt for these as well.
After the results of those entrance examinations are announced, if you have a valid score and rank, you can attend the counselling procedure for the respective entrance examination. During the counselling procedure, you can select a college of your choice and the branch of engineering which you wish to opt for (depending on availability). Here you can choose software engineering, computer engineering or information technology. All the three branches mentioned have more or less the same syllabus.
I hope it helps. If so, kindly, upvote this answer. If you've any further questions, kindly revert.