NEET (UG)
1. Brief
Target Field
- Medicine
Tentative Month(s)
- Conducted annually. NEET 2022 was conducted on 17 July.
Duration
- 180 Mins
Eligible Candidates
- The Higher/Senior Secondary Examination or the Indian School Certificate Examination which is equivalent to the Class 12 Higher/Senior Secondary Examination.
Applicants
- Over 18 lakh registered for NEET (UG) 2022
Exam Medium
- English, Hindi, Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Odia, Punjabi, Tamil, Telugu, and Urdu.
Subjects
- Physics, Chemistry, and Biology (Botany & Zoology)
Age Limit
- Lower age limit of 17 years. The decision on the upper age limit is pending with Supreme Court of India, so all candidates are provisionally eligible for application.
Question Type
- Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs) with 4 options and only 1 correct option
Mode of Exam
- Offline mode only (pen and paper-based mode)
Number of Attempts
- Since NEET 2020 onwards, there is no such restriction on the number of attempts.
Exam Authority & Website
- National Testing Agency (NTA)
https://neet.nta.nic.in
What is NEET (UG) Exam?
The National Eligibility Cum Entrance Test (NEET) is the qualifying test for MBBS, BDS, BVSc, AH, and AYUSH (Ayurvedic, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homeopathy) programs in Indian medical, dental, veterinary and AYUSH colleges. This exam, which is conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA), has replaced the All India Pre Medical Test (AIPMT), JIPMER, and AIIMS entrance exams following a Supreme Court ruling. There are over 90,000 seats in MBBS and BDS across India.
The NEET (UG) syllabus is decided by the National Medical Commission and the questions in the exam are based on this syllabus.
Students must answer 45 multiple choice questions in each subject, i.e., Physics, Chemistry, Botany, and Zoology. While each correct answer gets you four marks, for each wrong answer, one mark is deducted. No mark is awarded or deducted for unanswered questions.
In NEET (UG) 2021, a system was also introduced to reduce the pressure and let students choose which 10 questions to answer out of 15 in Section B of each subject.
Exam Pattern of NEET (UG) 2021-Multiple Choice Questions
| Subject | Sections | No. of Questions | Need to Attempt | Total Marks |
| Physics | Section A | 35 | All questions | 140 |
| Section B | 15 | 10 out of 15 | 40 | |
| Chemistry | Section A | 35 | All questions | 140 |
| Section B | 15 | 10 out of 15 | 40 | |
| Botany | Section A | 35 | All questions | 140 |
| Section B | 15 | 10 out of 15 | 40 | |
| Zoology | Section A | 35 | All questions | 140 |
| Section B | 15 | 10 out of 15 | 40 | |
| Total | 720 | |||
2. Eligibility Criteria
What are the Eligibility Criteria for Appearing for NEET (UG) Exams?
Candidates are eligible to take the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test [NEET (UG)] exam if they are either appearing for or have cleared class 12 or equivalent exam. Candidates appearing for the class 12 exam must clear the qualifying exam to be eligible for admission to undergraduate courses. Candidates must be at least 17 years of age at the time of admission. The eligibility criteria also varies depending on whether a student is opting for state or all-India level. Over 85% of seats in MBBS/BDS courses are reserved for state counseling. Only 15% of seats are available for all-India counseling.
For State Quota, applicants should:
- Be a resident of the state and possess the requisite proof of residency.
- Have completed their schooling or Class 12 from the state.
For All-India Quota, applicants should:
- Be a citizen of India, UT of Ladakh, NRI, PIOs, OCIs & Foreign Nationals.
| Criteria | Details |
| Age Limit | Lower age limit of 17 years. No restriction on the upper age limit. |
| Qualifying Exam | Should have completed class 12 or an equivalent exam. Private candidates or those from Open School are not eligible. |
| Subjects in Qualifying Exam | Physics, Chemistry, Biology (Botany and Zoology). |
| Qualifying Marks | Recent trends indicate that the expected cut-off marks for NEET 2022 will be 50% marks for general category, 45% marks for PH candidates and 40% for candidates from the reserved category. The qualifying marks for NEET 2021 were 138 for general category and 108-137 for OBC/SC/ST category. |
| Nationality | Citizens of India, OCIs, PIOs, NRIs and foreign nationals can apply. |
| No. of Attempts | No restrictions on the number of attempts. |
| Reservation | OBC candidates: 27% reservation.
SC candidates: 15% reservation. ST candidates: 7.5% reservation. PWD candidates: 5% reservation. GEN – EWS candidates: 10% reservation. There is no reservation for women candidates in NEET, however, some states do have reservations for women candidates in medical colleges.
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3. Important Dates
What are the Important Dates for NEET (UG) Exams?
Due to Covid-19, the regular exam dates have been disrupted. While in 2021 the exam was held in September, in 2022 the date for the examination was 17th July 2022.
The important dates to watch out for are listed below along with the corresponding dates for 2021 and 2022.
| Important Events related to NEET 2022 | Important Dates |
| NEET 2022 Notification Release Date | 6 April 2022 |
| Application Link | Click Here |
| Last Date | 20 May 2022 up to 9:00 P.M. |
| Exam Date | 17 July 2022 |
4. Application Process
What is the Application Process for NEET (UG)?
The application for NEET (UG) is done online on the National Testing Agency website (https://neet.nta.nic.in).
The process needed to be followed to submit the application typically involves the following steps:
- Register for NEET (UG) Exam and Generate Login Credentials: Visit the NEET page on the NTA website nta.ac.in. Click on the “New Registration” link and enter personal information and contact details. Create a password and security pin. Registration will be completed and login credentials will be generated.
- Fill the Application Form: Once registration is done one can start filling the application form with personal details (nationality, address, aadhar card, bank account etc.) academic details (year of passing Class 12, qualifying exam percentage, code etc.) exam center and exam medium etc.
- Upload Scanned Pictures and Documents: After submission of the application form, to corroborate some of the details scanned, digital photograph, Class 12 mark sheet, Class 10 passing certificate, signature, left hand thumb impression etc. need to be uploaded in the specified dimensions and format.
- Pay NEET Application Fee: Once the application form and documents have been submitted, the application fees need to be paid on the website via debit/credit card, net banking or UPI. Service fees of 18% may be applicable. The exam date and slot will be automatically booked once the application fee is paid.
- Download Confirmation: Once the process is complete a confirmation page pops up. This should be downloaded and kept as an acknowledgement for reference. Applicants can also register their contact details to receive regular updates regarding the exam from NTA.
NTA also allows a window of a few days to correct the details entered in the form if you have made any mistakes. Once the official dates are notified, candidates can make any corrections that may be required only in the following fields:
- Father’s name
- Mother’s name
- Gender
- Category
- Nationality
- State code of eligibility
- Person with disability
- Discrepancy in uploaded documents
5. Cut-Off Marks
What is NEET Cut-Off and How is it Calculated?
The NEET (UG) cut-off is announced every year with the results and release of the answer key. This cut-off is the minimum qualifying mark required for admission in MBBS and BDS courses of all medical institutes in India.
The NEET cut-offs are announced in terms of percentile by the National Testing Agency (NTA). As defined by the NTA, a percentile rank is the percentage of score that falls below a given score in a group.
The following formula is applied to calculate the NTA percentile rank:
NTA percentile rank=
100 X Number of candidates appeared with raw score equal to or less than the candidate
Total number of candidates appeared
The cut-off or qualifying percentile released by NTA is used by Medical Counseling Committee (MCC) to further release the cut-off for All-India Quota Seats in central/deemed universities, AFMC and ESIC (15%), and State Quota Seats (85%).
The cut-off percentile is calculated on various factors such as:
- Number of candidates
- Difficulty level of the examination
- Overall performance of candidates
- Number of available seats in participating colleges
Of the 15,44,275 candidates who finally appeared for NEET (UG) 2021, 8,70,074 candidates qualified to participate in the counseling based on the cut-off.
NEET (UG) 2021 Cut-Off
| Category | Cut-Off Percentile | Cut-Off Marks |
| General | 50th percentile | 720 – 138 |
| SC/ST/OBC | 40th percentile | 137 – 108 |
| General – PWD | 45th percentile | 137 – 122 |
| SC/ST/OBC – PWD | 40th percentile | 121 – 108 |
NEET (UG) Cut-Off Trend of Past Three Years
| Category | 2021-Percentile & Cut-Off Marks | 2020-Percentile & Cut-Off Marks | 2019-Percentile & Cut-Off Marks |
| General | 50th percentile (720 – 138) | 50th percentile (720 – 147) | 50th percentile (701-134) |
| SC/ST/OBC | 40th percentile (137-108) | 40th percentile (146-113) | 40th percentile (133-107) |
| General – PWD | 45th percentile (137-122) | 45th percentile (146-129) | 45th percentile (133-120) |
| SC/ST/OBC – PWD | 40th percentile (121-108) | 40th percentile (128-113) | 40th percentile (119-107) |
6. Counseling Procedure
What is NEET (UG) Counseling and How is it Done?
After the NEET (UG) results are announced, the next step for gaining admission in medical colleges across India is joining the counseling process.
Counseling process is the process of allotment of seats and is managed at two levels:
- 15% – All-India Quota Seats are managed by The Medical Counselling Committee (MCC).
- 85% – State Quota Seats are handled by the concerned State Counseling Authorities who release their own state merit list. Candidates should visit the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, and Medical Education Directorates of States to check the details.
The Medical Counselling Committee (MCC) under The Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) manages the allotment of seats of:
- 15% All-India Quota of Deemed Medical Universities
- 100% of
- Central Universities
- Employees’ State Insurance Corporation (ESIC)
- Armed Forces Medical College, Pune (AFMC)
- Vardhaman Mahavir Medical College (VMMC)
- Safdarjung Hospital (SJH)
- Atal Bihari Vajpayee Institute of Medical Sciences (ABVIMS)
- Ram Manohar Lohia (RML) (Central Institute)
- All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS)
- JIPMER
The counseling is completely online and conducted on the MCC website www.mcc.nic.in.
MCC conducts the following rounds of counseling for AIQ:
- Round 1 AIQ – Conducted online by MCC
- Round 2 AIQ – Conducted online by MCC
- Mop-Up Round – Conducted online by MCC
- Stray Vacancy Round – The list of registered candidates for this round is forwarded to the respective Deemed Universities/AIIMS/ESIC Authorities/Central University etc., by the MCC. This round is then conducted by the concerned institute/university and no fresh registration is required.
- Reservation for the 15% AIQ seats is as follows:
- 27% seats – OBC
- 15% seats – SC
- 5% seats – ST
- 5% seats – PWD
7. Preparation Procedure
How to Prepare for NEET (UG) Exams?
National Eligibility Cum Entrance Test [NEET (UG)] is conducted for admission to undergraduate courses including MBBS, BDS, AYUSH, and Veterinary colleges across India.
Aspirants need to put in hard work and apply the right techniques. The basics of preparation include:
- Start Early – It usually requires at least 2 years of focused studies to cover the syllabus properly.
- Download the latest syllabus from the NTA website and keep it handy.
- Ensure that the NCERT syllabus of Class 11th and 12th is properly covered.
- Create a study plan based on your current strength and weaknesses.
- Keep a study timetable and space it out to include rest periods so that fatigue does not set in.
- Solve as many papers as possible.
A new and breakthrough approach to preparation is to begin the learning with testing and assessment-led learning.
Besides taking the stress of the exam away assessment-led learning also speeds up the learning process. It helps students, diagnose their strengths and weaknesses in each subject, topic, and sub-topic and builds their competitive muscle in a gradual manner to help them achieve their best outcomes.
