NEET Exam: Know All About Application Process, Eligibility, Admit Card, Syllabus, Selection Process

The National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) is a common national-level entrance examination conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA). It is the gateway to all Undergraduate and Postgraduate medical courses in all the medical colleges and institutions, including the ones governed under any other law. Through NEET, aspirants can get admission to MBBS and BDS courses in any of the AIIMS institutes, JIPMER Puducherry, and PGIMER Chandigarh.

NEET Exam Pattern Overview

From 2020 onwards, the pattern of the NEET exam has undergone slight changes in terms of duration. Earlier, the NEET exam was held for 3 hours. Now students are allotted 3 hours and an additional 20 minutes to complete the paper. Find the NEET exam pattern in the table below:

NEET Exam Eligibility Criteria

Aspirants looking to appear for the NEET exam are required to fulfill a set of eligibility criteria as specified by the NTA. These criteria are determined based on the candidate’s age, nationality and academic qualification. Check the NEET exam eligibility criteria below before proceeding with the application process:

• The minimum age of the applicant must be 17 years
• The applicant must be an Indian National/Foreign National/OCI/NRI/PIO
• The candidate must have qualified 10+2 or equivalent with at least 50% aggregate (45% for PwD candidates and 40% for SC/ST/OBC candidates) from a recognized Board
• The candidate must have studied Science subjects (Physics, Chemistry, Biology/Biotechnology) along with English in 10+2 or equivalent

Any candidate who does not meet one or more of the above parameters is considered ineligible to sit for the NEET exam.

How to Apply for NEET Exam?

NEET Exam Application or Registration process is done online. Every year, NTA releases the official notification a few months prior to the NEET exam date. Aspirants usually have over a month’s time to register, fill out and submit their application forms through the official NTA NEET website. Here are the steps to apply for NEET:

• Visit the official website of NTA NEET
• Click on ‘Registrations for NEET-UG 2022 on the homepage
• Register yourself using a new ID and Password – you are advised to remember or note down the User ID and Password for future reference
• Enter your personal and academic details to fill out the online application form
• Upload your recent, coloured, scanned Passport-sized photograph and signature/thumb impression along with the relevant documents
• Next, proceed to the payment tab to pay the required application fee (INR 1600 for General candidates, INR 1500 for OBC-NCL/EWS candidates, and INR 900 for ST/SC/PwD candidates)
• Applicants can choose to pay the amount online via Net Banking/Credit Card/Debit Card/UPI or offline
• Once done, submit the NEET Application Form and take a printout of the ‘Confirmation Page’ for your reference

*Note that the submission of your NEET Application Form will be considered final only after you have successfully paid the requisite amount.

Steps to Download Admit Card for NEET Exam

NTA releases the NEET Admit Card a week before the test day on its website. Candidates are notified of the same via email/SMS alerts. However, one must keep in mind that the admit cards will not be sent out via courier. To download the admit cards before the NEET exam, candidates must follow these steps:

• Log in to the official NTA NEET portal
• Click on the ‘NEET 2022 Admit Card’ tab
• Provide DOB and Application No. from the dropdown menu, enter the Security PIN and hit the ‘Submit’ button
• The admit card will be displayed on the screen
• Thoroughly check all the details mentioned on the admit card – sometimes, there may be a spelling error or misprint in the information provided, which needs to be rectified at the earliest
• Next, hit the ‘Save and Download’ button to get your NEET Admit Card
• Take a printout of the same for future reference

*Any discrepancy or error in details mentioned on the admit card must be reported immediately to the National Testing Agency

The NEET Hall Ticket will feature all details related to your exam centre – name and address of the allotted centre, date and time of the exam etc. All candidates are to carry the NEET Hall Ticket without fail to the test centre on the day of the examination. Anyone who does not have a valid admit card will be barred from entering the exam hall and taking the entrance test.

NEET Exam Syllabus

The syllabus of the NEET Exam comprises chapters and topics that are already covered in Class 11 and 12 Science curricula. Therefore, most students must be familiar with the topics. However, for better understanding, here are the highlights of the syllabus below:

All the topics mentioned above are described in detail in the NCERT textbooks. Therefore, while preparing for the NEET Exam, candidates must go through these chapters thoroughly besides referring to other books. Online study materials and tutorials can also help clear your concepts. When it comes to NEET Exam preparation, the key to success is to revise, practice and solve as many sample papers as possible. Refer to the previous years’ question papers and start taking mock tests regularly to improve your speed and accuracy.

NEET Exam Results and Counselling

NTA publishes the results of the NEET Exam on the website usually a month after the test. Following the NEET Results, a list of candidates based on merit is published for the counselling round. Candidates who manage to secure the minimum cutoff and feature in the NEET Merit List are considered eligible for the counselling session.

Admission After NEET Exam

Following the counselling rounds, candidates are finally selected based on the marks secured in the NEET Exam, the choice of college/institute, and the availability of seats in the respective colleges.