NEET or National Entrance cum Eligibility Test is an entrance exam for medical courses like MBBS, BDS, and Post Graduation in both government and private medical colleges. The NTA – National Testing Agency, the regulatory body for NEET UG Exam, conducts it every year in various parts of India. This objective question based (MCQ) entrance test is carried in an offline mode with nearly 11-13 lakhs candidates applying every year. The latest news indicates that the number of applications received for NEET 2020 is nearly 15.93 lakhs.
On April 28th, 2016, the Honourable Supreme Court approved the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test(NEET) as a single-level examination. This developed three days before the AIPMT 2016 exam had created havoc amongst medical aspirants who were studying for different medical entrance exams throughout India.Here are the important highlights of NEET 2021.
Before filling NEET 2021 application form, candidates are advised to find out if they are eligible to apply for it. NEET eligibility criteria 2021 has been set by the National Testing Agency and states the basic requirements to appear for the entrance test. The criteria have been summarised in the table given below.
Nationality | Indian Nationals Foreign Nationals NRI PIO OCI |
Age | Candidate must be at least 17 years of age as on December 31, 2021 |
Minimum Qualification | Class 12 or equivalent from a recognised institute |
Mandatory Subjects | Physics, Chemistry and Biology |
Minimum marks required in the qualifying examination | General: 50 percent PWD: 45 percent SC/ ST/ OBC: 42 percent |
Number of permitted attempts | No limit specified by NTA |
The important dates for NEET 2021 are mentioned below:
Events | Dates* |
Information brochure will be released | Second week of January 2021 |
Registration will begin | Second week of January 2021 |
Deadline to fill the application form | Third week of February 2021 |
Successful transaction of application fee | Third week of February 2021 |
Correction window | First week of February 2021 |
NEET 2021 exam day | Third week of June 2021 |
*Tentative dates, subject to change.
NEET Syllabus 2021 comprises of three subjects – Physics, Chemistry and Biology. Topics covered in these three subjects from Class 10 to Class 12 are all included in the syllabus of NEET 2021. Candidates who wish to appear for the examination are advised to go through the NEET syllabus 2021 before starting their preparation. In this article, we have divided the syllabus of NEET 2021 into two parts, that is, the topics covered in Class 11 and those covered in Class 12. As the official NEET syllabus will be announced with the admission notification in December, candidates can refer to the syllabus given below during the interim period to start their preparation. Along with the syllabus of NEET 2021, this article also includes a list of the books suggested by experts and toppers. Read the complete article to get all the information about the NEET syllabus, chapter-wise weightage and the best books.
Important Highlights of NEET 2021 | |
Exam Name | NEET (National Eligibility cum Entrance Test) |
Conducting Body | NTA (National Testing Agency) |
Mode of Exam | Pen-paper based |
Expected number of Applicants | Around 16 lakhs |
Exam Duration | 3 hours |
Seats Offered | Admission of around 1 lakh MBBS and BDS seats under 85% State quota seats and 15% All India seats |
Courses Offered | MBBS and BDS |
NEET 2021 Application Form will be released in the second week of December. The application process will be online and candidates have to register themselves on the official website in order to fill the application.
For successful completion of the NEET 2020 application process, a candidate has to go through the four steps. To help understand the process better, the steps have been elaborated below.
Documents Required in NEET Application Form 2021
Documents | Specifications | Size | Format |
Scan of Photograph |
|
10 Kb to 100 Kb |
JPG/JPEG |
Scan of Signature | Signature of candidate in black ink on white background | 3 Kb to 20 Kb |
JPG/JPEG |
Scan of thumb impression |
|
10 Kb to 50 Kb | JPG/JPEG |
Class X Passing Certificate | Clear scan of the passing certificate | 100 Kb to 300 Kb | JPG/JPEG |
Other things that must be kept handy |
|
Application Fee for NEET 2021
The application fee can be paid either through online process or offline process
NEET admit card 2021 will be released by the National Testing Agency (NTA). Candidates appearing for the examination will be able to download the NEET 2021 admit card using the link given below (will be activated in April). NEET admit card 2021 will be released online and candidates will be able to download it by logging into their registered accounts. They are advised to check the details printed on the NEET 2021 admit card before downloading it. In case of any errors, they must contact the concerned authorities immediately.
NEET 2021 is scheduled to be held on May 2 (tentatively). It is mandatory to carry the admit card of NEET 2021 to the exam centre if one wants to appear for the examination. NEET admit card 2021 will be issued to only those candidates who submit the NEET 2021 application form and the registration fee for it. Merely registering on the official website will not entitle a candidate to receive the NEET 2021 admit card. One must also note that the NEET admit card 2021 will not be sent by post to anyone and can be downloaded online only. To know the important dates, the procedure to download the admit card of NEET and other relevant information, read the complete article.
Events | Dates* |
Release of the admit card | Second week of April 2021 |
Last date to download the admit card | First week of May 2021 |
Exam date | First week of May 2021 |
*Tentative dates, subject to change.
Steps to download the admit card:
Mode of the examination | Offline | |
Medium/ Language | English, Hindi, Marathi, Bengali, Gujarati, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Oriya, Assamese, and Urdu | |
Duration of the examination | Three hours | |
Type of questions | Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs) | |
Total number of Questions | 180 | |
Total Marks | 720 | |
Negative marking | Yes | |
Marking Scheme | +4 for correct answer| -1 for an incorrect answer | |
Total sections in the question paper | 3 | |
Name of the section and number of questions asked from it | Physics | 45 |
Chemistry | 45 | |
Biology | 90 |
According to the exam pattern of NEET 2021, the NEET question paper will comprise of three sections- Physics, Chemistry and Biology. The table given below depicts the section-wise weightage and breakup of the question paper.
Subject | Number of Questions | Maximum Marks | |
Physics | 45 | 180 | |
Chemistry | 45 | 180 | |
Biology | Botany | 45 | 180 |
Zoology | 45 | 180 | |
Total | 180 | 720 |
NEET exam is considered to be one of the biggest and the most sought after exams for medical aspirants with the number of applicants increasing every year. This year it is anticipated to be around 1.6 million candidates. As there is ultimate competition in the number of candidates applying this year, naturally the difficulty level is ought to be high. Hence, this time around applicants should concentrate more on conceptual based questions compared to practice-based. Also, one should not forget that the answer may be simpler than the way questions are framed(tricky questions).
All in all, aspirants are required to focus more on their preparation by referring to previous years’ question papers, sample papers, being well-versed with mock tests and having a clear idea of the syllabus.
NEET, conducted by the NTA is a national level entrance examination for medical and dental aspirants taking place annually. NEET replaced AIPMT in the year 2016. NEET 2021 shall see around 114 colleges participating which includes both private and government colleges. All of these colleges abide by the regulations set out by the Medical Council of India (MCI). Listed below are some of the medical colleges participating in NEET 2021.
Name of The College Participating | State | Website |
Annamalai University | Tamil Nadu | www.annamalaiuniversity.ac.in |
Maulana Azad Medical College | New Delhi | https://www.mamc.ac.in/ |
Dr. D Y Patil University(Deemed),
Pimpri (Pune) |
Maharashtra | www.dpu.edu.in |
Assam University | Assam | www.aus.ac.in |
Delhi University | Delhi | www.fmsc.ac.in |
JSS University, Mysore | Karnataka | www.jssuni.edu.in |
Goa University | Goa | www.unigoa.ac.in |
Gujarat University | Gujarat | www.gujaratuniversity.ac.in |
Kerala University of Health Sciences, Thrissur | Kerala | www.kuhs.ac.in |
University of Rajasthan | Rajasthan | www.uniraj.ac.in |
List of NEET Exam Centres 2021
State | City | Test Centre Code |
Andaman & Nicobar Islands |
Port Blair |
1101 |
Andhra Pradesh |
Guntur |
1201 |
Kurnool |
1202 |
|
Nellore |
1203 |
|
Tirupati |
1204 |
|
Vijayawada |
1205 |
|
Visakhapatnam |
1206 |
|
Arunachal Pradesh |
Itanagar/Naharlagun |
1301 |
Assam |
Dibrugarh |
1401 |
Guwahati |
1402 |
|
Silchar |
1403 |
|
Tezpur |
1404 |
|
Bihar |
Gaya |
1501 |
Patna |
1502 |
|
Chandigarh |
Chandigarh/Mohali/Panchkula |
1601 |
Chhattisgarh |
Bhilai/Durg/Bhilai Nagar |
1701 |
Bilaspur |
1702 |
|
Raipur |
1703 |
|
Dadra & Nagar Haveli |
Dadra & Nagar Haveli |
1801 |
Daman & Diu |
Daman |
1901 |
Delhi/New Delhi |
Delhi/New Delhi |
2001 |
Goa |
Panaji/Madgaon/Margao |
2101 |
Gujarat |
Ahmedabad |
2201 |
Anand |
2202 |
|
Bhavnagar |
2203 |
|
Gandhinagar |
2204 |
|
Godhara |
2205 |
|
Patan |
2206 |
|
Rajkot |
2207 |
|
Surat |
2208 |
|
Vadodara |
2209 |
|
Valsad |
2210 |
|
Haryana |
Faridabad |
2301 |
Gurugram |
2302 |
|
Himachal Pradesh |
Hamirpur |
2401 |
Shimla |
2402 |
|
Jammu & Kashmir |
Jammu |
2501 |
Srinagar |
2502 |
|
Jharkhand |
Bokaro |
2601 |
Jamshedpur |
2602 |
|
Ranchi |
2603 |
|
Karnataka |
Belgaum/Belgavi |
2701 |
Bengaluru |
2702 |
|
Davanagere |
2703 |
|
Dharwad |
2704 |
|
Gulbarga/Kalaburgi |
2705 |
|
Hubli |
2706 |
|
Mangaluru |
2707 |
|
Mysuru |
2708 |
|
Udupi |
2709 |
|
Kerala |
Alappuzha |
2801 |
Angamaly |
2802 |
|
Ernakulam |
2803 |
|
Kannur |
2804 |
|
Kasaragod |
2805 |
|
Kollam |
2806 |
|
Kottayam |
2807 |
|
Kozhikode/Calicut |
2808 |
|
Malappuram |
2809 |
|
Palakkad |
2810 |
|
Thiruvananthapuram |
2811 |
|
Thrissur |
2812 |
|
Ladakh |
Leh |
4701 |
Lakshadweep |
Kavaratti |
2901 |
Madhya Pradesh |
Bhopal |
3001 |
Gwalior |
3002 |
|
Indore |
3003 |
|
Jabalpur |
3004 |
|
Ujjain |
3005 |
|
Maharashtra |
Ahmednagar |
3101 |
Akola |
3102 |
|
Amravati |
3103 |
|
Aurangabad (Mr) |
3104 |
|
Beed |
3105 |
|
Buldhana |
3106 |
|
Jalgaon |
3107 |
|
Kolhapur |
3108 |
|
Latur |
3109 |
|
Mumbai |
3110 |
|
Nagpur |
3111 |
|
Nanded |
3112 |
|
Nashik |
3113 |
|
Navi Mumbai |
3114 |
|
Pune |
3115 |
|
Satara |
3116 |
|
Solapur |
3117 |
|
Thane |
3118 |
|
Manipur |
Imphal |
3201 |
Meghalaya |
Shillong |
3301 |
Mizoram |
Aizawl |
3401 |
Nagaland |
Dimapur |
3501 |
Kohima |
3502 |
|
Odisha |
Angul |
3601 |
Balasore/Baleswar |
3602 |
|
Berhampur |
3603 |
|
Bhubaneshwar |
3604 |
|
Cuttack |
3605 |
|
Rourkela |
3606 |
|
Sambalpur |
3607 |
|
Puducherry |
Puducherry |
3701 |
Punjab |
Amritsar |
3801 |
Bathinda |
3802 |
|
Jalandhar |
3803 |
|
Ludhiana |
3804 |
|
Patiala |
3805 |
|
Rajasthan |
Ajmer |
3901 |
Bikaner |
3902 |
|
Jaipur |
3903 |
|
Jodhpur |
3904 |
|
Kota |
3905 |
|
Udaipur |
3906 |
|
Sikkim |
Gangtok |
4001 |
Tamil Nadu |
Chennai |
4101 |
Coimbatore |
4102 |
|
Cuddalore |
4103 |
|
Kanchipuram |
4104 |
|
Karur |
4105 |
|
Madurai |
4106 |
|
Nagercoil |
4107 |
|
Namakkal |
4108 |
|
Salem |
4109 |
|
Thanjavur |
4110 |
|
Thiruvallur |
4111 |
|
Tiruchirappalli |
4112 |
|
Tirunelveli |
4113 |
|
Vellore |
4114 |
|
Telangana |
Hyderabad |
4201 |
Karimnagar |
4202 |
|
Khammam |
4203 |
|
Rangareddy |
4204 |
|
Warangal |
4205 |
|
Tripura |
Agartala |
4301 |
Uttar Pradesh |
Agra |
4401 |
Allahabad/Prayagraj |
4402 |
|
Bareilly |
4403 |
|
Ghaziabad |
4404 |
|
Gorakhpur |
4405 |
|
Jhansi |
4406 |
|
Kanpur |
4407 |
|
Lucknow |
4408 |
|
Meerut |
4409 |
|
Noida/Greater Noida |
4410 |
|
Varanasi |
4411 |
|
Uttarakhand |
Dehradun |
4501 |
Haldwani |
4502 |
|
Roorkee |
4503 |
|
West Bengal |
24 Pargana(North) |
4601 |
Asansol |
4602 |
|
Bardhaman/Burdwar |
4603 |
|
Durgapur |
4604 |
|
Hooghly |
4605 |
|
Howrah |
4606 |
|
Kharagpur |
4607 |
|
Kolkata |
4608 |
|
Siliguri |
4609 |
For candidates who do not have access to the internet or need help in downloading the NEET 2021 admit card, NTA has set up various facilitation centres across the country. These centres aim to help those who do not have access to high-speed internet, especially candidates residing in rural areas.
The CSCs charge a nominal fee for the services provided by them. Refer to the table below for the fee chart.
Service | Fee (In Rs) |
Writing emails and filling the application form | 25 |
Online payment of the application fee | 0.5% of the application fee |
Downloading the admit card/ answer key/ OMR sheet | 10 |
Filing a response w.r.t the answer key | 25 |
Printing charges (per page) | 5 |
If candidates want to avail the facilities of a CSC, they will have to locate the nearest CSC. Visit the CSC on a working day between 9.30 am to 6 pm. They must carry all the requisite documents to the CSC. To locate the nearest CSC, visit the official website, csc.gov.in or call 011-24301349/ 18001213468
Due to a large number of test-takers, the NTA follows strict policies to maintain the discipline and fairness of NEET. Among the important policies is the dress code for NEET 2021. NTA has prescribed a dress code for the examination day along with a list of items that are barred in the examination hall. Below are a few important pointers about the dress code for NEET 2021:
Owing to the COVID-19 situation in India, NTA is expected to announce a new set of rules for NEET 2021. Masks and sanitisers will become an important part of NEET 2021 dress code. Updates regarding the dress code for NEET 2021 are awaited.
Exam day guidelines for NEET 2021 aim to help the candidates appearing for the examination have a hassle-free day and keep them stress-free and calm on the D-Day. This year, some additional exam day guidelines will be issued by NTA for NEET. These guidelines will be released in view of the exam being conducted during a pandemic. Meanwhile, candidates can refer to the general guidelines for NEET 2021 exam day that are given below.
What to carry on the exam day?
What not to carry?
NEET result 2021 will be announced in the first week of June. The result for NEET 2020 will be uploaded on the official website of NTA. Candidates will be able to check their result by logging into their registered accounts on the official website, ntaneet.nic.in. NTA will also release the NEET cut off marks for this year along with the result. Candidates must note that only those who score above the qualifying cut off will be eligible for admissions through NEET 2021. Refer to the table below to know the category-wise qualifying cut off pre-defined by the Medical Council of India.
Category | Qualifying Cut Off |
Unreserved category | 50th |
Unreserved category PwD | 45th |
Reserved category (including reserved category PwD) | 40th |
Aspirants of NEET 2021 can refer to the table below to know the NEET cutoff trends for the past four years. This will help them understand the difficulty level of the examination.
Category | Cut off marks (Opening and Closing) | |||
2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | |
Unreserved | 720-147 | 701-134 | 691-119 | 697-131 |
Unreserved PWD | 146-129 | 133-120 | 118-107 | 130-107 |
Reserved | 128-113 | 133-107 | 118-96 | 130-118 |
Reserved PWD | 128-113 | 133-107 | 106-96 | 130-107 |