NEET-UG exam to be conducted online? Health Ministry, NMC on board to switch

The Union health ministry and National Medical Commission (NMC) are learnt to have finally come on board to enable switching the NEET-Undergraduate exam from one based on pen and paper Optical Mark Reader (OMR) to a JEE-like computer-based one, backed with two other likely 'reform' moves.

ET gathers that the health ministry/NMC have assessed that to effectively reform and revamp the NEET-UG exam format, the eligibility criteria will also require some changes -- both on class 12 scores cut-off limit and the number of attempts at the exam.

Factor this: Currently, a student must have scored a minimum aggregate of 50% in Physics, Chemistry, and Biology/Biotechnology in Class 12 boards to be able to appear for the NEET-UG exam.


The other major school exit exam -- Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) -- that determines admission to engineering colleges, however, requires a student to attain a minimum of 75% in class 12 boards. The higher cut-off in JEE serves two purposes: One, students cannot ignore school-level study and two, it helps to filter out overall student pool and ensure a certain base level of competence.

The health ministry and the NMC are of the view that a similar higher cut-off may be necessitated for NEET-UG, as it heads to a CBT mode. The second area that may see change is the number of attempts at the exam. While in case of NEET-UG there is no limit to the number of attempts by a student, for JEE Main, a student can attempt the exam six times (twice a year window) for a maximum of three consecutive years.

For JEE Advanced, which determines admission to IITs, a student can attempt the exam a maximum of two times in two consecutive years. Similarly, most other entrance exams, including recruitment ones by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC), also have a prescribed limit on the number of attempts.

While the NEET-UG dispensation has not decided on the number of attempts that should be permitted in a revamped exam, there is clarity that some barriers must be built in.

Apart from bringing some kind of control over the number of candidates, the attempt barrier is expected to also filter out the student pool. NEET-UG 2024 saw nearly 24 lakh students in the fray, a number that has been growing every year even as the total number of medical seats in the country are near a lakh.

Meanwhile, the NEET-UG switch to CBT is becoming clearer by the day. In its latest affidavit to the Supreme Court, the National Testing Authority this week stated that in order to ensure the sanctity of the exam, it is considering options to 'replace the mode of conduct of examination' for future NEET exams -- 'conversion from pen and paper mode (OMR based) to computer-based test mode'.

ET has also reported earlier that the high-level panel on exam reforms under former ISRO chairperson K Radhakrishnan is also strongly pitching for a shift of NEET-UG to CBT mode to control possible instances of leaks and manipulations.

While the health ministry had resisted the CBT shift for NEET-UG in 2018 citing the necessity of doing it on a single day and logistical concerns, their own experience with NEET-PG on CBT mode has been largely successful, sources said. In view of the same and the learnings from the NEET-UG 2024 leak allegations, the ministry is preparing for a CBT format for the mega exam as well.