NEET-UG & NEET-PG are the two medical entrance exams to get admission to government and private medical colleges in India. Both are national level exams and are conducted by NTA (National Testing Agency) and NBE (National Board of Examinations) respectively. These are yearly single window exams for the seats of all medical institutions in India except JIPMER and AIIMS. These two medical institutions were established through an act of parliament and they conduct separate entrance tests for their education programmes.
MBBS Entrance Exam
NEET - UG
NEET-UG (Under Graduate National Eligibility cum Entrance Test) is an offline pen & paper test conducted by NTA (National Testing Agency). It is a single shift national level exam to fill all the seats of MBBS, BDS, BAMS, BHMS, BUMS and other AYUSH courses in the Government and private medical colleges in India. NEET is now compulsory for students who want to pursue their MBBS/BDS degree abroad.
NTA is an independent and autonomous testing agency established by the government of India for conducting entrance tests for higher education institutions. The responsibility of NTA is restricted to conducting the test, publishing the result and providing an "All India Rank merit list" of candidates to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) for counselling. The following are the important events and dates published by NTA on its website:
- On-line submission of Application Form (including uploading of photograph and signature)
- Date for successful final transaction of fee
- Correction in particulars of Application Form (on website only)
- Printing of Admit Cards from NTA website
- Date of Examination
- Declaration of Result
- Dates for counselling
Website: www.ntaneet.nic.in
Eligibility to apply for NEET - UG
The Minimum age to apply for the test is 17 years and there is no maximum age limit. Candidates with a minimum of 50% marks in their 10+2 exam with PCB (physics, chemistry & biology) subjects can apply for the NEET examination. Students who appear for their 12 th standard examination, whose result is awaited, may also apply but should pass the qualifying exam with minimum 50% marks at the time of the first round of counseling. The marks criteria are as given below:
- For Unreserved (UR) category 50% marks at 10+2 exam
- For SC/ST/OBC non creamy layer 40% marks at 10+2 exam
- For Persons with Disability (PwD) 45% marks at 10+2 exam
PG Medical (MD, MS, Medical PG Diploma) Entrance Exam
NEET - PG
NEET PG is a national level entrance examination to post graduate medical courses in India and is conducted by National Board of Examinations (NBE). The medium of language of NEET PG is English. It is a yearly online test having duration of 3.5 hours for admission to Master of Surgery (MS), Doctor of Medicine (MD) and Medical PG Diploma.
NEET PG is a single window examination for admission to government, private and deemed medical universities in India. 50% of All India Quota seats & 50% State Quota seats, all the seats in case of Jammu and Kashmir and seats in Central & Deemed Universities and Armed Forces Medical Services institutions are filled through NEET PG.
Website: www.nbe.edu.in
Eligibility Criteria to apply for NEET - PG
- MBBS degree or provisional MBBS pass certificate with 50% aggregate marks
- The permanent or provisional registration certificate of MBBS qualification issued by Medical Council of India (MCI) or State Medical Council (SMC) and the candidates must produce either of the certificates at the exam hall. (It is not compulsory for foreign nationals to possess a provisional MCI registration certificate)
- Applicants have to complete 12 months of internship
- Indian citizens / Overseas Citizens of India (OCI) who have completed their Medical Education from outside India have to qualify in the Foreign Medical Graduate Examination (FMGE) conducted by NBE and have to complete their internship. They should carry FMCG pass certificate to the exam hall along with NEET PG admit card.
NEET PG counselling is conducted online and the minimum qualifying percentile for NEET PG for different categories is:
- 50 percentile for unreserved category
- 45 percentile for unreserved PH (physically Handicapped)
- 40 percentile for SC/ST/OBC
