The National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) 2023 is the only medical entrance exam in the country for admission to MBBS, BDS courses. The exam duration was extended this year to 3 hours 20 minutes as well as the age criteria to apply for the exam was removed this time. The same process is likely to be followed for next year.
The National Testing Agency (NTA) usually releases the information brochure and registration forms around 3-4 months prior to the beginning of the exam. In 2022, the exam was held on July 17 and the application process began on April 6 and continued till May 6. In case of any changes are made in the exam pattern and eligibility criteria, NTA will announce the same in its information brochure.
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NEET: Eligibility Criteria
Educational qualification: Candidates must have cleared class 12 or equivalent with PCB as mandatory subjects.
Age Limit: The minimum age to be able to apply for NEET is 17 years. There is no upper age limit and candidates. It was eliminated last year.
NEET: Exam pattern
NEET is conducted in 13 languages including English, Hindi, Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Odia, Punjabi, Tamil, Telugu, and Urdu.
NEET consist of 200 multiple choice questions; each having four options with a single correct answer. The exam will be divided into three sections – physics, chemistry, and biology (botany and zoology). Each subject has 50 questions which will be divided into two sections (A and B).
| Sections | Number of Questions | Total Marks |
| Physics Section A | 35 | 140 |
| Physics Section B | 15 | 40 |
| Chemistry Section A | 35 | 140 |
| Chemistry Section B | 15 | 40 |
| Botany Section A | 35 | 140 |
| Botany Section B | 15 | 40 |
| Zoology Section A | 35 | 140 |
| Zoology Section B | 15 | 40 |
The total marks for the exam is 720. Each correct answer carries four marks and there is a negative marking of one mark for each wrong answer. The minimum marks required to pass the medical entrance for a candidate belonging to the unreserved category is 50 percentile, 45 percentile for PWD category, and 40 percent for SC, ST, and OBC.
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