NEST Exam 2020 - Dates, Registration, Eligibility, Syllabus, Results

What is NEST?

National Entrance Screening Test (NEST) is conducted jointly by National Institute of Science Education and Research (NISER), Bhubaneswar and Mumbai University - Department of Atomic Energy Centre for Excellence in Basic Sciences (UM-DAE CEBS), Mumbai. The Nest Exam is conducted annually to offer admission for Integrated MSc programmes in Biology, Chemistry, Mathematics and Physics. Candidates that are able to successfully qualify the exams will be offered admission in the above mentioned prestigious universities.

NEST 2020 application forms are scheduled to be available online from the first week of January 2020, however, the exact dates have not been released yet. The NEST Exam is conducted in the first week of June 2020 jointly by NISER (Bhubaneswar) and UM-DAE-CEBS (Mumbai). Aspirants can check all about NEST 2020 including exam dates for availability of online application forms, admit cards as well as eligibility criteria, seats intake and exam centres as mentioned on this page below.

NEST Exam 2020 Important Dates

Here are the tentative NEST 2020 exam dates.

NEST 2020 Eligibility Criteria 

The eligibility criteria for the NEST exam should have completed the following:

• Candidates should be a Class XII pass in science stream from a recognized board in India with a minimum of 60% aggregate marks. (55% for SC/PwD category candidates)
• Candidates should have passed Class XII either in 2017 or 2018. Candidates who have appeared for their Class XII exams in 2019 are also eligible to apply.
• Candidates should have studied a combination of three subjects - Biology, Mathematics, Chemistry and Physics in classes XI and XII.

Age Criteria

• Candidates belonging to General and OBC categories should be born on or after August 1, 1999, in order to fulfil the NEST eligibility criteria. Age limit of five years is given to candidates belonging to SC/ST/PwD category.
• Candidates belonging to OBC category, the OBC (NCL) certificate should be issued on or after June 1, 2018.

NEST Seat Intake

The exam is conducted in order to provide admission to candidates in five-year integrated MSc programme in basic sciences (Physics, Chemistry, Biology, and Mathematics) offered at both NISER and UM-DAE CEBS. Seats available at both institutes are as mentioned below:

Admissions in NISER, Bhubaneswar and UM-DAE CEBS, Mumbai are done on the basis of a candidate’s score in NEST exam. Candidates who have passed Class XII from Science stream are eligible to apply for NEST exam.

FAQs on NEST

Q. Who should give NEST exam?

A. Candidates need to appear for NEST exam in order to secure admission in five year integrated MSc programme in basic sciences (Physics, Chemistry, Biology, and Mathematics) offered at NISER and UM-DAE CEBS.

Q. Is NEST tougher than JEE?

A. NEST exam comprises of multiple choice objective type questions from subjects like General Aptitude, Biology, Chemistry, Mathematics and Physics. The standard of questions asked in NEST exam is more difficult than the ones asked in JEE Main. However, experts share that with respect to diffculty level, JEE Advanced is tougher than NEST.

Q. Who qualifies for NEST exam?

A. Candidates who have secured more than 60% aggregate marks (55% for SC/PwD category candidates) in their Class 12 exams are eligible to take NEST exam provided they have science stream at the 10+2 level. Apart from this, aspirants should be born on or after August 1, 1999 (General and OBC categories) in order to fulfil NEST eligibility criteria. Age relaxation of five years is given to candidates belonging to SC/ST/PwD category.

Q. How difficult is NEST exam?

A. NEST exam isn't difficult for students who have their basics clear of topics taught in the science stream at Class 11 and Class 12 level. If comparison is done then NEST is more difficult than JEE Main but easier than JEE Advanced.

Step 1: Fill NEST Application Form

For NEST 2020 registrations, candidates will need to fill the application form in the online mode on the official website of the exam. After all details on NEST application form are filled, candidates need to pay the application fee. Candidates can make the payment of NEST 2019 application fee in the online (through credit/ debit card) mode.

Candidates are not required to send any document to NEST office in the complete application process, informs the official website.

Check complete details about NEST application form.

Step 2: Download NEST Admit Card

After successful payment of application fee, candidates need to download their NEST 2019 admit card from the official website of the exam. “The admit card download link will be available only till the day of examination,” states the official website.

It may be noted that NEST admit card is a mandatory document to be carried to the exam centre.

Check complete details about NEST admit card.

Step 3: Appear for NEST

Next, candidates need to appear for the Science entrance exam at the allotted NEST exam centre. NEST 2019 exam will contain five sections carrying multiple choice questions. Candidates need to complete the exam in three hours duration.

Check NEST exam pattern.

Step 4: Check NEST Result

NEST 2019 result will be declared on the official website of the exam. NEST merit list/ result will contain the roll numbers and/or names of candidates qualifying the integrated MSc entrance exam.

Check complete details about NEST result.

Step 5: Appear for NEST Counselling 

Finally, candidates need to appear for the counselling session where they will be allotted seats in their respective courses and colleges. 

Check complete details about NEST counselling.

NEST 2020 exam centres are to be declared. According to the NEST 2019 schedule, the Science entrance exam was conducted at a total of 91 centres (mentioned below) all over India.

Candidates can choose five exam centres in order of preference while filling the NEST application form.

NEST 2019 Exam Centres

Note: The exact exam centre details will be mentioned on the NEST admit card of candidates.