NEET 2021 postponement: How students will be impacted
National Eligibility Cum Entrance Test 2025 ( NEET )
Counselling - 30 Sep '25 - 16 Oct '25
Social media platforms have been flooded with NEET 2021 postponement messages as candidates believe that the situation is not apt for NEET 2021 exam to be held as per the existing schedule. But those who oppose the move have their own justifications and say that NEET 2021 postponement will have repercussions. Read the article to know more.
After the government decided to postpone NEET PG 2021, JEE Main 2021 April session and some other exams in the wake of the deadly second wave of COVID-19, postponement of NEET 2021 exam has also gained momentum. A section of students is requesting the authority to delay the NEET 2021 exam as COVID-19 poses risk to them.
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NTA announced NEET 2021 exam dates in the official notification on March 12, 2021. As per the notification, NEET 2021 exam is scheduled to be held on August 1 in offline mode. But it has been more than a month since NTA announced NEET 2021 date and it has yet to commence NEET 2021 registration. Candidates will be able to fill NEET application form 2021 once they complete the online registration for NEET 2021 exam.
Meanwhile, surging COVID-19 cases and postponement of a series of exams give candidates the impression that NEET 2021 may not be conducted as per the schedule. Some of the candidates who had prepared hard for the NEET 2021 exam from the last couple of years also pin their hopes on NTA to start NEET 2021 registration soon. There is no official announcement regarding NEET 2021, neither for the deferment of the exam or commencement of the registration yet.
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Read the whole article to understand how students will be affected if the NEET 2021 exam gets delayed from its scheduled date of August 1.
Why some candidates want NEET 2021 to be postponed
Various social media platforms are flooded with messages of candidates who want authority to postpone the NEET 2021 exam. They are giving different reasons to convince the exam conducting authority to defer the NEET 2021 exam date. Some of the reasons are as follows:
Safety topmost priority
As COVID-19 cases are continuously on the rise, holding NEET 2021 exam in this situation is not a good idea, believe students. They say that safety and well-being must be the priority at this moment. Nothing matters when life is at stake.
Travelling issue
Many NEET aspirants reside in remote locations of the country and they will have to use public transport system to reach NEET 2021 centre. Candidates fear to travel as it may make them vulnerable to the infection. Moreover travelling to the other city led to many other problems related to staying arrangements and food-related issues which may exposed them to COVID-19 infection.
Partial lockdown in some parts of the country
Candidates supporting NEET 2021 exam postponement believe that there are restrictions and partial lockdown in some parts of the country amid COVID-19 situation. This led to fear and anxiety among students and their families. Families fear for the safety of the candidate if he/she travels to the exam city. Conducting an exam in this tense situation is not a good idea, as per some candidates.
How NEET 2021 deferment will affect candidates
Those candidates who have toiled hard for the NEET 2021 exam may get disappointed if it gets postponed. Here are some of the reasons why they may not like the deferment of NEET exam date.
Academic cycle will be disturbed
If the government decides to postpone NEET 2021, then the whole academic cycle will be disturbed. The CBSE 12th board exam has already been postponed and it will be held most likely in mid-July. If NEET 2021 exam will be conducted in September, then NEET 2021 counselling will move to the month of November tentatively. Since NEET 2021 is the single entrance exam for admission in different medical colleges across country, whole academic year (2021-22) will be badly hit. Several candidates may have seen a similar situation last year. It could be replicated this year too.
Short NEET 2021 application cycle
If NEET 2021 exam date gets postponed, there is high chance that NEET 2021 application cycle will be little shorter. Candidates will be given less time to fill NEET 2021 application form online. Effectively, the total number of candidates applying for the NEET 2021 exam could be less.
State of confusion for candidates
If the government takes the decision to defer NEET 2021 exam date without making the announcement about the new date, it will further lead to confusion among students. They will be preparing for the NEET 2021 exam without any fix deadline. While postponing NEET PG 2021 exam, the government said that it will announce a new date after reviewing the situation. What if the situation gets worse due to COVID-19, in that case, the government could be forced to cancel the exam. Such thought makes candidates nervous which ultimately affects their preparation.
Mental stress and demotivation
Deferment of the NEET 2021 exam date could lead to stress and anxiety among aspirants of NEET 2021. Many of them have the feeling that they do not need the extra months for NEET preparation. They believe that these months are only adding to their anxiety. Studying the same topics over and over makes them loose interest and they get demotivated ultimately.
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