NEST 2026 Application Fees for Unreserved, Reserved and Female Candidates

Yes, aspirants who wish to apply for NISER UG programme i.e. Integrated BSc + MSc can join after Class 12. Aspirants must complete Class 12 or equivalent examination with at least 60% aggregate (55% aggregate for SC/ ST/ PD Category) to apply for Integrated MSc programme. Besides, aspirants must pass NEST exam for admission to Integrated BSc + MSc course.

For each section, "20% of the average of the best 100 scores in that section" will be considered as the section–wise Minimum Admissible Score (SMAS).
For example, if the average of the best 100 scores in the Chemistry section is 43 out of 50, then SMAS for the Chemistry section would be 43*0.20 = 8.6 marks. It will be same for other section too. 

SMAS for the two sessions, for any particular section, can be of different numerical values. The value of SMAS will be different for different category students i.e if it 100 for General candidates then it will be 90 for OBC and 50 for SC/ST and Divyangjan applicants.  

Candidates must first register for NISER Bhubaneshar admission. Aspirants must apply with an application fee for NEST. There is no application fee for PhD programme. The institute selects candidates for Integrated BSc + MSc course based on NEST score. National Entrance Screening Test (NEST) is conducted jointly by the 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). For PhD programme, admission is based on GATE, JEST, GPAT, CSIR NET,  ICMR JRF score.

Applicants who want to appear for the NEST exam need to download the admit card to appear in the examination. Applicants are required to first check whether they are using the recommended browser or not for downloading the NEST 2026 admit card. After that they also need to have an active internet connection at their place before downloading the admit card.  

Students need to enter their user ID & password, followed by entering the Captcha if mentioned on the login portal. After entering these details, the admit card will be opened in a new window. Now save the copy for future reference. 

The hall ticket of NEST 2026 was released by the exam authority, NISER, Bhubaneswar. The NEST 2026 admit card was released in online mode on May 18, 2026.  Applicants who successfully fill the application form will be able to download the admit card by entering their login credentials. i.e user ID and password. 

You have to provide the login credentials to download the admit card of NEST. The exam authority will activate the NEST admit card link on the website. The steps to download the NEST admit card is mentioned below. 

• Go to NEST 2026 website.
• Click on the admit card link.
• Enter the required credentials.
• Access the admit card and take a print of the same.

National Institute of Science Education and Research has specified certain percentage in eligibility that students must secure to apply for any of the programme. Below is NISER eligibility criteria:

Yes, you can get admissions in the Department of Atomic Energy Centre of Excellence in Basic Sciences for B.Sc with 60% in class 12th. 

The minimum marks considered by the institute is 60% in the 12th stream. If you belong to the SC, ST, OBC category, the minimum marks drops down by 5%. If you are completing your class 12th in the CBSE board, you will need a 6.0 and 5.5 CGPA respectively. 

NISER Bhubaneswar's fee refund policy may vary depending on the specific circumstances and the timing of withdrawal or cancellation of admission. It is a good university.

However, if the withdrawal occurs after a certain point in the academic calendar or after classes have commenced, the refund amount may be reduced or it is no refund may be provided.

Applicants who have forgotten the login details of the NEST exam admit card should first check their mobile/email ID as after registration, a message comes from the authorities. 

Candidates can also recover the password of their NEST account by clicking on the 'Forgot Password' button at the bottom of the login window. This password will be sent to the NEST-registered email of the candidate. By clicking on the link, applicants can recover their password, and after tha,t they can download their admit card

The NEST 2026 application form was released on January 5, and continued till April 8. The application process is completely online. The application correction facility was available from April 18 to April 19, 2026.