IIT JAM
Admission to M.Sc., M.Sc.-PhD dual degree, joint M.Sc.-PhD and other postgraduate science programmes at the IITs (around 3,000 seats), with a further 2,000-plus seats at NITs and other centrally funded institutes filled through CCMN counselling using JAM scores.
Eligibility
Candidates must hold, or be in the final year of, a bachelor's degree; the qualifying-degree requirement is checked at admission, where General/OBC-NCL candidates need at least 55% aggregate (or 5.5/10 CGPA) and SC/ST/PwD candidates 50% (or 5.0/10). There is no age limit and no restriction on the number of attempts, and foreign nationals may also apply subject to institute rules. A candidate can appear in one or two of the seven test papers.
Age limit: No age limit
Exam pattern
Computer-based test of 3 hours in seven papers: Biotechnology (BT), Chemistry (CY), Economics (EN), Geology (GG), Mathematics (MA), Mathematical Statistics (MS) and Physics (PH). Each paper has 60 questions for 100 marks split into Section A (30 MCQs with negative marking of one-third or two-thirds mark), Section B (10 MSQs, no negative marking) and Section C (20 NAT questions, no negative marking). An on-screen virtual calculator is provided; physical calculators are not allowed. The exam runs in two sessions on a single day across about 100 cities.
Syllabus at a glance
Each paper tests the standard three-year B.Sc. core of its subject: Physics covers mechanics, electromagnetism, quantum and statistical physics and mathematical methods; Chemistry covers physical, organic and inorganic chemistry in roughly equal weight; Mathematics covers real analysis, linear algebra, calculus and differential equations. Mathematical Statistics is weighted about 30% mathematics and 70% probability and statistics. Full syllabi are on the JAM 2027 website.
Upcoming dates
| Event | Date | Status |
|---|---|---|
| JAM 2027 registration opens (JOAPS portal) | 5 Sep 2026 | confirmed |
| Registration closes | 12 Oct 2026 | confirmed |
| Admit card release | Early Jan 2027 | expected |
| JAM 2027 examination | 14 Feb 2027 (two sessions) | confirmed |
| Result declaration | 18 Mar 2027 | confirmed |
Expected dates follow the usual calendar; confirm on the official notification before planning.
Free prep material
Standard books
- An Introduction to Mechanics — Kleppner & Kolenkow (Physics)
- Introduction to Electrodynamics — David J. Griffiths (Physics)
- Atkins' Physical Chemistry — Peter Atkins (Chemistry)
- Organic Chemistry — Clayden, Greeves & Warren (Chemistry)
- Concise Inorganic Chemistry — J.D. Lee (Chemistry)
- Contemporary Abstract Algebra — Joseph A. Gallian (Mathematics)
How toppers play it
- Play the sections differently: attempt every MSQ and NAT question (no negative marking), but be selective in Section A where wrong MCQs cost one-third to two-thirds of a mark.
- Practise NAT questions with the official virtual calculator and to the required decimal precision — answers are keyed to ranges, and rounding errors are a common avoidable loss.
- Solve the last 10 years of JAM papers from the official archive; question styles repeat, and past-paper timing practice matters more than new material in the final two months.
- If your target course accepts two papers (for example MA plus MS), the two-paper option costs little extra and doubles your admission routes.
- Fill both JAM (IIT) admission choices and CCMN counselling for NITs/CFTIs — many candidates forget CCMN and waste a qualifying score.