JEE Main
The national gateway to B.E./B.Tech seats in the NITs, IIITs and other centrally funded technical institutes, and the sole qualifier for JEE Advanced (IIT admission). Scores are also accepted by many state and private universities.
Eligibility
Candidates must have passed or be appearing in Class 12 with Physics and Mathematics, plus Chemistry/Biology/a technical vocational subject. There is no upper age limit, and candidates may appear in the three consecutive years after passing Class 12 (both sessions in a year count as one attempt). For admission to NITs/IIITs/GFTIs, a minimum of 75% in boards (65% for SC/ST) or a top-20 percentile in one's board is additionally required.
Age limit: No upper age limit; candidates may appear in the three consecutive years after passing Class 12.
Exam pattern
Computer-Based Test (CBT) of 3 hours. Paper 1 (B.E./B.Tech) has 75 questions worth 300 marks: 20 Multiple-Choice Questions (MCQs) and 5 numerical-value questions per subject in Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics, all compulsory since 2025. Marking is +4 for correct and −1 for incorrect on both MCQs and numerical questions. Separate Paper 2A (B.Arch) and Paper 2B (B.Planning) are held for architecture/planning aspirants. The paper is offered in 13 languages, and scores are normalised into percentiles across shifts.
Syllabus at a glance
Class 11 and 12 Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics on the rationalised NTA syllabus (aligned to the trimmed NCERT), covering mechanics, electrodynamics, modern physics, physical/organic/inorganic chemistry, algebra, calculus, coordinate geometry and vectors. A handful of legacy topics were pruned from 2024 onwards, so always work from the current official syllabus.
Upcoming dates
| Event | Date | Status |
|---|---|---|
| JEE Main 2027 notification and Session 1 application window | Late Oct – Nov 2026 | expected |
| Session 1 exam | Last week of Jan 2027 (2026 edition ran 21–29 Jan) | expected |
| Session 1 result | Feb 2027 (2026 result came 12 Feb) | expected |
| Session 2 application window | Feb 2027 | expected |
| Session 2 exam | First half of Apr 2027 (2026 edition ran 2–8 Apr) | expected |
| Session 2 result and All India Ranks | Apr 2027 (2026 result came 20 Apr) | expected |
Expected dates follow the usual calendar; confirm on the official notification before planning.
Free prep material
Standard books
- NCERT Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics (Class 11 & 12)
- Concepts of Physics Vol 1 & 2 — H.C. Verma
- Understanding Physics series — D.C. Pandey (Arihant)
- Cengage Mathematics series — G. Tewani
- Modern Approach to Chemical Calculations — R.C. Mukerjee
- 43+ Years' JEE Main & Advanced Chapterwise Solved Papers — Arihant/Disha
How toppers play it
- Treat January as a full-strength attempt and April as the improvement round — only your better score counts, and a good Session 1 removes all pressure.
- Since 2025 all 75 questions are compulsory and numericals also carry −1, so drop the old habit of guessing freely in Section B.
- Chemistry is the fastest-scoring section — most toppers open with it (15–20 questions in ~35 minutes), bank marks, then split the remaining time between Maths and Physics.
- Ranks come from percentile normalisation across shifts, so accuracy beats raw attempts; an 80%-accurate 60 attempts usually outranks a 65%-accurate 75.
- Drill the official NTA mock interface until the question palette, marking-for-review and section switching are second nature — interface fumbling costs real marks.