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NEST 2020 will be jointly conducted by NISER and Mumbai University on June 6, 2020 in online mode at 90 exam centers. NEST is a national level entrance exam conducted for students seeking admission to 5-year Integrated MSc Program in Basic Sciences – Biology, Chemistry, Physics and Mathematics. As per NEST 2020 Eligibility Criteria, candidates appearing or having passed class 12 in science stream with 60% marks (55% for SC, ST, PwD) are eligible to apply for NEST 2020 Exam. 

LATEST APPLICATION FORMS 2020

NEST 2020 Application Form was released on January 7, 2020 at nestexam.in.

• The application fees is INR 1200 for General, OBC and EWS categories and INR 600 for SC, ST, PWD and Female candidates.
• As per NEST 2020 Exam Pattern, it will be a 3-hour long computer based test having 230 multiple choice questions of 1 mark each. The paper will be set in English only.
• NEST 2020 Syllabus will have 50 questions each from Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics and Biology and 30 questions from general section.
• The merit will becalculated on the basis of three highest scored sections including the first one. 

NEST RegistrationNEST EligibilityNEST Admit CardNEST Exam PatternNEST SyllabusNEST Practice Papers

NEST 2020 Highlights

The key points about NEST 2020 are highlighted below:

NEST 2020 Exam Dates

Candidates can check official NEST 2020 Exam Dates tabulated below:

Eligibility Criteria

NEST 2020 Eligibility Criteria

NEST Eligibility Criteria comprises several norms and rules that all candidates must satisfy before applying for the entrance test. Some of the important Eligibility Criteria for NEST 2020 are discussed below:-

Age Criteria

• Candidate’s date of birth must be before August 1998.
• This holds true for general and OBC candidates.
• There is total five years relaxation for SC/ ST candidates. 

Educational Qualification

• Candidates need to complete 10+2 exam from a recognized board.
• Final year students are also eligible.

Academic Qualification

• Candidates must have Mathematics as the mandatory subject in 10+2 exam.
• Other mandatory subjects are: physics, chemistry, biology or life science subjects.

Minimum Marks Required

• A minimum of 60% marks is required in aggregate in 10+2 final exam for general category students.
• The same is 55% marks in aggregate for SC, ST students.

State-wise Quota

• Candidates from J & K, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana state have a quota of 15%.

Summary of Eligibility Criteria

A candidate becomes eligible for the programme when he/she satisfies following all four criteria:

1. (a) Secures a position in the NEST merit list. Please refer to page 10 of this document for the rules of merit list preparation.
2. (b) Pass the XII standard board examination or equivalent in the science stream in the years 2018 or 2019 or appeared in 2020 from any recognised Higher Secondary Education Board in India.
3. (c) Secures at least 60% in aggregate in the XII standard board examination. For SC/ST/Divyangjan candidates the requirement is 55%.
4. (d) Born on or after August 01, 2000. For SC/ST/Divyangjan students the limit is relaxed by five years.

Note: Necessary certificates supporting eligibility criteria have to be furnished only at the time of admission. Offer of admission is subject to verification of all original certificates at the time of admission/counselling and availability of seats. Certificates in support of eligibility criteria need not be produced for appearing in NEST 2020 examination.

Application Form

NEST 2020 Application Form

NEST 2020 Application Form is available from January 7, 2020. It can be filled online at the official website of NEST i.e. nestexam.in. Follow the below steps to learn how to register for NEST 2020:

1. Visit the official website of NEST i.e. nestexam.in.
2. Click on the link ‘Apply Online’ link on NEST 2020 website to reach the online application page on/after January 07, 2020. 
3. Enter the requried credentials i.e. name, a valid email id and a password of their choice in a window. 
4. Candidates will then receive an email containing a link to confirm the registration.
5. After confirmation, provide the same email id & password, enter the secret code and click on ‘Login’ in the window.
6. NEST 2020 Application Process allows multi-session data entry.
7. If the candidate forgets their password then click ‘forgot password’ link.
8. For safety reasons, candidates are allowed to retrieve the password only twice.

The application form page for NEST 2020 will look like the above image.

NEST 2020 Application Fee

• NEST 2020 Application Fee needs to be paid in online mode using debit/ credit card or netbanking.
• There is no option of sending a demand draft to the council for the fee.
• NISER Conducting body, has clearly mentioned that no center will physically collect the application fee from students.
• Below is the fee structure that NEST 2020 follows. Based on the category, applicants need to pay the fee.

Admit Card

NEST 2020 Admit Card

• Admit Card for NEST 2020 will be available for download from April 24, 2020.
• All the applicants should carry the admit card to the NEST 2020 Exam Center along with a valid Photo ID issued by Govt. Of India.
• The Hall Ticket is to be downloaded from NEST official website – nestexam.in
• No candidate will receive NEST Admit card via e-mail or post.
• Any discrepancy in the details provided during NEST 2020 Registration and mentioned on admit card should be immediately reported to the concerned authorities.

NEST 2020 Exam Centers

Candidates must choose 5 (five) centres in order of their preference while filling up of the application form.

• NISER is the allocating authority which reserves the rights to allocate NEST Exam Center to all candidates.
• The allotted Exam Center will be indicated on the NEST Admit Card.
• Candidates have to mention the choice of NEST Exam center with the state code in which it is located.

NEST 2020 Exam Pattern

NEST Exam Pattern describes the complete paper pattern, subject-wise marking scheme, distribution of marks, time duration and alike. On June 6, 2020, NEST will be conducted in two sessions: 9:00 AM – 12:30 PM (first session) and 2:00 PM – 5:30 PM (second session). Candidates will be assigned to either of the sessions.

NEST 2020 will be conducted in Computer-Based Test mode.

• The question paper will be published in English language only.
• Questions will be in the form of MCQs.
• The total exam duration will be of 3 hours.
• There will 5 sections, each of 50 marks but the general section will carry 30 marks.
• The whole question paper will consist of 230 marks.
• There is no negative marking in General section. However, a negative marking is applied in the subject section.

NEST 2020 Syllabus

The content of the exam will depend broadly on the syllabus that candidates studied in their class 11 and 12. The exam has five sections.

Recommended Books

NEST 2020 Books

Below are the list of books one can use for preparation purpose:

NEST 2020 Result

NEST 2020 exam result will be declared on June 16, 2020. The result will be available online. Candidates are advised to keep checking the official website for all important updates. The result will reflect on the official website on a tab which will read result 2020. The steps candidates need to follow in order to check result are:

• Login to official website using user id and password credentials.
• Click on result tab ‘NEST 2020 Result’
• Download the result along with answer key.
• Check the cut off score.
• The score card will give a brief understanding about the merit list.
• Based on the result and merit list the final list of candidates will be released.
• This list will focus on the applicants who are selected for student counselling.

NEST 2020 Counselling

By July 2020 counselling for NEST 2020 will begin. The selected aspirants will be allotted dates and venue for the counselling. This is the final step to get admission in the five years integrated program. The final merit list is uploaded on the official website. Candidates are requested to check the official website for NEST 2020 for the list. Based on the list and location of the candidate, a venue will be suggested along with date and time. Candidates need to appear on the mentioned date and time on that venue for NEST Counselling. Few important documents need to be carried. They are;

• Mark sheets till 10+2.
• Incase candidate has already done some diploma course post twelfth then the mark sheet for the same is also required.
• Along with mark sheet certificate is also required.
• Either of the address proofs like; voter id card, adhar card, bank pass book, LIC policy document, ration card or any other government address proof.
• Id proof like; driving license, pan card, voter id card, adhar card, 10+2 admit card or any other document issued by Government of India authority.
• In case of SC and ST candidates government certificate for class category is essential to submit.
• Candidates need to carry minimum three passport-sized photos with themselves.

There are main two rounds that takes place; one is group discussion and the other is personal interview:

• In group discussion candidate’s in-depth knowledge is checked.
• In personal interview candidates are counselled and mentally prepared for the course they are aspiring.
• Since it is a five-year integrated course so students need to really focus on their real aspiration towards a specific course.