NEET 2021 will be held twice a year for admission to MBBS, BDS, AYUSH and BVSc courses in India. Health ministry gives a green signal to conduct NEET twice a year.

NEW DELHI: Starting this year, the National Entrance-cum-Eligibility Test (NEET) will be conducted twice as the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has given a green signal for the same, paving the way for the examinations to be organized on the lines of the Joint Entrance Examination (Main). The examination schedule for the test – the entrance examination for medical, dental and several other related institutions — however, is still to be finalized.

Health Ministry officials said in a recent meeting with their counterparts in from the Education Ministry and the National Testing Agency — which has been organizing the test since last year – issues including online and offline modes of examination and multiple sessions were discussed.

“While we felt that a large number of NEET aspirants still may not be ready for appearing in the examination in online mode, there is now a consensus on conducting the test twice this year,” said a senior official in the medical education department of the Health Ministry. The twice a year format will allow students to be ranked on the basis of the best of the two scores if they take the test twice. The same format had been adopted in JEE(Main) since last year.

“The idea is to reduce the stress on the students and allow them to better their scores,” another official in the NTA said. Last week, Union Education Minister Ramesh Pokhariyal Nishank, in an interview to a TV channel, had said that officials from his and health ministry had interacted recently and there is a possibility of the exam being conducted twice with giving students an additional attempt being actively discussed.

NEET, usually conducted in the first week of May every year, had been pushed to September last year amid strict precautions in view of the Covid-19 pandemic. The NTA is yet to publish the dates for the test this year, in which over 10 lakh students appear despite its dwindling popularity over the years and rising number of MBBS seats.

Benefits of Conducting NEET Twice in 2021 for NEET Aspirants

The benefits of conducting NEET twice in 2021 for NEET aspirants can be checked below.

• NEET 2021 rank will be decided by the best of two scores which is one of the biggest benefits of conducting NEET twice in 2021.
• Most likely NEET 2021 first attempt will be held in July whereas the second attempt may take place in August which will provide aspirants with enough time to prepare for the same.
• It will also reduce the pressure on the students as they have an option to appear in the year same twice.
• No need to wait for another academic year to appear for the NEET exam. Conducting NEET 2021 exam twice will save the entire academic year of many aspirants which was not possible earlier.
• NEET 2021 aspirants can choose the ideal time to attempt the exam. This will benefit the students appearing in the board exams as they will have ample time to prepare for the NEET exam.
• One of the biggest benefits of conducting NEET twice in 2021 is that it will provide the students with a chance to improve mistakes in the second attempt.
• The first attempt of NEET 2021 will provide students with a real-time experience of giving the NEET exam.
• One of the most important benefits of conducting NEET 2021 twice in an academic year is that it will provide students with an opportunity to improve scores within less time.

However, conducting NEET 2021 twice a year may delay the academic process as the counselling for the same may get stretched to the end of the year. Also, there are chances that the competition will be high this year as conducting NEET 2021 twice a year will increase the number of students scoring perfect score/ rank.

Dates for Medical Entrance Exams Awaited

As of now, the Education Ministry and NTA – the National Testing Agency have announced the examination dates for JEE Main 2021 engineering entrance exam. However, dates for medical entrance exams for admission to MBBS, BDS, AYUSH and other medical courses is yet to be announced. Reports have indicated that recently, Education Ministry and Health Ministry officials have held a common meeting in which the feasibility of holding the NEET 2021 medical entrance exam in two attempts was discussed. Following this, now reports indicate that the union health ministry has given its go-ahead for holding the medical entrance exam in multiple attempts for this year.

Many Aspirants not Ready for Online NEET 2021

As per the report filed by the New Indian Express, in the multiple meeting held between Health and Education Ministry officials, the key point of discussion was on the mode of the examination. The report claims that many medical aspirants are not ready to take-up NEET 2021 exam in online format. On the other hand, holding the medical entrance exam in offline format poses a great logistical challenge, especially during the current situation of the pandemic. To address this challenge, the officials have built general consensus on holding NEET 2021 exam twice in an year. The twice a year format will allow students to be ranked on the basis of the best of the two scores if they take the test twice. The same format had been adopted in JEE(Main) since last year.

Dos and Don’ts for NEET 2021 on the Exam Day

From reaching the exam hall on time to finishing the paper on time, you need to make sure that everything goes smoothly on the exam day. Here are the pointers that will help you.

Dos for NEET 2021 on the Exam Day

• Remain Focused: Get your mind to be focused on the question paper. Understand what the question is asking and then go for the correct answer.

• Read Instructions Carefully: Many students make a mistake of avoiding instructions written on the question paper. Make sure that you read them as you will be allocated time especially to read them.

• Fill Your Information Carefully: Your information needs to be filled in the sheet. Through this information, you would get to know about your result. So, make sure that you make no mistakes in filling in the information.

Don’ts for NEET 2021 on the Exam Day

• Don’t Rush Into Things: If you are unsure about a question, don’t rush into answering it. According to NEET 2021 exam pattern, there is negative marking involved in the marking scheme. Answering incorrectly would lose you a mark.

• Don’t Discuss With Others: Discussing the question paper with fellow candidates in the exam hall is prohibited. Don’t do that.

• Don’t Leave Without Permission: Make sure to leave the examination hall only when permitted.

• Don’t Get Involved in Discouraging Discussions: Before entering in the exam hall, if you are surrounded by candidates having a discouraging conversation about the exam, get away from the conversation. This may affect you.

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