New Delhi, 12 August 2022 – Students aspiring to pursue graduation in India might soon have to just sit for one entrance examination as the University Grants Commission is planning to merge the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test Undergraduate (NEET UG) and Joint Entrance Examination Main (JEE Main) into the Common University Entrance Test (CUET). As per the commission, this move may ease the examination logistics for aspirants, especially those who are aiming for careers in engineering and medical streams.
CUET Exam: Can Students Take CUET for Engineering and Medical Streams?
In an interview given to the Times of India, the UGC chairman Mamidala Jagdish Kumar shared that the commission is currently looking into a proposal to integrate the medical entrance exam NEET UG and engineering entrance exam JEE Main into CUET.
The Common University Entrance Test (CUET), earlier known as the Central Universities Common Entrance Test, is a joint entrance test for all undergraduate courses in all central universities, which has been introduced from the year 2022 by the Ministry of Education, Government of India.
Sharing the new proposal, Kumar stated that instead of appearing for four subjects – mathematics, physics, chemistry and biology – in three entrance exams, students will be able to take one exam and be eligible to pursue the course of their choice, be it engineering, medicine, humanities, or any other. He also stated that the purpose of this move is to ease the stress of taking multiple examinations while the students are being tested in the same set of subjects.
Hence, if the new scheme of examination gets implemented for the students who aspire to pursue engineering, their marks obtained in CUET in mathematics, physics and chemistry can be used as a ranking list. A similar procedure can be followed for medical aspirants. If the students are not able to secure seats in engineering or medical courses, they will still be eligible to apply in other different programmes of their choice for graduation based on the same set of marks they score in CUET.
CUET Exam – NEET, JEE Entrance Exams Have Scores of Applicants Every Year
The number of registrations for NEET and JEE examinations keeps racking up every year. Here are details of the students who registered, appeared, and qualified for the exams in 2021.
| Name of the examination | Number of students registered | Number of students appeared | Qualified |
| JEE MAIN 2021 | 16,14,777 | 15,44,275 | 8,70,074 |
| NEET 2021 | 15,19,375 | 14,10,755 | 7,97,042 |
As per the reports, 14.9 lakh students have registered for the CUET 2022 making it the second-biggest entrance exam in the country, surpassing the JEE Main exam’s average registration of 9 lakh. Apart from central universities, 12 state universities, 11 deemed universities, and 19 private universities have applied to participate in the first edition of CUET UG for admissions in the academic session 2022-23.
Ease in Travel For Students if NEET, JEE are Integrated Into CUET
There are times when students are allotted centres far away from their residential areas or even in other cities. This is an additional financial burden as the students have to travel for hours (sometimes days) to reach the centres. There have been instances where some students have missed their examinations due to the far-flung test centres. If implemented, the new entrance scheme would help the students to save money and time as they do not have to appear separately for each entrance.
As per the commission, the move will not only simplify the entrance process for the students but will also cut the logistics of arranging computing facilities at multiple centers for the National Testing Agency. Also, instead of preparing separate sets of paper for Joint Entrance Examination (JEE), NEET and CUET, the agency will be able to zero it down to just one set of paper for each subject. By reducing the number of entrances, NTA might also be able to ensure that the applicants get an entrance centre of their choice.
UGC is now reportedly working out a committee to discuss the possibilities of the proposed merger with different stakeholders, and reach a final decision.
FAQs
Is UGC planning to merge NEET and JEE into CUET?
Yes, the University Grants Commission is working on a proposal to integrate the medical entrance exam NEET UG and engineering entrance exam JEE Main into the Common University Entrance Test (CUET).
Is there a common entrance test for graduation in engineering and medical streams in India?
No, there are separate entrance tests for graduation in engineering and medical streams in India. The National Eligibility cum Entrance Test Undergraduate (NEET UG) is conducted annually to admit students into medical streams at graduation, whereas the Joint Entrance Examination Main (JEE Main) is conducted for admissions into engineering graduate courses. However, the University Grants Commission is planning to integrate these entrances into the Common University Entrance Test (CUET) and conduct one examination for all the streams.
What are the CUET UG 2022 Phase 2 revised dates?
The CUET UG 2022 Phase 2 revised dates are 24 August to 28 August, 2022.
Which colleges will be covered in the NEET PG counselling 2022?
Counselling will begin simultaneously for all central universities, deemed universities, as well as medical and dental colleges with 50 percent all India quota seats (AIQ) and 50 percent state quota seats.
What is the purpose of the JEE Advanced examination?
The purpose of the JEE advanced examination is to select students for undergraduate programmes in one of the IITs based on the candidate's rank and score in JEE Main.
