NEST 2026 exam will provide admission to the five year integrated BSc-MSc degree programme at NISER Institute and UM-DAE-CEBS (University of Mumbai). Candidates interested in pursuing their integrated MSc degree need to fill out the NEST 2026 Application form.
NEST 2026 notification will be released by the exam official in the form of a Poster/Flyer. Interested candidates will be able to fill out the application form in the third week of February 2026, tentatively. Candidates will be given a two-month window to fill out the NEST 2205 registration form.
It is highly advised to check out the NEST 2026 eligibility criteria meticulously to have a hassle-free admission process. Based on the previous year’s trends, NEST 2026 is anticipated to be held in the fourth week of June 2026 in online/ CBT mode for the duration of 210 minutes in a single shift from 9 am to 12:30 pm.
Check out the complete details on the admission process like application form, exam dates, NEST 2026 exam pattern, syllabus, admit card, result, cut off, counselling, and other details in this SciAstra article.
What is NEST exam?
The National Entrance Screening Test, also known as NEST, is a computer-based examination held at various exam centres across the nation to provide admissions to the five-year Integrated MSc programme in Biology, Chemistry, Mathematics, and Physics.
What are the participating Institutes in NEST exam?
As per the previous year’s trend, candidates wishing to take the NEST exam will get admission to the integrated BSc-MSc programme at
- NISER, Bhubaneswar (National Institute of Science Education and Research); NISER is off off-campus centre of the Homi Bhabha National Institute (HBNI)
- UM-DAE-CEBS (University of Mumbai- Department of Atomic Energy Centre for Excellence in Basic Sciences.
Why give NEST Exam?
Candidates must know few features of the NISER, UM-DAE-CEBS before taking NEST exam:
- NISER and UM-DAE CEBS are equipped with one of the best teaching and research laboratories, modern computational facilities, and excellent libraries.
- Students are accommodated in hostels on campus and are provided with a conducive environment.
- Admitted candidates will be eligible to receive an annual scholarship.
- Summer Internship grant.
- Besides, top performers at NISER and UM-DAE CEBS securing overall grades above a certain threshold at the end of the program, are eligible to appear directly for the interview for admission to Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) training school.
Scholarships at NEST
Candidates who are enrolled in the courses offered through the NEST 2026 exam will be offered annual scholarship and summer internship grants. Check out the details from here:
- DISHA Program: Students will be eligible to receive an annual scholarship of INR 60,000 through the DISHA program of the Department of Atomic Energy, Government of India.
- Scholarship recipients receive a grant of INR 20,000/- per annum for summer internships.
- Candidates selected by DST for the INSPIRE-SHE program are endorsed for the INSPIRE
Scholarship by NISER and UM-DAE CEBS.
NEST 2026 Highlights
Check out the overview of NEST exam 2026 from the below mentioned table:
| Particulars | Details |
|---|---|
| Exam Name | National Entrance Screening Test, NEST Exam |
| Exam Conducting Body | NISER Bhubaneswar and UM-DAE CEBS Mumbai |
| Exam Level | Undergraduate ( National-Level Exam) |
| Exam Frequency | Once a year |
| Mode of Exam | Computer-Based Test (CBT) |
| Courses Offered | Integrated MSc/ BSc-MSc |
| Exam Fee |
|
| Duration of Exam | 3 hours 30 minutes |
| Total Marks | 240 marks. Result/cutoff will be prepared from 180 marks. (Best of three subject score will be calculated) |
| Total Number of Questions | 80 |
| Marking Scheme | +3 for correct answers and -1 for incorrect answers. |
| Medium of the Question Paper | Bilingual (Hindri or English) |
| Colleges Accepting NEST Scores | NISER Bhubaneswar, UM-DAE CEBS Mumbai |
| Number of Seats | 257 (200 seats in NISER and 57 seat in UM-DAE-CEBS) |
| Exam Cities | 140 |
| Official Website | www.nestexam.in |
| Helpline | 022-61087510 |
What is NEST 2026 Exam Date?
NEST exam date 2026 is scheduled to be held in the third week of June 2026 in an online/CBT mode at various exam centres across the nation. Check out the complete list of important dates of the events from here:
| Event Name | Dates (Tentative) |
|---|---|
| Application Form Start Date | Third week of February 2026 |
| Application Form End Date | Second week of May 2026 |
| Application Correction Window | Third week of May 2026 |
| Admit Card Release Date | first week of June 2026 |
| NEST 2026 Exam Date | Third week of June 2026 |
| Provisional Answer Key Release | Fourth week of June 2026 |
| NEST 2026 Result Date | Second week of July 2026 |
Who can appear for NEST 2026?
Only the candidates meeting the minimal NEST 2026 eligibility criteria will be able to appear for the examination. NEST eligibility criteria 2026 stipulates the educational, national and age limit criteria that a candidate needs to satisfy. Check out the NEST eligibility from the below section:
- Educational Requirement:
- Any Indian student who has passed the XII standard board examination in the science stream in the academic years 2023 or 2024 or has appeared in 2025 from any recognised Board in India. The provisional certificate declaring the aggregate should be from a single board.
- Candidates need to secure at least 60% in aggregate in the XII standard board examination. For SC/ST/Divyangjan candidates, this requirement is 55%.
- Age limit:
There is no age limit for appearing in the NEST 2025 examination and admission to either NISER or UM-DAE CEBS.
- Subject Combination:
In their Class 11, Students need to choose Science stream and must have studied Physics, Chemistry, Biology/Mathematics.
NEST 2026 Seat Intake
Candidates securing the NEST 2026 cutoff will be getting admissions to the courses offered at NISER and UM-DAE-CEBS. Check out the category and institute wise seat intake from the below section:
| Category | NISER | UM-DAE CEBS |
| General | 101 | 23 |
| General – EWS | 0 | 06 |
| OBC – NCL | 54 | 15 |
| SC | 30 | 09 |
| ST | 15 | 04 |
| Divyangjan | 5% seats in each category | 5% seats in each category |
| Total intake | 200 | 57 |
NEST 2026 Admission Process
In order to get admissions to the NISERs and UM-DAE, one needs to appear for the NEST entrance exam. Before appearing for the exam, candidates are required to understand the complete admission process thoroughly to have a hassle- free admission process.
NEST admission process 2026 is extensive and includes many events like application process, satisfying the eligibility criteria, pattern, syllabus, admit card, appearing for the exam, result, counselling, cut off details. Know the step by step process here:
Step 1: Release of Notification – NISER Bhubaneswar and UM-DAE CEBS Mumbai release the official NEST 2026 notification on the exam portal.
Step 2: Online Registration – Candidates must register on the official NEST website and fill out the application form with personal, academic, and contact details.
Step 3: Uploading Documents – Upload scanned images of photograph, signature, and other required documents as per the specified format.
Step 4: Application Fee Payment – Pay the application fee online via debit/credit card, UPI, or net banking.
Step 5: Download Admit Card – After successful registration, candidates can download the NEST 2026 admit card from the official website.
Step 6: Appear for NEST 2026 Exam – Candidates must appear for the computer-based test (CBT) at their allotted exam center.
Step 7: Answer Key Release – Provisional answer key will be released; candidates can raise objections if needed.
Step 8: Declaration of Result – Results and scorecards are released on the official NEST portal.
Step 9: Merit List Preparation – A merit list is prepared based on candidates’ performance in NEST.
Step 10: Counselling Process – Qualified candidates are invited to participate in online/offline counselling at NISER and UM-DAE CEBS.
Step 11: Seat Allotment & Admission – Seats are allotted based on rank, preference, and availability. Candidates must confirm admission by verifying documents and paying fees.
NEST 2026 Registration Process
Candidates will be able to fill out the NEST application form 2026 in the timeline mentioned by the exam authorities. At first, candidates need to create a registered account and username and password will be generated. From the registered account, candidates need to fill out the registration form by adding personal, educational, address, exam city preference, document upload.
The exam authorities will accept the form only when the applicants pay the NEST 2026 Registration fee online via credit/debit card or UPI payment.
Document Upload and Dimensions
After filling out the basic details about the candidates, then they need to upload the required documents asked by the exam officials. Below are the documents required by the candidates to upload;
- Class 10 mark sheet/ report card
- Class 12 mark sheet/ certificate
- Candidate’s photograph
- Candidate’s signature
Check out the dimensions in which the documents are required to be uploaded from here;
| Document Type | File Size | File Format |
| Photograph | 200 KB (Maximum) | JPG/JPEG |
| Signature | 200 KB (Maximum) | JPG/JPEG |
NEST Exam Pattern 2026
NEST 2026 Pattern depicts the type of questions asked in the examination from the sections mentioned in the NEST syllabus 2026. Check out the section wise exam pattern and NEST 2026 marking scheme from here:
| Subjects | Types of Questions | Number of Questions | Total Marks |
| Biology | MCQ | 20 | 60 |
| Chemistry | MCQ | 20 | 60 |
| Mathematics | MCQ | 20 | 60 |
| Physics | MCQ | 20 | 60 |
NEST 2026 Negative Marking Scheme
Check out the marking scheme of the exam from below:
| Marks Awarded | Correct Answer | Incorrect Answer | Unanswered/ Marked for Review |
| +3 Marks | +3 marks awarded | Not Awarded | Not awarded |
| -1 Marks | Not Awarded | -1 marks awarded | Not awarded |
NEST Syllabus 2026
Candidate’s domain knowledge in Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics and Biology will be tested by the exam officials from specified NEST syllabus 2026. The exam officials will ask the questions from the Science stream subjects of NCERT Class 11 and 12.
Check out the subject wise headers of NEST 2026 syllabus from here:
| Subject Name | NEST Syllabus |
| Biology | 1. Diversity in Living World
2. Structural Organisation in Animals and Plants 3. Cell Structure and Function 4. Plant Physiology 5. Human Physiology 6. Reproduction 7. Genetics and Evolution 8. Biology and Human Welfare 9. Biotechnology and Its Applications 10. Ecology and environment |
| Chemistry | Some Basic Concepts of Chemistry, Structure of Atom, Classification of Elements and Periodicity in Properties, Chemical Bonding and Molecular Structure, States of Matter: Gases and Liquids, Thermodynamics, Equilibrium, Redox Reactions, Hydrogen, s- Block Elements (Alkali and Alkaline earth metals), Some p-Block Elements, Organic Chemistry – Some Basic Principles and Techniques, Hydrocarbons, Environmental Chemistry, Solid State, Solutions, Electrochemistry, Chemical Kinetics, Surface Chemistry, General Principles and Processes of Isolation of Elements, p-Block Elements, d and f Block Elements, Coordination Compounds, Haloalkanes and Haloarenes, Alcohols, Phenols and Ethers, Aldehydes, Ketones and Carboxylic Acids, Organic Compounds Containing Nitrogen, Biomolecules, Polymers, Chemistry in Everyday Life |
| Physics | Physical World and Measurement, Kinematics, Laws of Motion, Work, Energy and Power, Motion of System of Particles and Rigid Body, Gravitation, Properties of Bulk Matter, Thermodynamics, Behaviour of Perfect Gas and Kinetic Theory, Oscillations and Waves, Electrostatics, Current Electricity, Magnetic Effects of Current and Magnetism, Electromagnetic Induction and Alternating Currents, Electromagnetic Waves, Optics, Dual Nature of Matter and Radiation, Atoms and Nuclei, Electronic Devices, Communication Systems. |
| Mathematics | Sets, Relations and Functions, Trigonometric Functions, Principle of Mathematical Induction, Complex Numbers and Quadratic Equations, Linear Inequalities, Permutations and Combinations, Binominal Theorem, Sequence and Series, Straight Lines, Conic Sections, Introduction to Three- Dimensional Geometry, Limits and Derivatives, Mathematical Reasoning, Statistics and Probability, Inverse Trigonometric Functions, Matrices, Determinants, Continuity and Differentiability, Applications of Derivatives, Integrals, Applications of the Integrals, Differential Equations, Vectors, Three-Dimensional Geometry, Linear Programming, Probability. |
NEST Previous Year Questions
While preparing for the exam, one must go through the NEST previous year question papers, as this will help the candidates in analyzing the question paper difficulty, trend of the topics and other details.
Check out the NEST previous year question paper from here:
| Year | Session 1
Question Paper |
Session 2
Question Paper |
| 2024 | Download Now | Download Now |
| 2023 | Download Now | Download Now |
| 2022 | Download Now | Download Now |
Conclusion
By understanding the NEST 2026 eligibility criteria, exam pattern, syllabus, and admission process, candidates can plan their preparation effectively and increase their chances of success. The exam not only tests conceptual understanding but also evaluates analytical and problem-solving skills—qualities essential for a career in scientific research. With a transparent result and counselling process, NEST ensures that deserving candidates secure admission to integrated MSc programs. For science enthusiasts aiming to build a strong foundation and contribute to advanced research, excelling in NEST 2026 is the first step towards achieving their academic and career goals.
