NCET 2026 PCMB Syllabus: Check Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics and Biology Syllabus

Section

Subjects / Tests

Questions to be Attempted

Compulsory / Optional

Section 1 – Languages

There are 38 different languages available in this section. Candidates must choose any two languages (Language 1 and Language 2).

• Two different Language papers are to be chosen.

• Each Language paper will consist of 23 questions, out of which 20 questions need to be attempted.

20 questions per language paper (Total 40)

Optional (Choose any 2 languages)

Section 2 – Domain-Specific Subjects

A total of 26 Domain-Specific Subjects are offered under this section. Candidates may choose any three subjects as per the eligibility and requirements of the respective University/Institution.

•  Three Domain-Specific subjects are to be chosen.

• Each Domain-Specific subject will have 28 questions, out of which 25 questions need to be attempted.

25 questions per subject (Total 75)

Optional (Choose any 3 subjects)

Section 3 – General Test

This is a mandatory section for all candidates.

• The General Test will consist of 28 questions, out of which 25 questions need to be attempted.

25 questions

Compulsory

Section 4 – Teaching Aptitude

This is also a mandatory section.

•  The Teaching Aptitude section will have 23 questions, out of which 20 questions need to be attempted.

20 questions

Compulsory

Test Paper

Total Questions

Questions to be Attempted

To be Chosen From

Language 1

23

20

To be chosen from Section 1 (38 languages)

Language 2

23

20

Other than Language 1 in Section 1

Teaching Aptitude

23

20

Compulsory

General Test

28

25

Compulsory

Domain-Specific Subject 1

28

25

To be chosen from Section 2 (26 Domain-Specific Subjects)

Domain-Specific Subject 2

28

25

Other than Domain-Specific Subject 1 from Section 2

Domain-Specific Subject 3

28

25

Other than Domain-Specific Subjects 1 and 2 from Section 2

Total Questions

181

160

Unit

Chapters

Electrostatistics

• Electric charges and their conservation. Coulomb’s law – force between two point charges, forces between multiple charges; superposition principle, and continuous charge distribution.

• Electric field, electric field due to a point charge, electric field lines; electric dipole, electric field due to a dipole; torque on a dipole in a uniform electric field.

• Electric flux, statement of Gauss’s theorem and its applications to find field due to infinitely long straight wire, uniformly charged infinite plane sheet, and uniformly charged thin spherical shell (field inside and outside).

• Electric potential, potential difference, electric potential due to a point charge, a dipole, and system of charges; equipotential surfaces, electrical potential energy of a system of two point charges and of electric dipoles in an electrostatic field.

• Conductors and insulators, free charges, and bound charges inside a conductor. Dielectrics and electric polarization, capacitors, and capacitance, a combination of capacitors in series and in parallel, the capacitance of a parallel plate capacitor with and without dielectric medium between the plates, energy stored in a capacitor.

Current Electricity

• Electric current, the flow of electric charges in a metallic conductor, drift velocity and mobility, and their relation with electric current; Ohm’s law, electrical resistance, V-I characteristics (linear and non-linear), electrical energy and power, electrical resistivity, and conductivity, the temperature dependence of resistance. The internal resistance of a cell, the potential difference and the emf of a cell, the combination of cells in series and in parallel.

• Kirchhoff’s laws, Wheatstone bridge.

Magnetic Effects of Current and Magnetism

Concept of the magnetic field, Oersted’s experiment. Biot-Savart law and its application to the current carrying circular loop. Note: There will be one Question Paper which will have 28 questions out of which 25 questions need to be attempted.

• Ampere’s law and its applications to infinitely long straight wire, straight solenoid. Force on a moving charge in uniform magnetic and electric fields.

• Force on a current-carrying conductor in a uniform magnetic field. The force between two parallel current-carrying conductors – definition of ampere. Torque experienced by a current loop in a magnetic field; moving coil galvanometer – its current sensitivity and conversion to ammeter and voltmeter.

• Current loop as a magnetic dipole and its magnetic dipole moment. Magnetic field intensity due to a magnetic dipole (bar magnet) along its axis and perpendicular to its axis. Torque on a magnetic dipole (bar magnet) in a uniform magnetic field; bar magnet as an equivalent solenoid, magnetic field lines. Para-, dia- and ferromagnetic substances, with examples.

Electromagnetic Induction and Alternating Currents

• Electromagnetic induction; Faraday’s law, induced emf and current; Lenz’s Law, Eddy currents. Self and mutual inductance.

• Alternating currents, peak and rms value of alternating current/voltage; reactance and impedance; LC oscillations (qualitative treatment only), LCR series circuit, resonance; power in AC circuits, wattless current.

• AC generator and transformer

Electromagnetic Waves

• Need for displacement current.

• Electromagnetic waves and their characteristics (qualitative ideas only). Transverse nature of electromagnetic waves.

• Electromagnetic spectrum (radio waves, microwaves, infrared, visible, ultraviolet, x-rays, gamma rays), including elementary facts about their uses.

Optics

• Reflection of light, spherical mirrors, mirror formula. Refraction of light, total internal reflection, and its applications, optical fibres, refraction at spherical surfaces, lenses, thin lens formula, lensmaker’s formula. Magnification, power of a lens, combination of thin lenses in contact combination of a lens and a mirror. Refraction and dispersion of light through a prism.

• Scattering of light–blue colour of the sky and reddish appearance of the sun at sunrise and sunset.

• Optical instruments: Microscopes and astronomical telescopes (reflecting and refracting) and their magnifying powers.

• Wave optics: Wavefront and Huygens’ principle, reflection and refraction of plane wave at a plane surface using wavefronts.

• Proof of laws of reflection and refraction using Huygens’ principle.

• Interference, Young’s double hole experiment and expression for fringe width, coherent sources, and sustained interference of light. • Diffraction due to a single slit.

• Polarization, plane polarized light.

Dual Nature of Matter and Radiation

• Photoelectric effect, Hertz and Lenard’s observations; Einstein’s photoelectric equation – particle nature of light.

• Matter waves – wave nature of particles, de Broglie relation.

Atoms and Nuclei

• Alpha-particle scattering experiment; Rutherford’s model of atom; Bohr model, energy levels, hydrogen spectrum. Composition and size of nucleus, atomic masses, isotopes, isobars; isotones.

• Radioactivity – alpha, beta, and gamma particles/rays and their properties. Mass-energy relation, mass defect; binding energy per nucleon and its variation with mass number; nuclear fission and fusion.

Electronic Devices

• Energy bands in solids (qualitative ideas only), conductors, insulators, and semiconductors; semiconductor diode – I-V characteristics in forward and reverse bias, diode as a rectifier.

Unit

Chapters

Solutions

Types of solutions, expression of concentration of solutions of solids in liquids, solubility of gases in liquids, solid solutions, Raoult's law, colligative properties - relative lowering of vapour pressure, elevation of boiling point, depression of freezing point, osmotic pressure, determination of molecular masses using colligative properties, abnormal molecular mass, Van't Hoff factor.

Electrochemistry

Redox reactions, EMF of a cell, standard electrode potential, Nernst equation and its application to chemical cells, Relation between Gibbs energy change and EMF of a cell, conductance in electrolytic solutions, specific and molar conductivity, variations of conductivity with concentration, Kohlrausch's Law, electrolysis and law of electrolysis (elementary idea), dry cell-electrolytic cells and Galvanic cells, lead accumulator, fuel cells, corrosion.

Chemical Kinetics

Rate of a reaction (Average and instantaneous), factors affecting rate of reaction: concentration, temperature, catalyst; order and molecularity of a reaction, rate law and specific rate constant, integrated rate equations and half-life (only for zero and first order reactions), concept of collision theory (elementary idea, no mathematical treatment), activation energy, Arrhenius equation.

d and f Block Elements

General introduction, electronic configuration, occurrence and characteristics of transition metals, general trends in properties of the first-row transition metals – metallic character, ionization enthalpy, oxidation states, ionic radii, colour, catalytic property, magnetic properties, interstitial compounds, alloy formation, preparation and properties of K2Cr2O7 and KMnO4. Lanthanoids - Electronic configuration, oxidation states, chemical reactivity, and lanthanoid contraction and its consequences. Actinoids - Electronic configuration, oxidation states, and comparison with lanthanoids.

Coordination Compounds

Coordination compounds - Introduction, ligands, coordination number, colour, magnetic properties and shapes, IUPAC nomenclature of mononuclear coordination compounds. Bonding, Werner's theory, VBT, and CFT; structure and stereoisomerism, importance of coordination compounds (in qualitative analysis, extraction of metals and biological system).

Haloalkanes and Haloarenes

Nomenclature, nature of C–X bond, physical and chemical properties, optical rotation mechanism of substitution reactions. Haloarenes: Nature of C–X bond, substitution reactions (Directive influence of halogen in monosubstituted compounds only). Uses and environmental effects of - dichloromethane, trichloromethane, tetrachloromethane, iodoform, freons, DDT.

Alcohol, Phenols and Ethers

Alcohols: Nomenclature, methods of preparation, physical and chemical properties (of primary alcohols only), identification of primary, secondary, and tertiary alcohols, mechanism of dehydration, and uses with special reference to methanol and ethanol. Phenols: Nomenclature, methods of preparation, physical and chemical properties, acidic nature of phenol, electrophilic substitution reactions, uses of phenols. Ethers: Nomenclature, methods of preparation, physical and chemical properties, uses.

Aldehyde, Ketones and Carboxylic Acid

Aldehydes and Ketones: Nomenclature, nature of carbonyl group, methods of preparation, physical and chemical properties, mechanism of nucleophilic addition, reactivity of alpha hydrogen in aldehydes, uses. Carboxylic Acids: Nomenclature, acidic nature, methods of preparation, physical and chemical properties; uses.

Amines

Amines: Nomenclature, classification, structure, methods of preparation, physical and chemical properties, uses, and identification of primary, secondary, and tertiary amines. Diazonium salts: Preparation, chemical reactions and importance in synthetic organic chemistry.

Biomolecules

Carbohydrates - Classification (aldoses and ketoses), monosaccharides (glucose and fructose), D-L configuration oligosaccharides (sucrose, lactose, maltose), polysaccharides (starch, cellulose, glycogen); Importance of carbohydrates. Proteins -Elementary idea of - amino acids, peptide bonds, polypeptides, proteins, structure of proteins - primary, secondary, tertiary structure and quaternary structures (qualitative idea only), denaturation of proteins; enzymes. Hormones - Elementary idea excluding structure. Vitamins - Classification and functions. Nucleic Acids: DNA and RNA

Unit

Chapters

Reproduction

Chapter-1: Sexual Reproduction in Flowering Plants Flower structure; development of male and female gametophytes; pollination - types, agencies, and examples; out breeding devices; pollen-pistil interaction; double fertilization; post-fertilization events - development of endosperm and embryo, development of seed and formation of fruit; special modes- apomixis, parthenocarpy, polyembryony; Significance of seed dispersal and fruit formation.

Chapter 2: Human Reproduction Male and female reproductive systems; microscopic anatomy of testis and ovary; gametogenesis -spermatogenesis and oogenesis; menstrual cycle; fertilisation, embryo development up to blastocyst formation, implantation; pregnancy and placenta formation (elementary idea); parturition (elementary idea); lactation (elementary idea).

Chapter-3: Reproductive Health Need for reproductive health and prevention of Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs); birth control - need and methods, contraception and medical termination of pregnancy (MTP); amniocentesis; infertility and assisted reproductive technologies - IVF, ZIFT, GIFT (elementary idea for general awareness).

Genetics and Evolution

Chapter-4: Principles of Inheritance and Variation Heredity and variation: Mendelian inheritance; deviations from Mendelism – incomplete dominance, co-dominance, multiple alleles and inheritance of blood groups, pleiotropy; elementary idea of polygenic inheritance; chromosome theory of inheritance; chromosomes and genes; Sex determination - in humans, birds and honey bee; linkage and crossing over; sex linked inheritance - haemophilia, colour blindness; Mendelian disorders in humans - thalassemia; chromosomal disorders in humans; Down's syndrome, Turner's and Klinefelter's syndromes.

Chapter-5: Molecular Basis of Inheritance Search for genetic material and DNA as genetic material; Structure of DNA and RNA; DNA packaging; DNA replication; Central Dogma; transcription, genetic code, translation; gene expression and regulation - lac operon; Genome, Human and rice genome projects; DNA fingerprinting.

Chapter-6: Evolution Origin of life; biological evolution and evidence for biological evolution (paleontology, comparative anatomy, embryology, and molecular evidence); Darwin's contribution, modern synthetic theory of evolution; mechanism of evolution - variation (mutation and recombination) and natural selection with examples, types of natural selection; Gene flow and genetic drift; Hardy- Weinberg's principle; adaptive radiation; human evolution.

Biology and Human Welfare

Chapter-7: Human Health and Disease Pathogens; parasites causing human diseases (malaria, dengue, chikungunya, filariasis, ascariasis, typhoid, pneumonia, common cold, amoebiasis, ring worm) and their Note: There will be one Question Paper which will have 28 questions out of which 25 questions need to be attempted. control; Basic concepts of immunology - vaccines; cancer, HIV and AIDS; Adolescence - drug and alcohol abuse.

Chapter 8: Microbes in Human Welfare Microbes in food processing, industrial production, sewage treatment, energy generation, and microbes as bio-control agents and bio-fertilizers. Antibiotics; production and judicious use.

Biotechnology and its Application

Chapter 9: Biotechnology: Principles and Processes Genetic Engineering (Recombinant DNA Technology).

Chapter 10: Biotechnology and its Applications Application of biotechnology in health and agriculture: Human insulin and vaccine production, stem cell technology, gene therapy; genetically modified organisms - Bt crops; transgenic animals; biosafety issues, biopiracy, and patents

Ecology and Environment

Chapter-11: Organisms and Populations Population interactions - mutualism, competition, predation, parasitism; population attributes - growth, birth rate and death rate, age distribution. (Topics excluded: Organism and its Environment, Major Abiotic Factors, Responses to Abiotic Factors, Adaptations)

Chapter 12: Ecosystem Ecosystems: Patterns, components; productivity and decomposition; energy flow; pyramids of number, biomass, energy (Topics excluded: Ecological Succession and Nutrient Cycles).

Chapter-13: Biodiversity and Conservation Biodiversity-Concept, patterns, importance; loss of biodiversity; biodiversity conservation; hotspots, endangered organisms, extinction, Red Data Book, Sacred Groves, biosphere reserves, national parks, wildlife, sanctuaries, and Ramsar sites.

Unit 

Chapters

Algebra

(i) Matrices and types of Matrices (ii) Equality of Matrices, transpose of a Matrix, Symmetric and Skew Symmetric Matrix (iii) Algebra of Matrices (iv) Determinants(v) Inverse of a Matrix (vi) Solving of simultaneous equations using Matrix Method

Calculus

(i) Higher order derivatives(second order) (ii) Increasing and Decreasing Functions(iii). Maxima and Minima

Integration and its Applications

(i) Indefinite integrals of simple functions(ii) Evaluation of indefinite integrals(iii) Definite Integrals(iv). Application of Integration as area under the curve (simple curve)

Differential Equations

(i) Order and degree of differential equations (ii) Solving of differential equations with variable separable

ProbabilityDistributions

(i)Random variable

Linear Programming

(i) Graphical method of solution for problems in two variables (ii) Feasible and infeasible regions (iii). Optimal feasible solution

Unit

Topics

Unit I: Relations and Functions

1. Relations and Functions Types of relations: Reflexive,symmetric, transitive and equivalence relations. One to one and onto functions. 2. Inverse Trigonometric Functions:  Definition, range, domain, principal value branches. Graphs of inverse trigonometric functions.

Unit II: Algebra

1. Matrices: Concept, notation, order, equality, types of matrices, zero matrix, transpose of a matrix, symmetric and skew symmetric matrices. Operations on matrices: Addition, multiplication and multiplication with a scalar. Simple properties of addition, multiplication and scalar multiplication. Non-commutativity of multiplication of matrices and existence of nonzero matrices whose product is the zero matrix (restricted to square matrices of order 2). Invertible matrices and proof of the uniqueness of inverse,ifitexists;(Here all matrices will have real entries). 2. Determinants: Determinant of a square matrix (up to 3 × 3 matrices), minors, cofactors and applications of determinants in finding the area of a triangle. Adjoint and inverse of a square matrix. Consistency, inconsistency and number of solutions of system of linear equations by examples, solving system of linear equations in two or three variables (having unique solution) using inverse of a matrix.

Unit III: Calculus

1. Continuity and Differentiability: Continuity and differentiability, chain rule, derivatives of inverse trigonometric functions, like sin−1 𝑥 , cos−1 𝑥 and tan−1 𝑥, derivative of implicit functions. Concepts of exponential, logarithmic functions. Derivatives of logarithmic and exponential functions. Logarithmic differentiation, derivative of functions expressed in parametric forms. Second-order derivatives.2. Applications of derivatives: Rate of change of quantities, increasing/decreasing functions, maxima and minima (first derivative test motivated geometrically and second derivative test given as provable tool). Simple problems (that illustrate basic principles and understanding of the subject as well as real-life situations). 3. Integrals: Integration asinverse process of differentiation.Integration of a variety of functions by substitution, by partial fractions and by parts, Evaluation of simple integrals of the following types and problems based on them.Fundamental Theorem of Calculus (without proof). Basic properties of definite integrals and evaluation of definite integrals.4. Applications of the Integrals: Applications in finding the area under simple curves, especially lines, circles/parabolas/ellipses(in standard form only)5. Differential Equations: Definition, order and degree, general and particular solutions of a differential equation. Solution of differential equations by method of separation of variables, solutions of homogeneous differential equations of first order and first degree. Solutions of linear differential equation of the type:

Unit IV: Vectors and Three Dimensional Geometry

1. Vectors: Vectors and scalars, magnitude and direction of a vector. Direction cosines and direction ratios of a vector.Types of vectors (equal, unit, zero, parallel and collinear vectors), position vector of a point, negative of a vector, components of a vector, addition of vectors, multiplication of a vector by a scalar, position vector of a point dividing a line segment in a given ratio. Definition, Geometrical interpretation, properties and application of scalar (dot) product of vectors, vector(cross) product of vectors. 2. Three-dimensional Geometry: Direction cosines and direction ratios of a line joining two points. Cartesian equation and vector equation of a line, skew lines,shortest distance between two lines. Angle between two lines.

Unit V: Linear Programming

Introduction, related terminology such as constraints, objective function, optimization, graphical method of solution for problems in two variables,feasible and infeasible regions (bounded or unbounded),feasible and infeasible solutions, optimal feasible solutions (up to three non-trivial constraints).

Unit VI: Probability

Conditional probability, Multiplications theorem on probability, independent events, total probability, Baye’s theorem. Random variable.