NEET-UG, CUET-UG 2026 Tentative Dates Out: Complete Summer Exam Timeline Inside

The‍‌‍‍‌‍‌‍‍‌ National Testing Agency (NTA) has drafted a tentative schedule for the national entrance exams that will be held in 2026 and has sent the same to the Ministry of Education for approval, a couple of senior officials informed.

Once the proposed timetable gets the panel's stamp, NEET-UG 2026 will be held on May 3, 2026. CUET-UG 2026 is anticipated to be a computer-based test conducted throughout the second half of May. The chief reason for this early planning is to have no academic year postponement and ensure that undergraduate admissions go on as ‍‌‍‍‌‍‌‍‍‌usual.

Registration Timeline (Proposed) 

Insiders‍‌‍‍‌‍‌‍‍‌ at NTA also informed that the format of the question paper for NEET UG, CUET UG, and CUET PG will remain similar to that of last year. The board is not thinking about any significant changes in the organization or the scoring pattern for 2026.

Just like in the previous years, aspirants will be allowed to choose their desired test center location while filling out the application ‍‌‍‍‌‍‌‍‍‌form.

JEE Main 2026 Schedule (Already Official) 

While the dates for NEET and CUET are still to be confirmed, the JEE Main 2026 schedule is set: 

Future Changes Discussion Regarding Entrance Exams 

Besides the timing, the Ministry of Education’s committee on coaching dependency and dummy schooling has been considering deep-seated changes in the structure of India’s top entrance examinations like JEE Main, NEET & CUET. 

The key proposals being considered include: 

• Holding of JEE Main, NEET JEE & CUET exams in Class 11 instead of after Class 12 
• Limiting coaching time to 2–3 hours per day with the aim of lowering the pressure 
• Performing tests twice a year (April and November) is proposed to be in line with NEP 2020 
• Introducing a hybrid model that combines board exam marks and aptitude-based test scores for admission 
• Cutting down on the perks for dummy school enrolments 

The proposals were discussed at the meeting held on the 15th of November. Next, the panel is set to decide whether the school boards in different parts of India follow similar syllabi since synchronization is a prerequisite for shifting exams to Class 11. 

Government officials are of the opinion that if entrance exams are conducted in Class 11, academic overload in Class 12 might be lessened as that is currently the year which causes the highest levels of stress for students due to the overlapping requirements of schools and coaching institutes. 

Although, at this point, there is no formal decision or notification.