CUET UG Exam Pattern

There is no common paper that everyone sits. Each test is separate, and your choice of up to five should follow the admission rules of the universities and programmes you are aiming for, not just the subjects you studied in Class 12.

• If more than one option is found correct after the answer-key challenge, +5 goes to everyone who marked any of the correct options.
• If no option is correct, or a question is wrong or dropped, every candidate who took that test gets +5.

A wrong answer costs a fifth of what a right one earns, a lighter penalty than in NEET or JEE Main. With four options, a pure guess is worth +0.5 marks on average, so leaving many questions blank usually costs more than it saves.

Where a test is held in more than one shift, NTA converts each candidate’s raw marks into an NTA Score so that shifts of different difficulty can be compared. The method is set out in Appendix VI of the bulletin.

• Results are based on the final answer keys. There is no re-evaluation or re-checking.
• The 2026 NTA Score is valid for admission in 2026–27 only.
• NTA does not prepare a merit list or allot seats. Each university makes its own merit list from CUET scores and runs its own admissions.

Question papers are offered in 13 languages: English, Hindi, Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Odia, Punjabi, Tamil, Telugu and Urdu. Each paper is shown in English and the language you chose; if the two differ, the English version is final.

Choose the medium carefully in the application form. It cannot be changed later, and you must use the same medium in the exam.

• No age limit for the exam itself. A university may still have its own age rule for a programme.
• You must have passed Class 12 or an equivalent examination, or be appearing for it in the exam year.
• Accepted qualifications include Class 12 from any recognised Central or State board, NIOS senior secondary with at least five subjects, a three-year AICTE or state-board diploma, GCE A levels and the IB Diploma.

Sitting CUET does not by itself make you eligible for a course. Each university sets its own subject, marks and reservation rules, and you must meet them for the programme you apply to.