Its official now, the Com-mon Entrance Test (CET) for both under-graduate medical students and post-graduate medical students will commence from the academic year 2013-2014.
For the first time ever it has been decided to use “percentile-based selection system” for preparing the merit list. According to the recent notification of the Medical Council of India (MCI), in order to be eligible for admission to MBBS course it shall be necessary for the candidate to obtain minimum of marks at 50th percentile in the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance test (NEET) to MBBS course. However, for the candidates belonging to scheduled castes, scheduled tribes, other backward classes minimum marks shall be at 40th percentile. For the candidates with locomotory disability of lower limbs the minimum marks shall be at 45th percentile. “The percentile shall be determined on the basis of highest marks secured in the All India common merit list in NEET for admission to MBBS,” said the new notification.
“The minimum marks eligible for selection of post-graduate students will remain same as for under graduate students,” said a senior official in MCI. However, in determining the merit list for post-graduate students those who are in government service, public authority will get weightage in the marks as an incentive at the rate of 10 per cent of the marks obtained for each year of service in remote or difficult areas upto minimum of 30 per cent of the marks obtained in NEET.
The government also decided that in case when sufficient number of candidates fail to secure minimum marks as prescribed in NEET, the central government shall in consultation with the MCI may at its discretion lower the minimum marks required for the admission to MBBS course. However, “the marks lowered by the central government shall be applicable for the said academic year only,” read the notification. To be eligible for admission to MBBS course the candidate must have passed in the subjects of Physics, Chemistry, Biology/Bio-Technology and English and must have obtained a minimum of 50 per cent marks taken together in Physics, Chemistry and Biology/Bio-technology.