Entrance Exams 2027: List of All Entrance Exams in India

Entrance exams 2027 decide admission to most undergraduate and postgraduate courses in India for the 2027-28 session, from B.Tech and MBBS to law, design, MBA and M.Sc. This page brings all the major entrance exams in India together in one place, grouped by stream, with national, state and university-level tests.

The exam list, open applications and upcoming dates on this page update automatically from each exam’s own page, so you always see the current status. Use the stream links to go deeper, and open an exam’s page for its eligibility, syllabus, pattern and official notice.

Entrance Exams 2027: Applications Open Now

These entrance exams are accepting application forms right now, so apply before the last date shown on each exam’s page.

Entrance Exams by Stream

Here is the full entrance exam list, grouped by stream. Each exam is tagged National or with its state, and UG or PG, so you can quickly narrow it down to the tests that match your class and your home state.

Upcoming Entrance Exam Dates

Use this block as your entrance exam calendar: it shows the next step for each upcoming entrance exam, such as the notification, application window, admit card, exam day or result. Dates marked Expected are based on the previous cycle, so treat them as a guide until the official notice is out.

See all 343 dates in the exam calendar ›

Entrance Exams After 12th: Stream-Wise List

After Class 12, your subject combination decides which entrance exams you can take. Science students with Physics, Chemistry and Maths can aim for engineering and architecture, those with Biology can aim for medical, nursing and allied health courses, and students from any stream can take exams for law, management, design, hotel management and most university programmes. The table lists the main entrance exams after 12th for each stream; click the stream name for the complete list.

Stream	Courses	Main Entrance Exams
Engineering	B.E., B.Tech	JEE Main, JEE Advanced, BITSAT, VITEEE, COMEDK UGET, state CETs such as MHT CET, KCET, WBJEE, KEAM, AP EAPCET and TG EAPCET
Medical	MBBS, BDS, BAMS, BHMS	NEET UG (the single national exam for these courses)
Nursing	B.Sc Nursing	AIIMS B.Sc Nursing, JENPAS UG, RUHS CUET, and other state or institute nursing tests
Pharmacy	B.Pharm	Mostly state CETs such as MHT CET, AP EAPCET and TG EAPCET
Architecture	B.Arch	NATA, JEE Main (B.Arch paper), JEE Advanced AAT for B.Arch at IITs
Law	BA LLB, BBA LLB (5-year)	CLAT, AILET, ULSAT, Kerala LLB 5 Year
Management	BBA, 5-year IPM	IIM Indore IPM, IIM Rohtak IPM, JIPMAT, NMIMS NPAT, AIMA UGAT
Commerce	B.Com, CA, CS, CMA	CUET UG for B.Com at central universities; CA Foundation and CSEET to enter the CA and CS courses
Science	B.Sc, BS-MS, Integrated M.Sc	CUET UG, IISER IAT, NEST, ISI Admission Test, CMI Entrance Exam
Design	B.Des, B.FTech	NID DAT, UCEED, NIFT, FDDI AIST
Hotel Management	B.Sc Hospitality and Hotel Administration, BHM	NCHM JEE for the IHMs, plus institute tests such as IIHM eCHAT
Agriculture	B.Sc Agriculture, B.Tech Agricultural Engineering	CUET UG for ICAR seats (it replaced ICAR AIEEA UG), plus state tests such as MP PAT
Computer Applications	BCA	CUET UG and university tests; many colleges admit on Class 12 marks
Education	Integrated teacher education (ITEP, B.Sc. B.Ed, B.A. B.Ed)	NCET for ITEP, and RIE CEE for NCERT’s Regional Institutes of Education
Arts and General Courses	BA, B.Sc, B.Com, BJMC	CUET UG for central and many other universities, and university tests such as SET, LPUNEST and CUCET

If you are asking which entrance exam to take after 12th, start from the course you want and then check the exams its colleges accept. A B.Tech aspirant, for example, needs JEE Main for the NITs and IIITs, JEE Advanced for the IITs, and usually the home-state CET for state colleges.

Entrance Exams After 10th: Polytechnic and ITI

After Class 10, students can join a three-year engineering diploma through state polytechnic entrance tests such as AP POLYCET and TG POLYCET, and later move to the second year of B.Tech through lateral entry tests such as WB JELET. See diploma and polytechnic admissions, lateral entry exams and ITI admission for state-wise details.

National vs State Entrance Exams

Entrance exams in India fall into three groups. The difference matters because it decides who can apply and which colleges will use your score.

Type	Conducted By	Who Can Apply	Examples
National	Central agencies and apex institutions such as NTA, NBEMS, the IITs, the IIMs and the Consortium of NLUs	Eligible candidates from any state	JEE Main, NEET UG, CUET UG, CLAT, CAT, GATE
State	State CET cells, state boards and state-nominated universities	Mainly residents of that state; some states open a share of seats to others	MHT CET, KCET, WBJEE, KEAM, AP EAPCET, TG EAPCET
University or institute	A single university or a group of private colleges	Eligible candidates from any state, but the score is used only by those institutions	BITSAT, VITEEE, SRMJEEE, Manipal MET, KIITEE

Most students write one national exam, their home state’s CET and one or two university tests as a backup. A national exam gives the widest choice of colleges, while the state CET is usually the main route to state government colleges at lower fees. After the result, seats are allotted through counselling, for example JoSAA for the IITs and NITs; see centralised counselling for the main processes. Always confirm details on the official notice, for example on the NTA website for NTA exams or the NBEMS website for medical PG exams.

Entrance Exams After Graduation (PG)

For master’s degrees, MBA and medical PG courses, admission again runs mostly through entrance exams. The main PG entrance exams by stream are:

Stream	Courses	Main Entrance Exams
Management	MBA, PGDM	CAT, XAT, CMAT, MAT, NMAT, SNAP, state tests such as AP ICET and Karnataka PGCET
Engineering	M.Tech, M.E.	GATE (with CCMT counselling for NITs and other central institutes), and state tests such as AP PGECET and TG PGECET
Medical	MD, MS, MDS	NEET PG, INI CET, NEET MDS
Science	M.Sc, Integrated PhD	IIT JAM, CUET PG, TIFR GS, JEST
Arts, Commerce and General	MA, M.Com, M.Sc at universities	CUET PG and university tests such as PU CET PG
Law	LLM	CLAT, AILET, AP PGLCET
Pharmacy	M.Pharm	GPAT, NIPER JEE
Computer Applications	MCA, PG diplomas	NIMCET, WB JECA, CDAC C-CAT
Agriculture	M.Sc Agriculture, PhD	ICAR AIEEA PG, ICAR AICE-JRF/SRF (PhD)
Nursing	M.Sc Nursing	AIIMS M.Sc Nursing, PGIMER M.Sc Nursing
Education	B.Ed	IGNOU B.Ed, state tests such as AP EdCET

Some MBA tests carry the previous year in their name. The CAT that leads to MBA admissions in 2027 is CAT 2026, and NMAT and SNAP follow the same pattern, while MAT runs several sessions a year. Check each exam’s page for the edition that matches your intake.

How to Choose the Right Entrance Exam

With so many entrance exams in India, the goal is a short, realistic list rather than all entrance exams in your stream. These steps help:

Start with the course and colleges. Decide the course first, then list the colleges you would actually join and the exams they accept.
Check eligibility early. Look at the required Class 12 subjects, minimum marks, age limit and domicile rules on each exam’s page. Typical patterns are Physics, Chemistry and Maths for engineering and Physics, Chemistry and Biology for medical, while law, management and design are open to all streams.
Pick one main exam and two or three backups. A common mix is one national exam, your home-state CET and one university test.
Use syllabus overlap. Exams in the same stream share most of their syllabus. JEE Main, state engineering CETs and BITSAT all test Class 11 and 12 Physics, Chemistry and Maths, so one preparation covers several exams.
Track dates and deadlines. Check the dates above often, note each application deadline, and keep scanned documents ready so you do not miss a window.
Plan for counselling. Qualifying is only the first step. Find out how seats are allotted for your target colleges and register for counselling on time.

How to Prepare for Entrance Exams

Read the official syllabus and pattern first and map each topic to your study plan.
For UG exams, build your base on NCERT Class 11 and 12 books, since most questions start from that level.
Solve previous year question papers to see the question style and the topics that repeat.
Take full-length timed mock tests in the real exam mode (computer-based or pen-and-paper) and spend as much time reviewing mistakes as taking the test.
Keep the last few weeks for revision and mock tests rather than new topics.

Admission Without an Entrance Exam

Some courses still admit on Class 12 marks, especially BA, B.Com, B.Sc, BBA and BCA at many state and private colleges. Some private universities also offer direct or management quota admissions. These routes are real, but seats and rules vary by college, and most top institutions, including the IITs, NITs, AIIMS, NLUs and central universities, admit only through entrance exams. Check the college’s admission notice before you skip an exam.

Entrance Exam Question Papers

Practise with previous year question papers and sample papers for each exam, grouped by stream below.

All 233 question paper sets ›

Entrance Exams 2027 FAQs

What are the main entrance exams 2027 in India?

The biggest national entrance exams for 2027 admissions are JEE Main and JEE Advanced for engineering, NEET UG for medical, CUET UG for central universities, CLAT for law, and CAT, GATE, NEET PG and CUET PG for postgraduate courses. Each state also runs its own CETs, and many universities hold their own tests. See the stream-wise list above for all of them.

Which entrance exams can I take after 12th?

It depends on your Class 12 subjects and the course you want. PCM students can take engineering and architecture exams such as JEE Main and NATA, PCB students can take NEET UG and nursing tests, and students from any stream can take CUET UG, CLAT, IPM tests, NID DAT, UCEED, NIFT and NCHM JEE. Check each exam’s page for exact eligibility.

Where can I see upcoming entrance exam dates?

The Upcoming Entrance Exam Dates section on this page works as an entrance exam calendar and updates automatically. It shows the next step for each exam, such as the application window, admit card, exam day or result. Dates marked Expected are based on the previous year until the official notice is out.

What is the difference between national and state entrance exams?

National exams like JEE Main, NEET UG and CUET UG are open to eligible candidates from every state and are accepted by colleges across India. State exams like MHT CET, KCET and WBJEE are mainly for admission to colleges in that state, and many seats are reserved for state residents. University-level tests like BITSAT and VITEEE are used only by the university that conducts them.

How many entrance exams should I apply for?

Most students do well with one main national exam, their home-state CET and one or two university tests as backups. Choosing exams with a similar syllabus lets one preparation cover all of them. Applying for too many exams adds cost and travel and can lead to clashing dates.

Is CUET UG compulsory for all undergraduate admissions?

No. CUET UG is used by central universities and many state, deemed and private universities, but professional courses have their own exams, such as JEE Main for engineering and NEET UG for medical. Many colleges also admit on Class 12 marks. Check the admission notice of each university you are targeting.

Can I get admission without an entrance exam?

Yes, for some courses. Many state and private colleges admit to BA, B.Com, B.Sc, BBA and BCA on Class 12 marks, and some private universities offer direct or management quota admissions. However, top institutions such as the IITs, NITs, AIIMS and NLUs admit only through entrance exams, and no route guarantees a seat.

Which entrance exams are there after graduation?

The main PG entrance exams are CAT, XAT, CMAT and MAT for MBA, GATE for M.Tech, NEET PG and INI CET for MD and MS, IIT JAM and CUET PG for M.Sc and other master’s courses, CLAT and AILET for LLM, GPAT for M.Pharm and NIMCET for MCA. The PG table above links to each exam’s page.

Entrance Exams 2027: Full List, Upcoming Dates by Stream