A 12-member expert committee has recommended a transition from the current percentile-based qualifying system for NEET-PG and NEET-SS to a rank-based merit system for postgraduate medical admissions. This recommendation was presented to the Supreme Court on November 3. The committee believes that admissions should be determined by candidates' ranks instead of the existing percentile eligibility criteria. The National Medical Commission (NMC) has provisionally approved this proposal, with plans for implementation potentially starting in 2027, although specific rules and details are still pending. Additionally, the committee advised that standards for qualification should not be lowered simply to occupy vacant postgraduate seats. It also suggested a reduction in fees for non-clinical postgraduate courses and recommended that students studying pre-clinical and para-clinical subjects be exempt from service bonds.
The decision comes following severe scrutiny from the Supreme Court during hearings regarding previous admission cycles. In past rounds—notably during the 2025–26 counselling cycle—qualifying cut-off percentiles were drastically lowered (in some categories down to the 0th percentile or even negative scores) in an effort to fill thousands of vacant seats in pre-clinical, para-clinical, and non-clinical disciplines.
The Supreme Court raised critical concerns that such sharp drops in eligibility standards diluted the academic quality of postgraduate medical education. In response, the expert panel was mandated to audit the admission mechanism and formulate a system that protects academic merit while addressing seat vacancy issues.
Additional Key Recommendations:
Financial Incentives: Lower tuition fees for under-subscribed non-clinical PG courses to encourage enrollment without lowering academic standards.
Bond Exemptions: Waiving service bond requirements for pre-clinical and para-clinical specialties to make them more attractive to candidates.
Streamlined Counselling: Measures to reduce procedural delays in seat allotment rounds.
The shift means future postgraduate candidates must focus purely on maximizing their NEET-PG scores and securing high ranks rather than anticipating cut-off reductions mid-counselling.
No Immediate Change for 2026–27: The National Board of Examinations in Medical Sciences (NBEMS) and the NMC will maintain the existing percentile-based framework for the 2026–27 academic cycle.
Implementation Timeline: The proposed rank-based system is scheduled for rollout in 2027, pending the final operational guidelines issued by the NMC and formal sign-off by the Supreme Court.
Detailed rules outlining how the rank-based model will interface with category reservations (SC, ST, OBC, EWS, PwD) and tie-breaking criteria will be published in the official information bulletin prior to the 2027 exam cycle.
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