Write NEET and repeat

Struggle for medical seats in NEET, with repeaters increasing, coaching centres thriving, and calls for restrictions on attempts.

“I did not get a medical seat because I got only 320 out of 720 marks in NEET (National Eligibility cum Entrance Test) results last year. I had the dream of becoming a doctor since childhood, so I skipped the year, joined a coaching centre, and studied hard. This year, I got 600 marks, and I am hoping to get a medical seat,” said Namrata (name changed), a 20-year-old student from Kolar, a town about 65 km from Bengaluru.

Pradyumna, from Bengaluru, is also a repeater. He appeared for NEET for a third time this year and is waiting for medical counselling. “I have been writing NEET continuously since 2021, hoping to get a government quota seat. I got the 32,000th rank in this NEET exam. Last year, I secured the 3,52,000th rank even though I trained all year,” he said.

For Monica S.J., a resident of a village in Ramanagara district, close to Bengaluru, it has been a challenge to attend college as well as prepare for NEET since she is from a rural area. “I could not go to coaching centres because there are none nearby. I studied with notes from college lectures, online resources, and by referring to guides,” she said. But her rank is below 17 lakh, which means a medical seat is out of the question.

Several such students have written the NEET this year. They are waiting for counselling, which has been delayed because of the alleged exam scam and the ongoing Central Bureau of Investigation investigation.

Now, even high scorers are unsure of getting a seat of their choice. For example, Kalyan V. of Bengaluru, who got the All India Rank-1 (AIR-1) in the NEET this year and wanted to join the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, is not certain about getting a seat since an unprecedented 67 students have got AIR-1.

The alleged exam scam this year aside, statistics show that the trend of students taking a break after II PU to prepare for NEET exclusively has been growing. A large number of candidates are repeaters.

According to the information provided by the Karnataka Examination Authority (KEA), out of the total 10,917 medical seats available in 2023, as many as 7,012 went to repeaters, that is 64.2%. This includes a student who passed the II PU exam in 2007 and attempted UGNEET successfully.