NMC Proposes Shift from Percentile to Percentage Cut-Off for NEET-UG 2026 

In a move that could fundamentally alter the landscape of medical admissions in India, the National Medical Commission (NMC) is currently evaluating a major proposal to change the qualifying criteria for NEET-UG.   

The Problem with Percentiles

Currently, candidates qualify for MBBS and BDS admissions based on a percentile score (e.g., the 50th percentile for the general category). This is a relative ranking system. It means that as long as a student performs better than half the candidates, they qualify – even if their actual absolute marks are extremely low due to a difficult paper or poor overall performance that year.  

Dr. Aruna Vanikar, former president of the Undergraduate Medical Education Board (UGMEB), highlighted that this relative system has raised severe concerns about the minimum academic competency of the students entering medical colleges.  

The Proposed Percentage Shift

To fix this, the new proposal suggests a fixed percentage cut-off based on actual marks obtained out of 720.  

• Absolute Competency: Students would need to secure a strict minimum percentage of marks to qualify, regardless of how other students perform.  

• Shrinking the Pool: With over 26 lakh candidates expected to sit for the upcoming NEET-UG 2026 exam on May 3, this shift would likely drastically shrink the number of eligible candidates. Currently, around 10 lakh students qualify annually. A fixed percentage would weed out low scorers, intensifying the competition for limited seats but theoretically improving the overall academic quality of the entrants.  

While this proposal is still under consideration and has not been officially finalized, it signals a massive shift in how the NMC views medical entrance exams. Students and coaching centers may soon have to completely shift their preparation strategies from trying to “beat the competition” to focusing purely on maximizing absolute scores.