NTSE 2024 Exam: Dates (Soon), Registration, Syllabus, Question Papers, Patten, Result

The National Talent Search Examination (NTSE) is a scholarship exam conducted by the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) to identify talented students who want to pursue higher education in the Science and Social Studies streams. The exam is conducted for students studying in class 10th. NTSE is conducted in two stages. The stage 1 exam is conducted at the state level by all states and UTs, while NTSE stage 2 is conducted by NCERT at the national level only for those students who qualify the stage 1 exam. The students qualifying in NTSE stage 1 are eligible to appear for the Stage II exam. The NTSE scheme aims to award a scholarship to talented students, who wish to pursue higher education in Science and Social Studies stream, to help them continue their education.

Candidates can find all the important events and dates related to NTSE 2025 below:

Also Read: NTSE Stage-I Topper Tips: Know how Samyak Jain secured Delhi State Rank 1

Candidates who wish to win the NTS 2025 scholarship exam must fulfil the eligibility criteria specified by the NCERT. Also, every State and UT mentions the NTSE Eligibility Criteria 2025 such as academic qualification, age limit, and minimum qualifying marks in the previous class, that candidates must fulfil to apply for the examination. Only candidates who meet the NTSE Eligibility Criteria will be awarded the scholarship after qualifying for NTSE 2025 examinations. Check here details about NTSE eligibility 2025 for stage I as well as stage II exam –

NTSE Eligibility Criteria 2025 for stage I (state level) –

The conditions are listed below:

• Candidates currently studying in Class 10^th from any recognized Private/Government schools including Kendriya Vidyalaya, Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya, and Sainik Schools can apply.

• The candidates can appear in their respective state/UT’s for the NTSE stage I exam, as there is no domicile restriction.

• The SCERT of respective state/UTs may mention any additional criteria for the stage I exam such as minimum qualifying marks in the previous class.

• Candidates who are completing their education from Open and Distance Learning (ODL) such as the National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS) or State Open Boards are also eligible to apply and appear for NTSE 2024.

• The candidates studying from Open and Distance Learning must not be less than 18 years of age at the time of appearing in the scholarship exam. Moreover, they should not be employed (not even part-time jobs) and they should be appearing in the Class 10^th qualifying examination for the first time.  

NTSE 2025 Eligibility Criteria for NTSE Stage II exam –

For candidates studying in India:

Candidates appearing for NTSE stage II exam by NCERT need to fulfil the below-mentioned eligibility criteria -

• They must be Indian Nationals, irrespective of where they are pursuing their Class 10^th qualifying examination i.e. in India or abroad

• They should have qualified stage I exam at the state level

For candidates studying outside India:

• The Indian national candidates studying abroad can directly appear for the Stage II exam of the NTS scholarship award

• They should have scored at least 60 per cent marks in their previous qualifying examination i.e. Class 9^th

• Such candidates should be planning to pursue their higher education only in India after obtaining the NTSE Scholarship

NTSE Eligibility 2025: General Requirements for awarding NTSE Scholarships

• Candidates who are awarded the scholarship are allowed to pursue the approved courses in Science, Social Sciences, Engineering and Medical streams only. They should be willing to pursue higher education in India only

• Candidates should be certified as maintaining good conduct at their school and should continue their higher education

• They should not be absent from school without proper leave or informing the school authorities

• The candidate should be a full-time student and should not be working anywhere or getting a salary/stipend

• If a candidate is getting scholarships under any other scheme as well, then he/she will have to decide which scholarship scheme he/she wants to continue with

• If any candidate is getting any other scholarship then, his/her NTS Scholarship will be stopped for that year and can be continued only after he/she requests NCERT to resume the scholarship; they have to discontinue benefits from other scholarship schemes

• The candidates getting fee waivers/ one-time grant/fee subsidy and accommodation are eligible for NTSE Scholarship

• If any candidate drops studies or discontinues his/her education within one year of admission, the scholarship will not be awarded to him/her

• Candidates must clear all subjects of their course on the first attempt only. In case they fail to do so in any of the core subjects, their scholarship will be cancelled.

NTSE Application 2025: Candidates who wish to appear for the NTSE can apply from their respective state/UT in the offline/online mode or as specified by the exam authorities. Students will be required to download the form online and submit it to the School Principal for certification before the last date along with the application fee (if applicable). The offline NTSE Application Form can be obtained from the school or the listed Liaison Officers for the states/UTs only.

The notification for application form availability of NTSE state-level examination is also made available in the local/national newspapers or circulars circulated in the schools by the respective state/UT.  

The NTSE admit card 2025 is attached along with the application form of NTSE and is required to be filled out by candidates. This admit card is then signed by the State Liasion officer and handed over to the candidate in October.

NTSE Admit Card 2025 - The NTSE 2024 admit card for stage 1 is made available by the exam conducting authorities at least 15 days before the exam date. Many states provide the NTSE 2025 admit card in the offline mode while some issue it online which can be downloaded by candidates. Those who apply for NTSE 2025 will be issued admit cards by their respective state/UT for state-level examination. It is mandatory to carry the admit card on the exam day failing which no candidate will be allowed to sit for the exam. Those who qualify the state level examination are issued NTSE 2024 Stage 2 admit card by NCERT in the online mode only. This can be downloaded from the official website of NCERT.

NTSE Stage 1 exam- The states/UTs are likely to conduct the NTSE exam 2025 in November/December in the offline mode at appointed exam centres only. 

NTSE Stage 1 Result 2025 - The NTSE 2025 stage I result mentions the qualifying status of candidates for both papers i.e. MAT and SAT. The candidates can check the result of NTSE stage 1 exam in the online mode as it is made available on the official website of the SCERT/DGE of the respective state/UT. The NTSE stage I exam result 2023 is released in the form of a merit list, which mentions names, marks, ranks of all qualified candidates for the respective state/UT.

NTSE stage 2 exam - All those candidates who qualify the stage 1 exam of NTSE at the state level are eligible to appear for national level NTSE which is conducted by NCERT. The NTS stage 2 exam 2025 will likely be held in June 2025. The exam pattern, exam details, and subjects are the same as that of NTSE stage 1. 

NTSE Stage 2 Result: The final result of the NTSE stage II examination is expected to be released in August/September 2025, for all candidates. Candidates will be able to check their NTSE stage 2 result through the link provided by the NCERT where they need to enter their roll number and date of birth. The result mentions separate scores as well as the combined score for MAT and SAT papers. The disbursement of the NTSE scholarship will be based on the Merit list after the announcement of the NTSE stage 2 result only. 

The NTSE state-level and national-level examination are conducted at the exam centres designated by the exam conducting authorities. For state-level examination of NTSE, the respective states/UTs allow the exam centre to candidates that are mentioned on the NTSE admit card. For NTSE stage 2, the examination is conducted at the designated test centres by NCERT. The list of NTSE Exam Centre 2025 for Stage 1 will be released by states a month before the conduct of exams while the list of exam centres for stage 2 is listed below.

The table below lists all the exam centres for NTSE Stage 2 –

Here are some of the guidelines that the candidates must follow on the day of the National Talent Search Examination:

• Candidates must carry their admit cards, pencil, pen, and photo identity card to the examination hall.
• All the candidates should reach the exam centre at least 45 minutes prior to the commencement of the examination.
• Any candidate who is late beyond 15 minutes of the commencement of the exam, will not be allowed to write it.
• Electronic gadgets are not allowed in the examination centre. 

For information on NTSE preparation, students can refer to the NTSE preparation tips provided by Shiksha.

How it began

The programme was started in 1963 as National Science Talent Search Scheme (NSTSS) as an initiative to help talented students with scholarships. The students who applied for NTSE scholarships were selected on the basis of qualification in the written test, project report, and interview. The written test included Science Aptitude Test (SAT) and an essay based on a scientific theme only. The project report also needed to be submitted at the time of the written test. The scholarships were awarded to only those students who wanted to pursue higher education in Basic Sciences from Class 11^th to Doctoral level.

All about NTSE over the years: 

Over the years since it was started, the exam conducting authority made drastic changes in the NTSE examination pattern, subject, class level, scholarship numbers and amount, etc. Check below the major changes made in the NTSE scholarship scheme –

NTS Exam over the years