Are you willing to avail a scholarship program that will identify your inner talent and groom you accordingly? National Talent Search Examination (NTSE) is a national-level examination conducted in India for such a purpose.
The purpose of NTSE is to hand-pick academically and intellectually bright students from class 10th for scholarships. The idea behind this exam is to encourage talented students and promote a sense of academic excellence in the school education system in India.
The NTSE exam is conducted in two stages:
- States or Union Territories in India conduct the Stage I exams.
- NCERT, authorized by the Central Government, conducts the Stage II exam.
Read on to know more about NTSE below.
NTSE – Important Dates, Eligibility, Selection Process, and many more details
The NTSE is one of the most popular exams conducted by the States / UTs and NCERT in India. It aims to offer financial assistance to deserving candidates in class 10. Following is the proposed scholarship amount to be given to the selected candidates.
NTSE Scholarship Amount
Students who will qualify for both stages will be granted an NTSE scholarship of Rs. 1,250 a month during the entire period of education from class XI and XII. A sum of Rs. 2,000 will also be granted to students for undergraduate and postgraduate courses.
Please Note: The above NTSE scholarship amount will get renewed for a student upon the following conditions.
- Securing a minimum of 60% score in aggregate each year.
- Pursue education in certified courses.
- Pursuing studies as a regular student.
- Maintain regularity in schools or colleges with attendance.
- Pursue a full-time course.
- Must not take up any salaried job or assignment.
- Must not avail any other scholarship schemes.
NTSE 2021 Stage 2 Dates
The NTSE 2021 dates for the Stage 2 exam are given below:
- NTSE Hall Ticket: May to June 2021
- Exam dates: 13 June 2021
- Result: October 2021
The dates may change due to the rapid surge in COVID-19 cases in India once again.
NTSE – Eligibility Criteria
Only students of 10th standard are eligible to appear for the exam. Stage I of the exam is conducted by the Statue / UT under which the school falls. Students from Open or Distance Learning institutions are also eligible to appear for the exam. If you qualify for Stage I, the state / UT will recommend your candidature to the NCERT for the Stage II evaluation.
NTSE Reservation Criteria
As on date, 2000 scholarships will be awarded in the country with the following reservation criteria:
- 15 percent for SC
- 7.5 percent for ST
- 27 percent for OBCs
- 4 percent for those with benchmark disabilities
NTSE – Candidates Studying Abroad
NCERT conducts NTSE for students studying abroad at the 10th standard. These students from foreign schools are eligible to appear directly for the stage – 2 exam, getting an exemption from the State-level exams. The students studying abroad must have scored 60 percent marks in aggregate in the previous annual exam.
How to Apply for NTSE?
One can apply for the exam through offline or online mode.
Offline Mode
To apply offline, one has to visit the concerned offices of the respective State/UT and contact the liaison officer. The form must be duly filled in and submitted before the deadline to the concerned officer. Any wrong information can result in the cancellation of the candidature for the exam.
Online Mode
The online application forms can be downloaded from the official NCERT website (http://www.ncert.nic.in). On the official page, one can easily find the option “National Talent Search Examination” in the “Programmes” menu at the top of the page.
Screening Procedure for State Level Exam
There may be two phases for the State Level test : (A) Mental Ability Test (MAT) to evaluate the psychometric abilities of a student and, (B) Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) to measure a student’s inclination towards the school subjects and learning. Students successfully clearing the State Level test are to be nominated for the final test to be conducted by NCERT.
NTSE Admit Card Allotment
The NTSE Admit Card for the stage 1 exam will be sent by post while the NTSE Hall Ticket for the stage 2 exam will be available on the official website.
Screening Procedure for National Level Exam
The candidates selected by their respective State / UTs based on the performances in the Stage I test are considered eligible to appear for the National Level Exam.
- Stage 2 NTSE is expected to happen on 13 June 2021.
- For any information regarding a candidate’s roll no, venue for the exam, date, time, etc. shall be notified on the Prepp.in and also on the official website (www.ncert.nic.in).
Syllabus for the Exam
No fixed syllabus has been prescribed for the NTSE. The questions and topics of the exam will be at par with the level of intellect in a class 10th student. A booklet called “Learn about the Test” with information about expected topics is available on the NCERT site.
NTSE Exam Pattern
In the Mental Ability Test (MAT), there will be 100 multiple choice questions with four alternatives in each question. Candidates will be marking the answers on the OMR sheet. Each question shall carry 1 mark.
The Scholastic Ability Test (SAT) consists of 100 multiple choice questions with four alternatives in each question. There will be 40 questions from Science, 40 from Social Sciences and 20 will be from Mathematics. The answers must be marked on the OMR sheet.
Language Medium
- The tests will be conducted in the following languages: Marathi, Malayalam, Asamiya, Punjabi, Telugu, Urdu, English, Gujrati, Hindi, Odia, Bangla and Kannada.
- The candidates must mention their language options while applying for the test.
NTSE Result
The NTSE 2021 result for the state-level exam is already available on the official website. The result of the stage 2 exam will be out after 13 June 2021. The scholarship award will be awarded based on the combined scores of MAT and SAT. The names of the candidates will also get published on the NCERT website: www.ncert.nic.in.
Qualifying Marks for the Exam
A merit list is prepared by the State / UT to determine the minimum qualifying marks in both the tests.
For the General and OBC category, the qualifying marks is 40 percent For SC/ST/Differently abled candidates, the marks requirement is 32 percent.
That’s all about NTSE for now! For more information, visit the official website. The above information will be a perfect guide for students in classes 9 and 10 to plan for this exam in the future. We wish you all the best!
