JEE Advanced 2025 aspirants who dropped out between November 5 and 18 can take 3rd attempt: Supreme Court

NEW DELHI : In a relief to the Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) Advanced 2025 aspirants, the Supreme Court has allowed students who dropped out between November 5 and November 18 last year to appear for the IIT JEE exam, as per a Live Law report. The top court was hearing pleas by candidates seeking restoration of JEE Advanced third attempt, which was first introduced and then ‘abruptly’ withdrawn.

The Joint Admission Board (JAB) issued a notification on November 5, announcing an additional JEE Advanced third attempt , allowing students who passed Class 12 exams in 2023, 2024, and 2025 to appear for the engineering entrance exam. However, on November 18, the board reduced the number of attempts in JEE Advanced to two, restoring the previous JEE Advanced eligibility criteria .

A bench comprising Justices B R Gavai and Augustine George Masih refused to interfere with the JAB’s decision to withdraw the extra attempt in JEE Advanced for the academic session 2025-26. The apex court dismissed the petition, allowing the aggrieved students to register for the test.

SC found no fault in the board’s move to reverse its own decision, considering the Solicitor Tushar Mehta’s submission that it was taken to ensure that students who take admissions in engineering colleges other than IITs focus on their studies and don’t waste their time in preparing for the premier institutes.

JEE Advanced 2025 eligibility

Petitioners’ counsel had argued that the board changed the JEE Advanced 2025 eligibility criteria in an ‘arbitrary’ manner, causing irreparable damage to several students who dropped out of colleges and joined IIT coaching , in a hope to secure a seat.

Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur ( IIT Kanpur ) will conduct the JEE Advanced 2025 exam on May 18 for top 2.5 lakh students who qualify the JEE Main 2025. The JEE Advanced 2025 information brochure is available on the official website, jeeadv.ac.in. The JEE Advanced registration 2025 will commence on April 23 and the last date to apply is May 5.