NEET PG 2026: Revised pattern, tie-break rules trigger questions; NMC assures fair exam

With the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) PG exam scheduled for August 30, the National Medical Commission (NMC) has asked medical aspirants not to believe rumours circulating on social media. This comes days after National Board of Examinations in Medical Sciences (NBEMS) announced revised exam pattern and new tie-break rules which sparked debate over social media. In a latest update, NMC Chairperson Dr Abhijat Sheth assured students that the examination will be conducted in a safe, secure and transparent manner.

"I must assure students that they should stay away from rumours, agents and consultants. The exam will be conducted in a very safe, secure and transparent manner. Since it is a computer-based examination, many objective tools are available. It is very unlikely that any problem will occur during the conduct of the examination," he told ANI.

Reduced number of questions

The debate started after NBEMS released the NEET PG information bulletin. One of the biggest changes is that the exam will have 180 multiple-choice questions instead of 200. The exam duration, however, remains the same and candidates will still get three hours and 30 minutes (210 minutes) to complete the paper. Dr Sheth says the decision was taken to provide candidates more time to solve each question.

"The Exam Committee felt that by reducing 20 questions, students would get around half an hour more to solve the remaining 180 questions. Instead of increasing the exam duration, the committee decided to reduce the number of questions," he explained.

With the revised pattern, the maximum marks have also reduced from 800 to 720. There is no change in the marking scheme, candidates will receive four marks for every correct answer, while one mark will be deducted for every wrong answer.

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Aspirants discuss tie-break rules

While many aspirants welcomed the extra time per question, the new tie-break rules have become a major topic of discussion on platfom X. As per the NEET PG 2026 information bulletin, if two or more candidates score the same marks, their ranks will be decided using the following order:

• Candidate with fewer incorrect answers overall
• Candidate with fewer incorrect answers in Section A
• Candidate with fewer incorrect answers in Sections B, C, D and E, in that order
• Higher aggregate marks in MBBS professional examinations
• Older candidate

Aspirants have claimed that the reduced number of questions could lead to more students getting the same score. Some have also questioned the use of Section A in the tie-break process. They say that if candidates receive different question sequences in a computer-based exam, comparing performance in one section may raise doubts about fairness.

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With discussions around the exam pattern continuing online, the NMC has advised students to focus on their preparation instead of rumours. Dr Sheth said the computer-based examination has several safeguards to ensure transparency and security.

NBEMS has also changed the exam centre selection process this year. Instead of choosing exam cities, candidates now have to select three preferred states while filling out the application form. The first preference must be the state mentioned in the candidate's correspondence address, while the second and third choices should be neighbouring states. NBEMS has also clarified that exam city allotment will not be done on a first-come, first-served basis.

NEET PG 2026 registration deadline ends on July 21.