Chennai, July 18:
Cut-off scores for MBBS admissions in Tamil Nadu are expected to increase by 30 to 40 marks this year, following a surge in high-scoring candidates in NEET UG 2026.
The National Testing Agency (NTA) declared the results after conducting a retest on June 21. Of the nearly 19.99 lakh candidates who appeared nationwide, over 11.21 lakh qualified.
Tamil Nadu recorded a notable performance, with 12 students securing ranks among the top 138 in the All India Rank (AIR) list. The relatively easier question paper this year led to a sharp rise in top scores, with 19 candidates scoring between 701 and 720 marks and over 1,300 candidates scoring between 651 and 700.
This spike in high scores is expected to significantly impact admissions to government medical colleges. Experts say candidates may need to score 30 to 40 marks higher than last year to secure MBBS seats.
For instance, the cut-off for the Open Category at Madras Medical College, which stood at around 597 marks in 2025, is expected to rise to approximately 642 this year. Similarly, the Backward Class (BC) cut-off may increase from 578 to around 629 marks, with comparable trends across other categories.
The NTA has fixed the qualifying cut-off at 213 marks for the General Category and 177 marks for OBC, SC, and ST candidates.
However, despite improved top-end performance, the State saw a drop in participation. While over 1.35 lakh students appeared in 2025, only about 1.08 lakh took the exam this year, with the number of qualified candidates also declining.
Educationists attribute the reduced turnout to the cancellation of the original examination and the subsequent retest, which may have discouraged some candidates. At the same time, better preparation and additional time are believed to have contributed to the higher scores, intensifying competition for limited government medical seats.