NEET-II was the final chance for aspiring medical students to get a spot in a medical college. MOHIT GOEl talks you through the buzz around the exam and analyses the question paper
What is NEET-IIIJ
The National Eligibility cum Entrance Test – II (NEET-II) was conducted on July 24 in accordance with the orders passed in May, 2016 by the Supreme Court (SC). The firm stand adopted by the SC regarding the mandatory status of the NEET, the ordinance passed by the Union Government offering a partial leeway to some States, the SC passing strictures against the ordinance — all went on to ensure that this examination generated great interest and heated debate.
With nearly 5 lakh students reportedly having appeared for the examination, there is now great anticipation regarding the announcement of the results, expected by August 17, 2016.
The question paper for NEET-II was largely along expected lines, with a few surprises in the form of questions not based on the NCERT textbooks.
The 180 questions — 45 each on Physics and Chemistry, and 90 on Biology, were distributed almost equally between the syllabi for XI and XII standard (ratio 9:11).
In Physics, several questions were calculation oriented, involving elaborate steps, and required a long time to solve. Many questions, across all subjects, were application-oriented, requiring a candidate to possess an in-depth understanding of the concepts and their accurate application in a given situation, not merely a theoretical knowledge of the matter in the textbook.
In Biology, questions on Genetics and Biotechnology, Human Physiology and Ecology were among the most numerous — around 40 per cent. Similarly, in Physics, questions related to Electricity and Magnetism, and Mechanics together accounted for almost 50 per cent of the paper. Chemistry saw a fairly equal distribution among Physical, Inorganic and Organic sections of Chemistry, although there was a notably high sprinkling of moderate to difficult questions.
A comparison of this test with the AIPMT (now designated NEET-I) conducted in May is inevitable, especially because an estimated 3.4 lakh students opted to appear for the NEET-II by agreeing to forsake their claim to the NEET-I scores in the hope of doing better. Overall, the paper was of comparable degree of difficulty and the extra two months of preparation time afforded to such candidates will certainly see most of them improving on their performance.
Candidates from the states of Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Gujarat etc were unprepared for the NEET and will certainly not feel that two months of preparation time was adequate, especially given the differences in syllabi. However, the ordinance passed by the Union Government has provided them with the option of securing most of the admissions available in these states through the local state-specific examinations.
A matter of intense curiosity among the student community are the expected minimum cut-off scores for admissions to the prestigious medical colleges. With admissions to around 15,000 total seats across the country being dependent on scores of this examination, it is generally expected that a score of at least 540-550 out of 720 will be essential for a candidate from the open category to secure an admission to a reputed medical college. Colleges such as Maulana Azad Medical College and lady Hardinge Medical College in New Delhi, and similar Government medical colleges in places such as Chandigarh, lucknow, Patna, Gwalior, Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Kolkata, Chennai, Bengaluru etc will see relatively higher cut-offs – at least 10 per cent higher than those for other colleges.
In the years to come, as the primary eligibility examination for admissions to MBBS and BDS, the NEET will evolve as the most important event in the annual academic calendar of students aspiring to become doctors, just as the JEE is for aspiring engineers.
By Mohit Goel, CEO, Yukti, Thinkcell learning Solutions