JAM: Joint Admission test for Masters

The JAM: Joint Admission test for Masters is a computer based online test for those IITs and IISc Bangalore aspirants who wish to take admission in the MSc programs, Joint MSc-PhD, MSc-PhD Dual course and the other Post Bachelor Degree Program and integrated PhD programmes offered by these esteemed Indian institutions. The JAM participating institutes are IISc Bangalore, IIT Bhilai, IIT Bhubaneswar, IIT Bombay, IIT Delhi, IIT (ISM) Dhanbad, IIT Gandhinagar, IIT Guwahati, IIT Hyderabad, IIT Indore, IIT Jodhpur, IIT Kanpur, IIT Kharagpur, IIT Madras, IIT Mandi, IIT Palakkad, IIT Patna, IIT Roorkee, IIT Ropar, IIT Tirupati, IIT (BHU) Varanasi.

Every year one of the IITs or IISc Bangalore administers JAM for Post Graduate programs admission.

Important: JAM examination is conducted for seven subjects only. Biotechnology, Chemistry, Economics, Geology, Mathematics, Mathematical Sciences, Physics.

JAM Eligibility Criteria

The candidates who wish to pursue higher studies in all the IITs in India should have completed their graduation and secure a minimum of 55% marks (5.5 out of 10 CGPA), without the rounding off for the unreserved category candidates. For the unreserved category candidates, they should secure a minimum of 50% (5 out of 10 CGPA) marks without rounding off. Those candidates who have either appeared or are due to appear for their final examination of their qualifying degree in current year are also eligible to appear in JAM. The institutes consider various subjects including the subsidiary and the language with the distinct years combined.

How to Register for JAM 

The JAM Online Registration process normally begins from September every year. For latest updates see EducationNews.Shiksha.

JAM Exam Dates (Tentative)

Given below is the tentative exam dates for JAM Administration:
  • Online registration and application process will start:
    September

  • Closure of the online application process and uploading documents: October
  • Admit Card Download: January
  • Date of JAM Examination: February
  • Announcement of the Results of JAM: March
  • Submission of Application Form for Admission on the JAM Website: April
  • Last Date for receipt of request for change of category in proper format/ rectification of defective documents: May
  • Declaration of First Admission List: June
  • Closure of Admissions through JAM: July
For latest dates and announcements see www.educationnews.shiksha

JAM Admission Requirements

The aspiring candidates for JAM should fulfill the eligibility criteria for admissions in IISc, Bangalore and the IITs.

The candidates belonging to the General/OBC (NCL)/EWS category should atleast score a minimum of 55 % marks (5.5 out of 10), without rounding off, (including all the subjects and even languages and subsidiaries, of all years) and for the candidates falling under SC/ST and PwD category must get atleast 50% aggregate marks (5 out of 10), without rounding off, including all the subjects and even languages and subsidiaries, of all years) in their qualifying degree. However, the equivalency of the marks in percentage will be decided by the particular institute, if the candidate scores in CGPA or grades.

The Candidates are required to submit the pass certificate as a proof of qualifying the degree with all the required eligibility that is specified by the particular institute.

Reservation of Seats

There are certain number of reserved seats for candidates belonging to the reserved categories that include SC, ST, OBC and Physically Disabled. These reservation of seats are only done according to the Government rules and regulations.

Educational criteria

Given below are the minimum education qualification for admission to IISc, Bangalore and IITs for
various master degree programmes
  • M.Sc. Applied Geology (IITB, IITR)/ Joint M.Sc.-Ph.D. in Geology (IITKgp)/ M.Tech. Geological Technology (IITR)/ M.Sc.-Ph.D. Dual Degree Programme in Applied Geology (IITB)/Joint M.Sc.-Ph.D. in Earth Science (IITBBS):
    The candidates must complete their bachelor's degree with Geology for three years or six semesters and any two subjects in Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry or Biological Sciences. They should have Mathematics at the (10+2) level.

  • M.Sc. Applied Geophysics (IITB)/ M.Sc.-Ph.D. Dual Degree Programme in Applied Geophysics (IITB):
    The candidates must complete their bachelor's degree with Physics and Mathematics as core subjects for two years and at least one as a subject for three years.

  • M.Sc. Applied Statistics and Informatics (IITB)/ M.Sc.-Ph.D. Dual Degree in Operations Research (IITB):
    The candidates must complete their bachelor's degree with Statistics or Mathematics as a subject for a minimum of four semesters or two years.

  • M.Sc. Statistics (IITK):
    The candidates must complete their bachelor's degree with Statistics as a subject for a minimum of four semesters or two years.

  • M.Sc. Biotechnology (IITB, IITR)/M.Sc.-Ph.D. Dual Degree in Biotechnology (IITB):
    The candidates must complete their bachelor's degree in any branch of Medicine (MBBS)/ Engineering/ Veterinary/ Pharmacy/ Agriculture/Science. For IITB's M.Sc.-Ph.D. Dual Degree in Biotechnology and M.Sc. Biotechnology, the candidates must pass Mathematics at the 10 2 or equivalent level.

  • M.Sc. Chemistry (IITB, IITD, IITGN, IITG, IITH, IITI, IITK, IITM, IITR)/ Joint M.Sc.-Ph.D. in Chemistry (IITBBS, IITKgp)/M.Sc.-Ph.D. Dual Degree Programme in Chemistry (IITB):
    The candidates must complete their bachelor's degree with Chemistry for six semesters or three years and Mathematics 10+2 or equivalent level.

  • M.Sc. Mathematics (IITB, IITD, IITGN, IITH, IITK, IITM)/ M.Sc. Mathematics and Computing (IITG)/ M.Sc. Applied Mathematics (IITR)/ M.Sc. Industrial Mathematics and Informatics (IITR)/Joint M.Sc.-Ph.D. Programme in Mathematics (IITBBS, IITKgp)/M.Sc.-Ph.D. Dual Degree in Operations Research:
    The candidates must complete their bachelor's degree with Mathematics as a subject for at least four semesters or two years.

  • M.Sc. Physics (IITB, IITD, IITG, IITH, IITI, IITK, IITM, IITR)/ Joint M.Sc.-Ph.D. in Physics (IITBBS, IITKgp)/ M.Sc.-Ph.D. Dual Degree in Physics (IITB, IITK)/M.Sc. Physics - M.Tech. Materials Sciences (IITB):
    The candidates must complete their bachelor's degree with Physics as a subject for atleast four semesters or two years and Mathematics as a subject for a minimum of two semesters or one year.

  • M.Sc.-Ph.D. Dual Degree in Energy (IITB):
    The candidates must complete their bachelor's degree with either Physics, Chemistry or Mathematics for four semesters or two years and any of the other remaining two subjects for two semesters or one year.

  • M.Sc.-Ph.D. Dual Degree in Environmental Science & Engineering (IITB):
    The candidates must complete their bachelor's degree with one of the subjects Physics, Mathematics, Chemistry, Biotechnology or Biology for four Semesters or two years, and any one of the other remaining subjects for at least two semesters or one year. They should also have Mathematics at the (10 +2) or equivalent level.

  • Integrated Ph.D. in Chemical Sciences (IISc Bangalore):
    The candidates must complete their B.Sc or equivalent examination with Chemistry as the core subject. They must also pass Mathematics at the 10+2 or equivalent level.

  • Integrated Ph.D. in Mathematical Sciences (IISc Bangalore):
    The candidates must complete their engineering undergraduate or B.Sc with mathematics as a core subject for six semesters or three years.

  • Integrated Ph.D. in Physical Sciences (IISc Bangalore):
    The candidates must complete their B.Sc or equivalent degree with Physics as their main subject.
  • M.Sc Economics (IIT Delhi): Any Bachelor’s degree (B.A./B.Sc./ B.Com/ B.Stat./B.Math./ B.Tech/B.E. or equivalent). The bachelor’s degree or equivalent qualification obtained by the candidate must entail a minimum of three years of education after completing higher secondary schooling (10+2) or equivalent.
  • MSc Economics (IIT Roorkee): B.Tech/B.E./ B.Sc. (PCM)/ B.Stat. and B.A./ B.Com. (with Mathematics as one of the subjects in the whole programme). However, Minimum Educational Qualification for engineering graduates/students should be treated as removed for this programme and these candidates will be admitted based on their JAM rank only.

JAM Exam Pattern

The JAM will be a Computer Based Test (CBT) for all the seven papers and it will be online. The test will have a choice of seven test papers for its candidates, out of which they can only appear in one or a maximum of two test papers. Other than the registration fees, there is also an additional fee for the second test paper. It is important to note that the candidates who plan to appear for more than one paper should ensure that the dates for the test don’t clash.

The duration for each paper will be of 3 hours duration and will be of 100 marks. The question paper will have a total of 60 questions.

List of papers in JAM
  1. Biotechnology (BT)
  2. Chemistry (CY)
  3. Geology (GG)
  4. Mathematics (MA)
  5. Mathematical Statistics (MS)
  6. Physics (PH)
  7. Economics
The whole paper will be objective type and will come in three sections, A, B, C:
  • Section–A contains a total of 30 Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs) involving 10 questions of one mark each and 20 questions of two marks each. Each MCQ has four choices out of which only one choice is the correct answer. Candidates can mark the answer by clicking the choice.
  •  Section–B contains a total of 10 Multiple Select Questions (MSQs) carrying two marks each. Each MSQ is similar to MCQ but with the difference that MSQ may have one or more than one correct choice(s) out of the four given choices. The candidate gets full credit only if he/she selects all the correct answer(s) only and no wrong answers. Candidates can mark the answer(s) by clicking the choice(s).
  •  Section–C contains a total of 20 Numerical Answer Type (NAT) questions involving 10 questions of one mark each and 10 questions of two marks each. For these NAT type questions, the answer is a signed real number, which needs to be entered using the virtual numeric keypad on the monitor. No choices will be shown for NAT questions.
  • In all sections, questions not attempted will result in zero marks. In Section-A (MCQ), wrong answer will result in negative marks. For each wrong answer to 1 mark questions, 1/3 mark will be deducted, and similarly, for each wrong answer to 2 marks questions, 2/3 mark will be deducted. In Section-B (MSQ), there are no negative and no partial marking provisions. There is no negative marking in Section-C (NAT) as well.

JAM Result

JAM Result and JAM Merit Rank is normally declared in June. For latest results visit www.results.shiksha

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