JEE Main — Exam Guide
What JEE Main Is
JEE Main is the National Testing Agency (NTA)-conducted entrance exam for admission to NITs, IIITs, and other GFTIs (via JoSAA), and it is also the mandatory qualifying stage for JEE Advanced (the exam that gates IIT admission). Unlike JEE Advanced, JEE Main covers Physics, Chemistry, and Mathematics together in one paper — it is not subject-specific.
Exam Structure
•Two sessions per year: January and April — a candidate's best score across both attempts is considered for JoSAA counselling.
•Paper 1 (B.E./B.Tech): 90 questions (Physics, Chemistry, Maths — 30 each: 20 MCQ + 10 numerical-value, attempt any 5 of the 10 numerical per subject), 300 marks, 3 hours.
•Normalisation: since the exam runs across multiple shifts/days, NTA applies a percentile-based normalisation — your raw score is converted to a percentile relative to your specific shift, not a simple raw comparison across all shifts.
•Negative marking: -1 for each wrong MCQ; numerical-value questions have no negative marking, which changes attempt strategy for that section.
JEE Main vs JEE Advanced
Conducting Body
Main: NTA. Advanced: IIT (rotating)
Eligibility
Main: Class 12 pass/appearing. Advanced: Top ~2.5 lakh Main rankers only
Purpose
Main: NIT/IIIT/GFTI + Advanced eligibility. Advanced: IIT admission only
Attempts
Main: Twice a year. Advanced: Twice in consecutive years max
| Aspect | JEE Main | JEE Advanced |
|---|
|---|---|---|
| Conducting body | NTA | IIT (rotating) |
|---|---|---|
| Eligibility | Class 12 pass/appearing | Top ~2.5 lakh JEE Main rankers only |
| Purpose | NIT/IIIT/GFTI admission + Advanced eligibility | IIT admission only |
| Question style | More formula-direct | More conceptual, multi-concept, application-heavy |
| Attempts | Twice a year (Jan + Apr) | Twice in consecutive years max |
Application & Eligibility
•Candidates need Class 12 (or equivalent) with Physics, Chemistry, and Maths, subject to each year's NTA-specified minimum percentage or top-percentile criteria (this criterion has changed across recent years — always check the current year's official information bulletin).
•Category-wise age and attempt relaxations apply for SC/ST/PwD candidates per government norms.
Preparation Priorities Specific to JEE Main
Speed + Formula Recall
Questions are more formula-direct than Advanced
Don't Skip NCERT
Covers a large share of questions directly
Treat January as Real
Best of two sessions counts -- not just a practice run
1.Because JEE Main questions are more formula-direct than JEE Advanced, speed and formula recall matter more here than in Advanced-style deep multi-concept problems.
2.NCERT-level conceptual clarity covers a large share of JEE Main questions directly — don't skip NCERT even while doing advanced-level problem sets.
3.Since your best score across two sessions counts, treat the January attempt as a genuine attempt (not just a "practice run") while still having a second shot in April to improve.