What After the NEET Result? Counseling and More.

Hello future doctors. No matter how disappointing the NEET result was, you need to be prepared for counseling. It’s time for us to analyze our scores, understand our ranks, and keep a plan ready. 

I have prepared an easy step to step guide to everything after the NEET result. This guide will help you stay prepared for the further process.

Understanding Your NEET 2024 Result

The NEET 2024 results have been declared by the National Testing Agency (NTA). This year, the competition was fierce, or at least the results were. Whatever be the reason for the unbelievable result, one thing is for sure. Students need to gear up and prepare for the counseling process.

Before we talk about the counseling, here’s what you need to know about your result:

Scorecard Details: Your NEET scorecard contains your score out of 720, your subject-wise percentiles, All India Rank (AIR), Category Rank, and Qualifying Status.

Percentile Score: NEET results are expressed in percentile. This is an indication of your performance relative to other candidates. A 90% percentile means that you have scored better than 90% of the students who have attempted the exam.

Cut-off Marks: The cut-off marks for NEET 2024 vary by category. These are the marks needed to get admission into a college.

What is NEET Counseling?

NEET counseling is the process through which seats in medical colleges are alloted to students based on their NEET scores. This is a centralized online process. It ensures that seats are distributed fairly and transparently. 

Counseling is conducted in multiple rounds. This gives students several opportunities to secure a seat in their desired college.

In this process, you get to ask for your desired medical colleges. You will submit a list of the colleges that you want and which ones are your priority. The Counseling Body will collect these lists and compare them with the lists of all aspirants. 

Then, the student with the highest rank will be allotted their desired colleges first, then the next student is allotted their desired college. Likewise the process continues. Further down the list, some student might have opted for a college that has run out of available seats, so he will then be allotted to his second priority college.

This will also continue till all colleges have run out of seats.

Importance of NEET Counseling for Medical Aspirants

The counseling process is a critical step in your journey to becoming a doctor. Here’s why it’s crucial:

Seat Allocation: You need to go through the counseling process if you want a seat in a medical college. This is the only way to get admission in Indian medical colleges. If you do not apply for counseling you won’t get a seat in any college. Admission into private colleges also require going through the counseling process. 

College Selection:  You get to choose the college that you want. It will be made sure that you get into your preferred college if you fit the cutoff.

Equal Opportunity: The centralized counseling makes sure that all candidates get a chance at getting a medical seat.

Overview of the NEET Counseling Process

The NEET counseling process can be overwhelming. I have broken it down into some simple steps to help you understand the process.

Release of Seat Matrix

MCC will release the seat matrix for MBBS and BDS courses of all the participating universities. The seat matrix tells you the number of available seats in different colleges, different courses and different categories

Registration

The candidates have to register online for counseling on the MCC (Medical Counselling Committee) website. Details about the candidate’s score and rank are to be filled.

Payment of Fees

The students will have to pay a registration fees of 1000 Rs UR and 500 Rs for reserved categories on the online portal. Along with this a security deposit also has to be paid, this money is refunded after the counseling process is over. These fees can be paid using a debit card, credit card, netbanking or UPI.

Choice Filling and Locking

Then, you have to fill in your preferences for colleges and courses. You have to create a list of the colleges that you would like to get admission into. The most preferred one has to be put in the first place and the list goes on based on your other preferences. You can select multiple options based on your rank and interest.

Once you are satisfied with your choices, lock them before the deadline. Locked choices cannot be changed.

Now, your choices have been conveyed to the counseling body, the next step is allotment of seats by the MCC.

Seat Allotment

Rounds: Seat allotment is conducted in multiple rounds based on your rank, preferences, and seat availability. You can reserve the college you have been allotted in the first round or you can go for an upgrade where you hold the chance of getting into a more preferred college.

Reporting to the Allotted College

Document Verification: You have to then report to the allotted college with the required documents for verification. This is a compulsory step, failure to report can result in disqualification from counseling. Even AIQ students have to report.

Admission Confirmation: Complete the admission formalities and pay the required fees to confirm your seat. Or do not retain the college and go forward with the second round of counseling.

State Quota vs. All India Quota (AIQ) Counseling

The NEET counseling process is divided into two main categories: State Quota Counseling and All India Quota (AIQ) Counseling. These have been described in short below:

All India Quota (AIQ) Counseling

Conducting Authority: Medical Counseling Committee (MCC) on behalf of the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS).

Eligibility: 15% of the total seats in government medical and dental colleges across India are reserved for AIQ. All NEET qualified candidates are eligible to participate in AIQ counseling.

Seat Distribution: Based on the candidate’s All India Rank (AIR).

Rounds of Counseling: Typically, AIQ counseling is conducted in two main rounds, followed by a mop-up round for any vacant seats. If there are still vacant seats then a stray vacancy round may be held.

State Quota Counseling

Conducting Authority: Respective state authorities.

Eligibility: 85% of the total seats in government medical and dental colleges within a state are reserved for candidates who are domiciled in that state.

Seat Distribution: Seats are distributed based on the candidate’s rank based on the state merit list.

Rounds of Counseling: Similar to AIQ, state quota counseling also involves multiple rounds. It also includes a mop-up round for vacant seats.

The distribution of medical seats across different states in India is also important. States like Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and Maharashtra offer a lot of seats. This might make the competition a little easier for students domiciled to these states. 

Whereas states like Sikkim, Goa, and Meghalaya, Rajasthan, Bihar and UP provide fewer seats. The state cutoff and AIQ cutoff is more or less the same. This makes the exam even more competitive for students that are domiciled to these states.

Factors to Consider While Choosing a Medical College

Undergrad Medical college is the foundation of your career. You must choose wisely and after a lot of thinking. Here are some factors to consider while choosing a Medical College

1. Location
2. Language
3. Private vs Government
4. Infrastructure
5. How old is the institute
6. Faculty
7. Reputation
8. Fees
9. Affiliated Hospitals
10. Rural Bond
11. Distance From Home
12. PG Quota
13. Transport to and fro the City
14. What the Students have to say

Points to Remember During NEET Counseling

Stay Updated: Regularly check the official counseling website for updates and important dates.

The tentative dates are as follows:

Document Ready: Keep all necessary documents ready and ensure they are valid and up-to-date. Make sure that you have them in the valid format and size.

Timely Decisions: Make sure that you have an idea about your choice preference beforehand. You need to be prepared. Check out previous year cutoffs and keep the list ready.

Backup Options: Have backup options ready.You need to look up counseling for other medical or paramedical too. Apply readily if you feel the need to.

Be realistic: While aiming for top colleges is good, also include realistic options based on your rank. In your choice filling list, do not include colleges that you don’t actually want to go to.

Research Thoroughly: Gather information about different colleges and courses before making your choices. Do not just blindly copy paste someone else’s list.

Conclusion

No matter what decision the Supreme Court takes, stay prepared for anything. The NEET exam might be held again, but there are also chances that the MCC might go ahead with the counseling as scheduled. Us students will always be the ones to suffer in any mismanagement. Hope for the best but prepare for the worst.

All the best for what is to come.