What is a Good Score and Rank in JEE Main?

  • By Aashruti Bhadoria
  • 1 September 2023
What is a Good Score and Rank in JEE Main?

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Starting a journey towards a BTech degree opens up a world of possibilities, promising innovation, technical skills, and a promising career. However, the path to securing coveted B.Tech admission in India often begins with the Joint Entrance Examination or JEE Main. 

As the JEE Main exam date draws near and aspirants get busy with the comprehensive JEE Main syllabus, a question arises: What is a good score and rank in JEE Main? 

This guide will help you answer this essential insight that can guide you towards success in this examination.

What Score is Good in JEE Main?

A good score in JEE Main can vary depending on several factors, including the difficulty level of the exam, the year's cutoff trends, and the competitiveness among aspirants.  

Here are some guidelines to help you understand what might be considered a good score:

Top IITs and NITs

  • For top IITs and NITs, a score in the range of 95th to 99th percentile can be considered a good score. 
  • This usually means an NTA Score of around 220 to 250+.

Top Private Universities

  • For top private engineering colleges, a score in the range of 90th to 95th percentile is generally considered good. 
  • This can mean an NTA Score of approximately 180 to 220.

Other NITs 

  • For admission to other NITs and IIITs, a score in the range of 80th to 90th percentile can be considered good. 
  • This means an NTA Score of around 150 to 180 would be good.

State-Level Engineering Colleges

  • Some state-level colleges might have lower cutoffs, while others could be competitive. 
  • Good scores and percentile will depend on different universities from state to state. 

What is the NTA Score in JEE Main?

The National Testing Agency or NTA Score in JEE Main is a normalised score that candidates receive based on their performance in the JEE Main exam. To compare applicant scores from various exam sessions and shifts, the NTA uses a procedure known as normalisation. This takes into consideration any changes in the difficulty level of several exam papers and ensures fairness.

The NTA Score is used to determine a candidate's All India Rank (AIR) in JEE Main. It's important to note that the NTA Score is not the same as the raw marks obtained by a candidate. Instead, it's a scaled score that reflects a candidate's relative performance compared to other candidates.

How the score in JEE Main is calculated?

The score in JEE Main is calculated using a process that involves the normalisation of raw scores to arrive at the NTA Score, which is used for determining ranks. Here's an overview of how the score calculation works:

  • Raw Score Calculation: In the JEE Main exam, candidates answer a set of questions across different subjects (Physics, Chemistry, and Mathematics). For each correct answer, candidates are awarded four marks, and for each incorrect answer, 1 mark is deducted. The raw score for each candidate is calculated by adding up the marks obtained in all the subjects based on the correct and incorrect answers.
  • Session-Wise Raw Scores: Since JEE Main is conducted across multiple sessions, the raw scores are initially calculated separately for each session. This is because different sessions might have slightly varying difficulty levels of question papers.
  • Normalisation Process: After the raw scores are calculated for all sessions, the normalisation process is applied to equate scores across sessions. This process takes into consideration the mean and standard deviation of the raw scores in each session. The goal is to ensure that candidates are not unfairly advantaged or disadvantaged by the difficulty of their specific session's question paper.
  • Calculation of NTA Score: The normalised scores obtained from the previous step are then converted into the NTA Score. This score is what is used to determine the candidate's All India Rank (AIR). The NTA Score is calculated for each subject (Physics, Chemistry, and Mathematics) as well as the overall exam.
  • Rank Calculation: Based on the NTA Scores, the All India Ranks (AIRs) are assigned to candidates. The candidate with the highest NTA Score receives the top rank, and the ranks are assigned in descending order based on the scores.

Note: The exact formula and the parameters used for the calculation by normalisation are known only to NTA.

Also Read: JEE Main Marks vs Ranks vs Percentile

What is a Good Rank in JEE Main?

A good rank in JEE Main can vary depending on the total number of students who appeared for the exam, the difficulty level of the exam, and the category (General, OBC, SC, ST) to which you belong. 

However, here are some general guidelines to give you an idea of what might be considered a good rank:

Top 100 Ranks

  • Considered excellent and highly competitive. 
  • Students can get admission to some of the most prestigious engineering institutes in the country, including the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs).

Top 500 Ranks

  • Highly commendable 
  • Students can get access to top-tier institutes like IITs, NITs, and other reputed engineering colleges.

Top 1000 Ranks

Impressive and can lead to admissions to some of the finest engineering institutions across India.

Top 5000 Ranks

Provides opportunities in a wide range of engineering colleges, including NITs, IIITs, and other respected universities.

Top 10,000 Ranks

This range is generally considered good and provides a chance for admission to a variety of engineering colleges offering diverse branches and specialisations.

Beyond 10,000 Ranks

Depending on the total number of candidates and the overall performance, ranks beyond 10,000 might still be considered acceptable for admission to several engineering colleges.

How to score good marks in JEE Main?

Here are some tips to help you achieve your goal:

  • Familiarise yourself with the JEE Main exam pattern, including the number of questions, marking scheme, and time allocation for each section. 
  • Focus on building a strong foundation in the fundamental concepts of Physics, Chemistry, and Mathematics. 
  • Solve a variety of practice questions and previous years' papers to improve your problem-solving skills. 
  • Practice efficient time management during your preparation and in the exam.
  • Avoid cramming or trying to learn new topics just before the exam. 

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FAQs - What is a Good Score and Rank in JEE Main?

What is the JEE Main average score?

The JEE Main average score is

What is a Good score in JEE Main?

250+ is considered to be a good score in JEE Main.

What is the JEE total marks?

The JEE total marks is 300, with 100 marks divided into 3 subjects (physics, chemistry, and maths).

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