NEET 2025 Exam New Pattern: National Testing Agency Revises Pattern, Optional Section Slashed

The National Eligibility Cum Entrance Test (NEET) for 2025 will revert to its pre-COVID format. The National Testing Agency (NTA) has announced that the NEET UG question paper will exclude Section B, which was optional. Further details and notifications regarding NEET 2025 will be released by NTA in due course.

In the revised format, the NEET UG 2025 exam will feature 180 mandatory questions. These include 45 questions each in physics and chemistry, and 90 questions in biology. Candidates must complete these within a timeframe of 180 minutes.

NEET UG 2025 Exam Pattern

The official notice from NTA states, "All NEET (UG)-2025 aspirants are hereby informed that the question paper pattern and examination duration will revert to the pre-COVID format. where there will not be any Section B anymore. Hence, there will be a total of 180 compulsory questions (45 questions each in Physics and Chemistry and 90 in Biology) which will be attempted by the candidates in 180 minutes thereby removing any optional questions and extra time introduced due to COVID."

The changes mean that the question paper now consists solely of compulsory questions, eliminating any optional sections. This adjustment returns the exam duration to three hours, as it was before the pandemic.

APAAR ID Clarification

Additionally, NTA has clarified that having an APAAR ID is not necessary for registering for NEET-UG 2025. This clarification follows a notice from January 14 encouraging candidates to update their Aadhaar credentials and link their APAAR ID. However, NTA stated, "It is clarified that APAAR ID is not mandatory for NEET UG 2025 registrations. Aspirants can continue to register for the exam using other available means details of which shall be available in the information bulletin soon."

The APAAR ID, previously known as Academic Bank of Credits or ABC ID, serves as a digital repository for students' academic credits, ensuring a comprehensive record of their educational achievements.