Candidates who missed JEE Advanced 2020 can reappear directly in 2021

NEW DELHI: In a major relief for candidates who registered but could not appear for the Joint Entrance Exam -Advanced (JEE Advanced) due to COVID-19 struck pandemic, the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) announced that they will be provided a chance to reappear directly for the exam next year. 

"To address the concerns of the affected candidates, while avoiding prejudice to other candidates, it has been decided to allow all the candidates, who had successfully registered to appear in JEE Advanced 2020 but were absent in the exam, to appear in JEE (Advanced) 2021, as a one-time measure," IIT Delhi said after a meeting of the Joint Admission Board (JAB) of the IITs

To appear for JEE Advanced, it is mandatory for candidates to clear JEE Main.

However, the IITs have decided that these candidates will not have to qualify for JEE Main 2021, and will be allowed to directly appear in JEE Advanced 2021 on the basis of their successful registration to appear in 2020.

It was further decided that this relaxation of the existing eligibility criteria will be in addition to proportionate relaxation of the age bar. These candidates would be considered in addition to and not as part of the total number of candidates who would qualify from JEE Main in 2021 for appearing in JEE Advanced.

Currently, a candidate is allowed only two attempts at the IIT entrance exam but the demand for extending the number of attempts has been raised by students and academicians several times.

While Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) Main is conducted for admission to engineering colleges across the country, JEE Advanced is conducted for admission to 23 IITs in the country.

JEE Main for admission to engineering colleges was conducted from September 1 to 6 and JEE Advanced on September 27 amid strict precautions in view of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The number of students appearing for JEE Advanced 2020 was also a record low. Of the 2.5 lakh students who were eligible to appear for JEE Advanced, only 1.5 lakh had appeared for the exam.