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After Class 12: courses and entrance routes by stream

5 min read · Updated 9 Nov 2026

After Class 12, almost every course has a gate — an entrance exam, Class 12 marks, or both. Start from the course, find its gate, then check you meet the conditions in time.

Science — PCM

Engineering (B.Tech/B.E.) — JEE Main for NITs, IIITs and many others; JEE Advanced for IITs; state exams for state colleges.
Architecture (B.Arch) — NATA or JEE Main Paper 2.
B.Sc, BCA, data and maths degrees — CUET-UG or university admission.
Defence — NDA for the Army, Navy and Air Force wings.

Science — PCB

MBBS, BDS, BAMS, BHMS and related — NEET-UG.
Nursing, pharmacy, physiotherapy, B.Sc life sciences, agriculture — NEET-UG, CUET-UG, state or university tests, depending on the college.

Commerce

B.Com, BBA, economics — CUET-UG or university admission; Maths in Class 12 widens the choice.
CA, CS, CMA — professional routes run by their institutes, which you can start alongside a degree.

Arts / Humanities (and any stream)

BA programmes — CUET-UG or university admission.
Law (5-year BA LLB / BBA LLB) — CLAT for national law universities; other law schools run their own tests.
Design, fashion, hotel management, journalism — institute-level entrance tests.

Before you apply: a checklist

Subjects — does the course need specific Class 12 subjects?
Marks — is there a minimum aggregate, like the 75% rule for NITs and IITs?
Age — some exams have windows (NDA, JEE Advanced); others have none.
Dates — application windows open months before the exam; note them early.

In short

Pick the course first, then find its exam or marks route.
Subjects, marks and age rules decide eligibility.
Each year's information bulletin is the source of truth.

Sources

Information bulletins from NTA (JEE Main, NEET-UG, CUET-UG), JEE Advanced, UPSC (NDA), the Consortium of NLUs (CLAT) and the Council of Architecture (NATA). Check the current year's bulletin before applying.