JEE Main and JEE Advanced are the two phases of the Joint Entrance Examination (IIT JEE) to get admission into premier technical institutions in the country like IITs. Indian nationals who desire to attempt the JEE Advanced must first write the JEE Main paper for admission to B.E./B.Tech. programmes conducted by the NTA (National Testing Agency). However, the same does not apply to foreign nationals. Foreign nationals and OCI/PIO candidates who have studied or are studying in India/abroad at 10+2 level or equivalent at the time of the registration are eligible to appear for the JEE Advanced without attempting the JEE Main.

JEE is conducted to analyse the student’s knowledge in Engineering and Science field. It is a gateway for students who aspire to pursue their bachelor’s degree from recognised Indian engineering institutes. Every year, lakhs of candidates appear for the JEE Main exam to pursue higher education in Science, Engineering and Architecture after Class 12. Therefore, students must score the minimum marks that meet the JEE Main cutoff to apply for JEE Advanced. The minimum marks in the JEE Main to qualify for the JEE Advanced will depend on the number of candidates who appeared and the highest score attained by the candidates.

The National Testing Agency (NTA), which is the official exam conducting body for JEE Main, will release the minimum qualifying marks for JEE Main to be eligible for JEE Advanced. To qualify for JEE Advanced, candidates must score above the minimum marks (or cutoff) in JEE Main. The candidates who are in the top 2.5 lakhs list in the JEE Main scores will be eligible to appear for JEE Advanced. Along with the JEE Main score, there are other eligibility criteria for JEE Advanced, such as the percentage of marks in Class 12 or the equivalent examination, age limit, number of attempts, etc.

To get admission to the top IITs in India, one must clear the first phase of IIT JEE, i.e., JEE Main, with a good score to appear for the JEE Advanced. Candidates who get a high score in the second phase of the exam, i.e., JEE Advanced, become eligible for a seat in the IITs of the country. This will be decided based on the JEE Advanced cutoff and All India Rankings for JEE Advanced. As we know, the cutoff percentile varies for different IITs to get admission into various courses. However, there are multiple steps involved in getting admission to IITs, which include qualifying in JEE Advanced, filling out the choices and/or participating in the JoSAA (Joint Seat Allocation Authority) process, which does not always guarantee a candidate’s admission to IITs. It depends on the candidate’s merit and seat availability in the institute during various rounds of seat allocation.

Getting the minimum cutoff percentile and being in the top 2,50,000 candidates in JEE Main will be the main eligibility criteria for attempting the JEE Advanced. However, the minimum marks required to score in the JEE Main to qualify for the JEE Advanced cannot be accurately predicted since the minimum marks will vary yearly, and also depends on multiple factors.