IIT JAM Eligibility Criteria 2026: Check Nationality, Age Limit, Aggregate Score & Qualifications

IIT JAM is a National Level Entrance Examination which is held once a year. It is compulsory for the appearing candidates to meet the IIT JAM eligibility criteria 2026. Both Indian & Foreign Nationals are allowed to appear for the entrance test. Furthermore, there is no minimum & maximum age limit specified for appearing in the IIT JAM 2026.

Students should dive into this article to learn about the IIT JAM 2026 eligibility criteria in details such as the required Age Limit, Nationality, Educational Qualifications, and more.

Candidates must possess a Graduation Degree to register for the exam. JAM 2026 exam will be conducted for seven test papers to get admission in the M.Sc degrees.

Students who want to register for the IIT JAM exam must verify the below-given eligibility criteria set by the exam authorities i.e., IIT Bombay:

Academic Qualification

The academic criteria required for IIT JAM is given-below:

• Must have a valid UG degree.

*Students appearing in the final year of Graduation can also apply.

Age Limit

The age criteria set by the IIT Bombay are as follows:

• No lower or upper age limit.

Nationality

Following is the Nationality criteria for IIT JAM 2026:

• Both Indian and Non-Indian / Foreign Citizens can appear for the entrance test. NRIs need to have an Indian Degree to be eligible for the exam.

* Candidates outside India must satisfy the rules and regulations of the institute in which they desire to seek admission.

Other than the basic eligibility criteria specified above in the article for appearing in IIT JAM, the participating Institutes have their separate criteria for admissions.

The Minimum Educational Qualifications (MEQs) of the admitting / participating institutes on the basis of test papers for M.Sc course are as follows:

Note: There are many other IITs which offer admission for different test papers in various courses along with M.Sc like Integrated Ph.D, Joint M.Sc-Ph.D, and others.

* Candidates can prepare for the exam as per the IIT JAM syllabus 2026 and IIT JAM exam pattern 2026.

There are certain numbers of seats reserved for candidates belonging to SC / ST / OBC-NCL / EWS / PwD categories. A requisite and valid certificate must be submitted by the candidates to avail reservation benefits at the time of admission.

* For PwD candidates, it is necessary to have a minimum of 40% of specified disability to get admission on reserved seats. A disability certificate / Unique Disability Identification (UDID) certificate must be submitted by PwD candidates.

Students who satisfy the requisite IIT JAM eligibility criteria 2026 can move ahead to complete their registration. The IIT JAM Registration 2026 for the entrance test will start from 5^th September 2025 & continue till 12^th October 2025. Applicants must ensure that they enter correct details in the form or else they will be only allowed to rectify details such as Gender, Category, Exam Centre, and Test Paper till 10^th November 2025.

The due date to upload the correct ONC-NCL / EWS Certificate is 20^th November 2025. Moreover, the female students of all categories, SC, ST, and PwD candidates have to pay Rs. 1000/- as exam fee & Rs. 2000/- for others for 1 test paper. The application fee for those applying for 2 test papers is Rs. 1350/- for females & reserved categories, and Rs. 2700/- in case of other candidates.