IIT JAMJoint Admission Test for Masters

The Joint Admission Test for Masters, conducted annually since 2004, is the flagship national gateway into postgraduate science at India's best institutes. It is run jointly by the IITs and IISc, with the Organising Institute rotating each year among the participating IITs — IIT Bombay organises JAM 2026. A single test opens admission to M.Sc, M.Sc-PhD dual-degree and integrated PhD programmes across a large number of institutes.

The exam is a three-hour computer-based test with 60 questions worth 100 marks, split across three question types: multiple choice (with negative marking), multiple select (no negative marking, no partial credit) and numerical answer type (no negative marking). Seven papers are offered — Biotechnology, Chemistry, Economics, Geology, Mathematics, Mathematical Statistics and Physics — and a candidate may attempt at most two.

Because JAM feeds the science departments of the IITs, IISc, NITs (via CCMN) and other centrally funded institutes, it is intensely competitive. Qualifying does not by itself guarantee a seat: admission is governed by each institute's minimum educational qualification and its own counselling, so candidates should study the admitting-institute requirements alongside their exam preparation.