NEET UG 2025 Result: Qualifying Cutoff vs Admission Cutoff

NEET UG 2025: The National Testing Agency (NTA) has released the NEET UG 2025 results on 14 June. Now lakhs of aspiring medical students want to know the difference between Qualifying Cutoff and Admission Cutoff. Though these two cutoffs look similar, they have different meanings and play different roles in the admission process for MBBS, BDS, and other medical courses.

This article will explain the difference, importance, and impact of both types of cutoffs.

NEET UG Qualifying Cutoff

The Qualifying Cutoff is the minimum marks a candidate must get to pass the NEET UG 2025 exam. Scoring above this cutoff makes a student eligible to participate in the counselling process. But it does not guarantee admission to a medical college.

NEET UG 2025 Qualifying Cutoff:

Category	Qualifying Percentile Criteria	Marks Range	Total Candidates
UR/EWS	≥50th percentile	686–144	11,01,151
OBC	≥40th but <50th percentile	143–113	88,692
SC	≥40th but <50th percentile	143–113	31,995
ST	≥40th but <50th percentile	143–113	13,940
UR/EWS & PwBD	≥45th but <50th percentile	143–127	472
OBC & PwBD	≥40th but <45th percentile	126–113	216
SC & PwBD	≥40th but <45th percentile	126–113	48
ST & PwBD	≥40th but <45th percentile	126–113	17

Importance:

• A mandatory requirement to be eligible for All India Quota (AIQ) and State counselling.
• Students failing to meet this requirement are disqualified from the admission process.

NEET UG Admission Cutoff

The Admission Cutoff, also known as the College-wise Closing Rank/Cutoff, is the last rank or score at which admission to a specific college is granted in a particular counselling round.

Admission Cutoffs are usually much higher than the qualifying cutoffs, especially in government and top private medical colleges.

NEET UG 2024 MBBS Admission Cutoffs for AIIMS Delhi (General Category):

College	Opening Rank	Closing Rank
AIIMS Delhi	1	55

NEET UG 2024 MBBS Admission Cutoffs for State Government Colleges (EWS Category):

College	Opening Rank	Closing Rank
SLBS Govt Medical College, Mandi (EWS AIQ)	7,033	11,521

Importance:

• Determines actual admission possibilities in a particular college.
• Varies according to:
  • State quota vs AIQ
  • Category (UR, OBC, SC, ST, EWS)
  • College type (AIIMS, Govt., Deemed, Private)

NEET UG 2025: Qualifying Cutoffs vs Admission Cutoffs:

Particulars	Qualifying Cutoffs	Minimum marks to qualify for NEET
Purpose	Minimum marks to qualify NEET	Minimum marks/rank for admission in a college
Set By	NTA	MCC / State Counselling Authorities
Same for All India?	Yes (for a category)	Varies by college, category & state
Score Range	Lower (e.g., 144 for General)	Much higher (e.g., 650+ for AIIMS Delhi)
Impact	Eligibility for counselling	Actual seat allotment in MBBS/BDS

Why the Difference Between the Two Cutoffs?

1. Limited MBBS Seats: Only 1.18 lakh MBBS seats for 23 lakh NEET aspirants in 2025.
2. High Competition: Top government colleges attract toppers with high scores.
3. Reservation Impact: Category-wise reservation policies influence admission cutoffs.
4. State vs All India Quota: Different states have different closing ranks based on domicile and seat availability.

What Should NEET 2025 Aspirants Do?

1. Check your NEET score vs expected Admission Cutoffs for your preferred colleges.
2. Participate actively in AIQ and State counselling rounds.
3. Keep an eye on mop-up and stray vacancy rounds; sometimes, ranks drop slightly here.
4. Consider MBBS abroad or private medical colleges if the Admission Cutoff is out of reach.
5. Use tools like College Predictors or consult counsellors to find the best-fit colleges for your rank.

Understanding the difference between Qualifying Cutoff vs Admission Cutoff in NEET UG 2025 is important to set realistic expectations. While clearing the qualifying marks is necessary, securing an MBBS seat requires much higher scores depending on the competition, category, and college preference.