Campus Times | Lucknow

The undergraduate admission process across Central Universities and other participating institutions is expected to gain momentum after the National Testing Agency (NTA) declared the Common University Entrance Test Undergraduate (CUET UG) 2026 results on its official portal on Tuesday.

Candidates who appeared for the examination can now download their scorecards through the CUET portal. The results have been prepared on the basis of the final answer key released by the NTA on June 22.

Over 15.6 lakh registrations recorded

CUET UG 2026 witnessed a significant rise in participation this year. According to official data, a total of 15,68,867 unique candidates registered for the examination, reflecting an increase of more than 15 per cent compared to 13,54,699 registrations in 2025.

The number of candidates who appeared for the examination also increased substantially. While 10,71,735 students took the test in 2025, the figure rose to 11,64,098 in 2026, underlining the growing importance of CUET as a gateway to undergraduate admissions.

Candidates were offered a choice of 37 subjects, including 13 languages, 23 domain specific subjects, and one General Aptitude Test (GAT), providing flexibility for admission to a wide range of undergraduate programmes.

Final answer key basis for results

Before announcing the results, the NTA released the provisional answer key on June 9 along with candidates recorded responses and question papers. Students were given an opportunity to raise objections and challenge the provisional key.

Following a review of the challenges received, the agency published the final answer key on June 22. The CUET UG 2026 results have been calculated strictly on the basis of this final answer key.

Universities to announce counselling schedules

The NTA clarified that its role is limited to conducting the examination, processing challenges, preparing answer keys, and declaring results. The preparation of merit lists and admission decisions will be carried out by individual universities and participating institutions.

With the results now available, universities are expected to release their counselling schedules, admission guidelines, and merit lists in the coming days. Admissions for the 2026–27 academic session will be conducted using CUET UG 2026 scores, subject to each institution’s eligibility criteria and programme specific requirements.