Campus Times | Lucknow

More than 11.21 lakh candidates who qualified the NEET UG 2026 examination are now awaiting the commencement of the counselling process, which will determine admissions to MBBS courses across the country. The Medical Counselling Committee (MCC) is expected to release the official counselling schedule in the coming days.

As per the seat matrix released by the National Medical Commission (NMC), admissions will be offered against a total of 1,36,939 MBBS seats available in 823 medical colleges across India. This means that despite over 11 lakh students qualifying the entrance examination, only around 1.37 lakh candidates will secure an MBBS seat through the counselling process.

Medical authorities have clarified that admissions can be granted only through the centralized counselling mechanism based on the approved seat matrix. No medical college or institution is permitted to admit students beyond the sanctioned intake or outside the prescribed counselling process.

The counselling is expected to follow the four round format, similar to previous years. Eligible candidates will have to register online, fill in their preferred colleges and courses, and participate in the seat allotment process based on their NEET rank, category, reservation policy, seat availability, and choices submitted.

Admission through AIQ and state quota

Admissions to 15 percent of government medical seats will be conducted under the All India Quota (AIQ), covering central universities, deemed universities, and participating government medical colleges. The remaining 85 percent seats will be filled through State Quota counselling, managed by individual state authorities for admissions to government and private medical colleges within their respective states.

Candidates are advised to keep all required documents ready and regularly monitor the official counselling notifications, as registration and choice filling dates are expected to be announced shortly. Missing any counselling deadline could result in the loss of an admission opportunity despite qualifying NEET UG.