NEET UG Results: To repeat or not to repeat a year, here’s what expert advices

The results for NEET 2022 exams are out. Of the 18.72 lakh students who registered for the exam around  1.5 lakh will get a MBBS, BDS and AYUSH seats. That means roughly only 1 in 12 aspirants will be able to realise their dream of becoming a doctor via NEET. To majority of others, it has left the perplexing question of whether to drop a year and take another attempt at NEET, which is often referred to as repeat or to look for other available options. The article here presents facts, arguments and data that will help such students take more sound and informed decision and choose one of the binary options available to them.  The article also discusses various other available career options for such students  

Emerging trend amongst NEET qualifying students 

The table below presents the distribution of students who qualified NEET vis- a-vis those who took multiple  attempts to qualify. 

Profile of NEET qualifying students* 

Graphics by Abhishek Mitra

 

The above statistics from Justice A. K. Rajan committee’s report on impact of NEET on medical admissions in Tamil Nadu suggests that repeater students have faired well over the last five NEET exams. But that should not be the sole reason for you as a student to take any decision. The decision should be more subjective and relevant to you on an individual basis. There are cases when not repeating could be the better choice. Let us discuss a few of them: 

When not repeating is the better choice 

The decision of not repeating can be the more relevant one to students due to various reasons. There are a few situations discussed below where this would be the better choice to make 

— You gave your best in the exam yet scored very low marks. It is important to understand that not everyone is meant to do everything. We all have peculiar minds and particular qualities and skill sets. It is very much possible that a student’s aptitude might not be aligned to the specific demands of NEET. In such situations, it is advisable that you should move forward and evaluate other options available.

— It may be the case that the decision of preparing and appearing in NEET was not yours but due  to family or peer pressure. If that is the case then it is better you don’t take a drop. It’s better to  move on and choose something which is your calling and not derived from any external influence.  

— The NEET examination is very demanding and requires total commitment and demands a lot of  hard work to qualify. It could very well be the case that you gave your best and now you don’t  have the desire or will to sustain for another year. Then you should not repeat and better off  choosing some other course or even consider changing your subject.  

I don’t want to repeat. What are my options? 

There are various options available for students that can be pursued and doesn’t involve NEET result. A few  of them are as follows 

Getting admission under management or NRI quota: There are few MBBS seats reserved in many  colleges and can be availed by meeting some criteria and requirements specific to the college. You are  advised to do some research and check if you fulfil them 

Doing MBBS from abroad: There are many countries that provide MBBS course. While some require  you to take tests there are others where getting admission is comparatively easier. A few of these countries  are US, UK, Germany, China, Poland, Australia amongst others 

Pursuing other science and medical related course: There are many good courses that a student can  choose as a career. A few of them are BSc Psychology, BSc Nursing, Bsc Biotechnology, B.Pharma etc. a  comprehensive list of such courses can be obtained by doing some research. Student can opt out for any  of these as per his/her likings. 

Changing stream: It may very well be the case that you may come to the realisation that you have interest  in other subjects like commerce, arts, humanities or languages. This option is still available to you and  should be chosen without hesitation and can offer much satisfying and rewarding career 

When repeating for NEET is more relevant 

We have previously discussed various options that do not require NEET result. However they are more  often then not quite expensive or involve moving to a distant country. There are also options where you  decide to move out of medical profession altogether. But all said and done for some students giving up on  their desire and ambition of becoming a doctor is not easy. A few situations when taking another attempt  at the exam could be the more suitable choice. We discuss them here 

— If you have missed qualification by very few marks then it is better you take another attempt.  The fact that you have another year where you don’t have to take board exam and can solely  focus on the NEET exam should help you qualify in the next attempt. The odds of qualifying in  multiple attempt as presented earlier are in your favour. 

— There was lack of guidance and so you were not able to acquire knowledge and skills required for  NEET. In such situations its better you take another attempt. But it is advisable that you consider  joining a good NEET classes where you can get proper guidance 

— It is possible that some other non-academic reason might have caused your poor result in the  exam. It could be poor health, some family misfortune, examination errors or some other  external factors. In such situation it is better that you take another attempt at the exam 

— There is another situation often observed among NEET aspirants. Many students are not able to  perform well in one of the three subjects either Physics chemistry or biology and that drags their  result. It could be a good idea to take a drop and focus on this subject as it provides you enough  time to improve and possibly qualify in the next attempt 

(The author is Associate Director Academic at Aakash Byju’s)