🇮🇳 How to apply to university in India

Applications go through JoSAA (JEE seat allocation) for the IITs, NITs, IIITs and GFTIs; Study in India (SII) for international applicants. Programmes usually start: July–August (main).

Checked on 24 October 2026 against the official sources listed below.

The essentials

Application system: JoSAA (JEE seat allocation) for the IITs, NITs, IIITs and GFTIs; Study in India (SII) for international applicantsIndian candidates reach the IITs, IISc, NITs, IIEST, IIITs and other government-funded technical institutes through one route: JEE (Main) run by the NTA, then JEE (Advanced) for the IITs, then choice filling and seat allocation on josaa.nic.in. International students use the Ministry of Education's Study in India portal (studyinindia.gov.in) or, for the NITs and other centrally funded technical institutes, DASA (dasanit.org). Every other university admits on its own exam or NEET/CUET.
When programmes start: July–August (main).
International applicants: Foreign nationals applying to the NITs and other centrally funded technical institutes use DASA, not JoSAA; other institutions take applications through the Study in India portal or directly. Foreign nationals at the IITs and IISc are allotted supernumerary seats through JoSAA against the OPEN Gender-Neutral closing rank.
Language: Most degrees are taught in English; some institutes ask non-native speakers for IELTS or TOEFL.

Key dates

Add all these dates to my calendar (.ics)

JEE (Advanced) 2027's registration and exam dates, and JoSAA 2027's choice-filling window, were not yet published when checked (JoSAA 2026 opened choice filling on 2 June 2026 and ran five rounds to 21 July 2026). The Study in India portal lists no national deadline; DASA publishes its own schedule each year.

Date	What	Who	Intake	Source
24 October 2026 –22 November 2026	JEE (Main) 2027 Session 1 — application closes (23:50 IST)	Candidates for the NITs, IIEST, IIITs and other GFTIs, and the first step to JEE (Advanced)	2027 entry	NTA, Information Bulletin JEE (Main) 2027
20 January 2027 –28 January 2027	JEE (Main) 2027 Session 1 — examination days	All JEE (Main) Session 1 candidates	2027 entry	NTA, Information Bulletin JEE (Main) 2027
5 January 2027 –3 February 2027	JEE (Main) 2027 Session 2 — application closes (23:50 IST)	All JEE (Main) candidates (the better of the two sessions counts)	2027 entry	NTA, Information Bulletin JEE (Main) 2027

A window shows its opening date above its closing date. Individual universities and programmes can set earlier dates of their own — always confirm on the official page before you rely on a date. The calendar file adds each date as an all-day event with a reminder a week before.

Your checklist

The usual steps for an international student applying to a bachelor's in India, in order. Tick them off as you go — your ticks stay in this browser, with no account.

1.Register for JEE (Main) on jeemain.nta.nic.in in the session window; the state of the school or board where you passed Class XII becomes your 'state code of eligibility', which decides home-state seats at the NITs — it is not where you live.
2.Sit JEE (Main) Paper 1 for B.E./B.Tech., Paper 2A for B.Arch. or Paper 2B for B.Planning; the top 2.5 lakh or so in Paper 1 qualify to register for JEE (Advanced) on jeeadv.ac.in.
3.Sit JEE (Advanced) for the IITs and IISc; register separately for the Architecture Aptitude Test if you want B.Arch. at IIT Kharagpur, Roorkee or (BHU) Varanasi.
4.Compare your rank, category and state with last year's closing ranks on this site, then register on josaa.nic.in and fill and lock your choices in the window — only choices you filled can be allotted, and you hold one seat at a time.
5.After each round, accept the allotted seat (pay the seat-acceptance fee and upload documents), choose 'float' or 'slide' to stay in the running for higher choices, or 'freeze' to stop; withdrawal has its own last round.
6.If you hold a seat in the NIT+ system after JoSAA's last round, pay the partial admission fee and watch for CSAB's special rounds (csab.nic.in) for remaining seats; report to the institute on its dates.
7.International students: register on studyinindia.gov.in for an SII ID and apply through it, or through DASA for the NITs and other centrally funded institutes; then apply for a student visa with your offer letter and register with the FRRO within 14 days of arrival.

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Next steps

Sources

Written by CollegeMatcher in our own words from these official pages, checked on 24 October 2026. Dates change every year.