AISSEE Result, Cut-off and Counselling: How Merit Is Decided

There is no single AISSEE cut-off. NTA sets only a qualifying minimum: at least 25 per cent in each section and 40 per cent in aggregate, which does not apply to SC and ST candidates at the Sainik Schools. Beyond that, a child’s chance depends on where he or she ranks for a particular school and seat category, and on medical fitness and counselling. The actual closing marks differ by school, class, category, gender and home or outside state, and each school publishes them after the process ends.

This page explains how the merit list is built, what happened in each step of the 2026 cycle, and why we do not publish “expected cut-offs”. We quote only official facts, and the sources are listed at the end.

Qualifying marks, rank and cut-off are three different things

The bulletin says that schools and the NTA website will carry the school-wise, class-wise and category-wise marks of the first and last candidate called for medical, the marks of the first and last candidate admitted, and the cut-off from the final merit list. We have not found a consolidated public table of those figures for 2026, so this page gives no numbers for them. A figure quoted anywhere without a school, a class and a category is not a cut-off.

What the qualifying minimum works out to in marks

Working from the official percentages and the section marks in the bulletin gives the minimum scores below. This is our arithmetic, not a table printed by NTA, so confirm against your child’s score card.

Reaching these marks makes a child eligible. It does not place the child on a school’s list at a useful rank, and being on a waiting list does not assure a seat.

How the merit list is built

For the 33 Sainik Schools, merit lists are prepared school by school, class by class and category by category, separately for boys and girls. Within each school, home state and outside state candidates are ranked against their own quotas. At the counselling stage the Society uses all-India-rank lists for home state and for outside state, with separate lists for unreserved, OBC (non-creamy layer), SC, ST and defence categories. A seat is given to the highest school on the candidate’s list that his or her rank, category, domicile and the available seats allow.

When two candidates have the same total, the bulletin breaks the tie by section marks, in this order.

Mathematics decides the first tie, which is one more reason it deserves the biggest share of preparation time.

The 2026 cycle, step by step

The bulletin had promised the result within six weeks of the exam, and the 2026 result came on the 40th day. The challenge fees were ₹100 for each recorded response and ₹200 for each answer, and the bulletin says there is no provision for re-checking or re-evaluation of machine-graded sheets beyond those challenges.

The medical shortlist is not a merit list

After the result, the Society shortlists candidates up to three times the available vacancies, strictly by all-India rank, and sends them for a medical examination at a hospital the school nominates. A public notice of 2 March 2026 states that this list is neither a merit list nor a list of selected candidates, and that publishing it does not amount to selection, confirmation or allotment of any school. A candidate declared unfit, or who stays absent, is not eligible for counselling or admission.

Candidates who were not shortlisted early can still have the medical at the school allotted to them during counselling, and the responsibility for arranging it rests with the family. Keep the NTA admit card and score card, a birth certificate and identity documents ready, as the notice asks.

How e-counselling works

1. Register on the AISSAC portal using the AISSEE application number, and list schools in order of preference.
2. In each round, check the portal. If a seat is allotted you must accept or reject it before the deadline, and if you do nothing the seat is cancelled.
3. If your first preference is allotted and you accept, you must complete admission at that school and you leave the later rounds.
4. If you accept a lower preference and complete admission, the portal can move you to a higher preference in later rounds, subject to merit and vacancies.
5. Vacancies that remain after the online rounds are filled in offline rounds.

There is no interview in this process. The Society’s order of 4 July 2018 discontinued the Sainik School interview from the 2019-20 session, and the final merit list rests on the written test, subject to medical fitness. If you would like a counsellor to talk through how your child’s score might map to schools, free counselling is available by phone or WhatsApp on +91 70170 31757.

Other points that catch families out

• The result is valid only for the admission year in question. It cannot be carried forward to the next session.
• Merely qualifying confers no right to admission, and being in a waiting list does not assure a seat.
• A school that a candidate refuses at counselling is not considered for that candidate in later counselling.
• The approved New Sainik Schools run their own merit lists, an all-India list for the 40 per cent route and a school-wise list for the 60 per cent route, through the same counselling process.

Is there a Dehradun result or a state-wise result?

No. NTA declares one result for the exam, and a candidate sees his or her own score by login. Dehradun was one of the examination cities in 2026, so searches for an “AISSEE Dehradun result” lead to the same NTA result. What does change by place is the seat: a candidate from Uttarakhand is a home state candidate only for Sainik School Ghorakhal, and an outside state candidate for the others.

AISSEE result and cut-off: common questions

FAQs

Questions parents ask us.

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What is the AISSEE cut-off?

There is no single cut-off. The bulletin sets a qualifying minimum of 25 per cent in each section and 40 per cent in aggregate. Closing marks differ by school, class, category, gender and home or outside state, and each school publishes them after counselling.

When was the AISSEE-2026 result declared?

NTA declared the AISSEE-2026 result on 27 February 2026, for an exam held on 18 January 2026. Candidates saw score cards by logging in to the NTA portal.

Is there an interview after the AISSEE?

No. The interview was discontinued from the 2019-20 session. Admission follows the written test, a medical examination and e-counselling.

Can I challenge an answer key?

Yes. In 2026 NTA displayed provisional keys and accepted challenges up to 14 February 2026 for ₹200 per answer, and accepted representations on OMR grading for ₹100 per response.

What is the medical shortlist?

It is a list of candidates up to three times the vacancies, chosen by rank and sent for medical examination. The Society has stated that it is not a merit list and does not mean selection.

Is the AISSEE result valid next year?

No. The bulletin says the result is valid only for the admission year for which the exam was held.

Do you publish expected cut-offs?

No. Expected cut-offs are guesses. We publish only qualifying rules from the bulletin and tell you where each school posts its own closing marks.

To see how our classroom batches prepare children for the written paper, read about Sainik School coaching in Dehradun. For the age and domicile rules behind the seats, see our AISSEE eligibility guide, and for the whole path from form to joining, the Sainik School admission guide.

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