List of DU Colleges and Courses expected for 96 Percentile in CUET UG 2025

Finding yourself in the top 96 percentile of CUET UG 2025 candidates is a remarkable accomplishment. However, percentiles of 97 to 99 and higher are frequently needed to be admitted to Delhi University's most prestigious colleges, including Hindu College, Miranda House, Lady Shri Ram College, and Sri Venkateswara College, for highly sought-after programs like BA (Hons) English, B.Com (Hons), and BA (Hons) Economics. Even though a 96 percentile might not be enough for DU's prestigious colleges and flagship programs, it still offers plenty of chances to get into a range of BA, B.Com, and B.Sc. programs at respectable mid-tier universities where you can get a top-notch education and a wide range of academic choices.

In DU, the competition level in the admission process of any course varies based on factors, like the highest marks secured, the category-based reservation policy, the normalization process, etc. However, the National Testing Agency (NTA) released the CUET UG 2025 result in percentile form and shared the marks secured in each subject on Jul 4, 2025. Thus, to learn the normalization and admission process, you must know your marks and percentile.

In this article, we will cover the CUET UG 2025 DU courses for the 96 percentile and colleges. It will help you get an estimated idea for the list of options you have after the release of the result and you can strategize your next step for admission accordingly. Moreover, the CUET DU round 3 seat allotment list was issued on Aug 13, 2025 (by 5 PM). The last date to accept the alloted seats was Aug 17, 2025. The round 1 and 2 seat allotment list were released on Jul 19, 2025 and Jul 28, 2025, respectively at the CSAS portal. The upgraded allotment list along with auto-acceptance was scheduled for Aug 5, 2025 and the mid-entry vacant seats list was released on Aug 8, 2025.

What is the Meaning of 96 Percentile in CUET UG?

Achieving 96 percentile in the CUET UG 2025 exam puts you in a strong and competitive position, which is within the top 4% of the test takers, which is an impressive accomplishment considering the competition level and it also helps to gain admission into prestigious colleges affiliated with Delhi University (DU).

You can check the expected marks required for the 96 percentile through the table shared below.

NOTE: Based on trends from prior years, the 96 percentile score's expected mark range is as follows. Depending on factors like exam difficulty and seat availability, the actual cutoff score for the 96 percentile may change.

Top 10 DU Colleges & Courses for 96 Percentile in CUET

The 96 percentile CUET DU college list 2025 includes Maharaja Agrasen College, Shaheed Rajguru College, Deshbandhu College, and many more offering BSc (Hons) Biomedical Science, BA (Hons) Journalism, BA (Hons) Hindi, and other courses.

You can check the CUET UG 2025 DU courses for 96 percentile and colleges list through the table shared below.

DU Admission Chances at 96 Percentile by College Type and Courses 

There are various DU-affiliated colleges offering admissions at 96 percentile. The detailed college type, along with eligibility and the best DU courses for 96 percentile CUET 2025 are mentioned here for your reference.

DU Admission Chances at 96 percentile: North and South Campus Colleges

Generally, the cutoff of North campus colleges are higher than the south campus colleges. The reasoning behind this is that in the north campus there are mostly old and most prestigious DU colleges and are high in demand for admission. Whereas, the south campus colleges are less popular than the North campus colleges. 

Thus, the cutoff level of any program offered on the north campus of DU colleges is higher than on the south campus. Popular courses such as BA (Hons) Economics, BA (Hons) English, BCom (Hons), etc have high demands and thus the cutoff level is high for these courses. The seats are generally filled with students having the 97-99 percentile.

Relatively, the south campus also has top colleges, like Lady Shri Ram College for Women (LSR), Venkateswara College, etc, but the cutoff is low and admits students with 96 percentile as well.

With 96 percentile you have high chances to get admission into south campus in the first round of seat allotment whereas for north campus you might not get a chance in mid-tier colleges or have to wait till 4th or 5th round. With 96 percentile you can likely get admission into Shaheed Rajguru College, Deshbandhu College, etc.

DU Category-Wise Courses Available for 96 Percentile

Getting 96 percentile in the CUET UG programs puts you at a high position but the admission chances are highly influenced by your reservation category. Delhi University follows the Government of India’s Reservation Policy which directly affects the cutoff based on categories.

You can check the category-wise cutoff breakdown shared below.

Unreserved Category (UR)

For the UR category the competition level is high as there is no reservation option available and thus the cutoff is high. The 96 percentile CUET DU college list 2025 for UR category are Dyal Singh College, PGDAV, etc and the chances of admission are for BA (Prog), BA (Hons) Philosophy, BSc (Life/Physical Science) programs.

Other Backward Classes (OBC)

For the OBC category, the DU colleges 96 percentile CUET UG 2025 is moderate to high. The DU offers reservation relaxation of 27% to OBC students, that is, relaxation of 2-4 percentile. With 96 percentile, you can fight for seats at top-ranked colleges and courses than general category applicants.

With this, you have chances to get a BA (Hons) History or Political Science in mid-tier colleges.

Scheduled Caste (ST)

For SC students the DU colleges 96 percentile CUET UG 2025 ranges between low to moderate as the reservation percentage offered is 15%. With 96 percentile in SC category you are in a strong position and can get admission into Kirori Mal College or Hansraj College in BA (Hons) English, Political Science or other top preferred courses.

You have the advantage of accessing courses and colleges available for UR categories under the 97-99 percentile.

Scheduled Tribes (ST)

The competition level for the ST category is low as the reservation percentage is 7.5%. Due to the reservation facility, you are in a strong position with the 96 percentile and can get admission into top DU affiliated colleges, such as Hindu College, Miranda House, etc in BA (Hons) English, History, and Economics programs.

Factors Determining 96 Percentile Cutoffs in DU

There are various factors which affect the cutoff of the colleges for the admission procedure. The detailed list of factors are shared below for your convenience and will help you understand the factors.

1. Total Number of Students Appeared

Based on the number of students registered and appearing for the examination, the cutoff is prepared as the more students appearing for some colleges and courses, the higher will be the course demand and thus the cutoff will be higher.

For some of the popular courses, such as BA (Hons) English, BCom (Hons), BA (Hons) Political Science, and BA (Hons) History there is a very high competition in non top-tier colleges as well.

2. Reservation Policy

The reservation policy plays a major role in determining the cutoff as it provides privileges to some selected category of students. Reserved category candidates are OBC, SC, ST, EWS, PwD. Due to the reservation policy they have high chances of getting admission into top 10 colleges in desired programs with less marks but for General category students the cutoff for the same course and college will be high.

3. Subject Preferences

Based on the choice and preferences made for any course the cutoff is prepared based on the preference level of any program the competition level varies, which leads to a higher cutoff. As the DU admission process is subject-specific, your domain subject marks are prioritized. For example, students with the 96 percentile will have a higher chance of getting admission into BA (Hons) English, BA (Hons) Political Science, or other courses than those having lower marks in the relevant subjects.

4. College Reputation and Popularity

Based on the popularity and reputation of the college the cutoff is prepared as the competition level is high. Thus, examining all the faces is a must. Colleges, such as Hindu College, Kirori Mal College, and Hansraj College, the cutoff tend to stay high as the admission demand for all the courses are high.

However, in Deshbandhu or PGDAV colleges, the cutoff level is comparatively low even for the same course.

5. Course Popularity

The cutoff of the course also varies based on its demand. Some honors programs, such as BA (Hons) English, BA (Hons) Political Science, BA (Hons) History, BA (Hons) Economics, etc have a high popularity and thus the admission cutoff for these courses is high, accepting 97-99 percentile.

However, courses like BCom, BA, BA (Hons) Hindi or Philosophy generally have lower cutoff for the admission.

6. Total Seats Available

Some colleges provide admissions for limited seats and thus, they keep the cutoff high to select only top-scoring applicants. Thus, the cutoff depends on the total seats available for the course as well. Other colleges having more seats for some courses take admission with students having 95-96 percentiles as well. 

7. CSAS Preference List

The preferences made by you at the CSAS portal for the courses and colleges also affects the cutoff level. Even with 96 percentile a student might miss out on some good seats due to the preference made.

However, cutoffs usually drop in the second or third round of the seat allotment, and students might get a chance for admission into the desired college and course in other rounds.

8. Normalisation Method

NTA will use CUET normalization process 2025 to calculate the score of the same course conducted on different shifts and dates, which can significantly make changes in the percentile. Two students can end up getting different percentiles even after having the same raw score based on the normalization method and eligibility requirements.

Conclusion

Through the article, you can see that though 96 percentile is a good score, it will put you in the mid-tier colleges bracket due to the competition level and popularity of the DU-affiliated colleges and courses offered. The Delhi University affiliated colleges are popular due to the top-notch facilities offered, extracurricular activities provided, study guidance and teaching methodologies followed by the authorities.