IIT JAM Opening and Closing Rank 2026: Qualifying/Admission Cutoff

IIT JAM opening and closing rank 2026 of all the admission list will be declared by IIT Bombay. The opening & closing ranks for IIT JAM are released in 2 to 4 rounds. The opening rank implies the first student who gets admission in that branch and the closing rank means the last student to get admission in that branch as per rank in JEE Mains. 

The opening and closing rank will help you understand the minimum qualifying marks required for the paper. Based on the marks secured by you the admission process will take place.

IIT JAM Opening and Closing Rank 2026

The opening rank is essentially the first candidate to get admission, while the closing score is the last candidate to get admission. With IIT JAM opening and closing rank 2026, eligible you can apply for the Postgraduate and Integrated PhD program in the M.Sc at IITs and other colleges accepting JAM scores.

IIT JAM Opening and Closing Rank for Previous Years

The IIT JAM cutoff in multiple rounds is available for the years 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020 and 2019. Candidates may refer to the table below to view and download the cutoff PDFs for the IIT JAM from previous years.

Moreover, the PDF links contain details such as zone name, degree, course name, category-wise IIT JAM Opening and Closing Rank 2026, paper code and course ID.

Understanding Qualifying Cutoff vs Admission Cutoff for IIT JAM 

IIT JAM has a qualifying and an admission cutoff; candidates can check the difference between both to apply for admission.

Qualifying Cutoff

• The minimum percentile of candidates required to be selected for the IIT JAM selection process is referred to as the qualifying cutoff. 
• Admission is not guaranteed upon meeting the qualifying cutoff score. Before the exam, the university uploads the cutoff. 
• Candidates who do not meet the cutoff will not be considered for the preparation of the merit list.

Admission Cutoff

• In contrast, candidates must achieve the admission cutoff to be considered for IIT JAM participating institutes. 
• Admission is guaranteed if the admission cutoff is achieved. 

Factors Determining IIT JAM Opening and Closing Rank 2026

As the factors vary every year for determining the opening and closing rank, applicants can check the standards that determine the IIT JAM opening and closing rank 2026 below.

• Criteria for Reservation: Compared to candidates from General/Open categories, candidates from reserved categories like SC, ST, PwD, and EWS typically have a lower cutoff.
• The Number of Applicants: The IIT JAM exam Cut Off is higher when there are more applicants, and vice versa.
• The Number of Seats: The cutoffs are directly influenced by the number of seats offered by the institutions and are linked to the number of applicants taking the exam.
  IIT JAM Opening and Closing Rank 2026 will likely be high if more applicants for the IIT JAM than seats are available and vice versa.

Read More: IIT JAM Seats

IIT JAM Rank and Merit List 2026

The All India Rank is given to qualified candidates for each test paper based on the candidate's performance. A separate IIT JAM Merit List 2026 is created for each candidate based on their AIR ranking.

• A merit list is created based on the total number of seats available by category across all institutions.
• Admission is open to all applicants whose names are on the All India Merit list. The applicant's category on the application is used to determine their AIR.
• The IIT JAM 2026 second admission list will be released. Only applicants who will pass the test will be eligible for admission.

IIT JAM Counselling Process

Through the IIT JAM counseling process, seats will be allocated to candidates who pass the exam. The seats will be allocated through a Single Window System (SWS) in the various colleges that are a part of the IIT JAM.

During this cycle, competitors should pick those universities or courses they can join if and when they will get the seat. Candidates can check the important factors of the counselling process:

• IIT JAM Application Form 
• Publication of IIT JAM Admission List (IIT JAM Opening and Closing Rank 2026)
• Accept and Freeze
• Accept and Upgrade
• Reject and Quit 
• Securing a seat