The NEST exam syllabus 2026 topics are covered based on class 11th and 12th Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics, and Biology papers. To prepare well for the exam, students must practice previous year's papers, appear for mock tests, learn time management, etc.
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NEST is a national-level entrance exam conducted for admission into the National Institute of Science Education and Research (NISER), Bhubaneswar, and the University of Mumbai - Department of Atomic Energy Centre for Excellence in Basic Sciences (UM-DAE CEBS Mumbai). It is a 5-year Integrated M.Sc. course.
To prepare for the NEST exam 2026, students must ensure to prepare a proper timetable, complete the entire syllabus in detail, revise the important topics, appear for mock tests, practice at least the last 5 years of question papers, solve sample papers, learn exam patterns, and time management.
The NEST syllabus 2026 is prepared considering the class 11 and 12 topics from the Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics, and Biology papers. There are a total of 4 sections in the syllabus. Students are advised to learn the important topics and prepare accordingly.
NEST Exam Subject-Wise Preparation Tips
The detailed subject-wise preparation tips for the NEST examination are provided below for students' reference. Following the preparation tips shared, candidates will be able to achieve good marks.
NEST Physics Exam Preparation
Some useful NEST exam preparation tips for the Physics paper are provided here.
- The Physics syllabus mainly focuses on Mechanics, Electricity and Magnetism, Optics and Modern Physics, and Thermodynamics and Waves.
- Thus, applicants must focus more on these than on other topics in the syllabus.
- They must strengthen their base knowledge through NCERT books and H.C. Verma books for theory and problems.
- Applicants should draw images of the topics to learn and understand the physical situation of the topic.
- They must practice the previous year's questions for the paper and should focus more on questions related to important topics. They must appear for NEST mock tests 2026.
- Candidates must make notes of all the important formulas and revise them every single day to not missing out on any important concept.
NEST Chemistry Exam Preparation
The NEST exam preparation tips for Chemistry are specified in the section below for the applicants.
- Some of the important topics of the NEST Chemistry paper are Physical Chemistry, Organic Chemistry, and Inorganic Chemistry.
- Students must collect online or offline resources on these topics, mainly to prepare well. The topics include high weightage in the exam. Thus, strengthening these topics might help in achieving good marks.
- Applicants must refer to highly recommended NCERT books for the Chemistry paper to strengthen their base concept related to all the topics, especially these three.
- Candidates must manually practice all the numerical concepts and prepare their notes to understand the concept in more detail.
- They must focus on understanding the concept of Organic Chemistry.
NEST Mathematics Exam Preparation
Applicants must check the NEST preparation tips for the Mathematics paper shared below.
- To achieve good marks in the Maths paper of the NEST exam, students must strengthen their base concepts related to all the topics.
- Some of the important topics of the Mathematics paper are Algebra, Calculus, Geometry, Trigonometry, and Vectors.
- Students must make notes of all the formulas to grasp the concepts easily.
- They must practice the NEST previous year's papers and solve all the questions, considering the time. They must learn time management skills as well, along with question practice.
- Applicants must focus on solving tricky problems in the easiest way possible, which requires practice.
NEST Biology Exam Preparation
Some of the NEST exam Biology paper preparation tips for the students are provided here.
- The important topics students should cover under the Biology syllabus are Cell Biology, Genetics and Evolution, Ecology and Environment, and Physiology and Reproduction.
- The topics are covered mainly from the class 11 and 12 books. Thus, students should follow the NCERT books the most to clear their basics.
- They must refer to different resources as per their ratings and should practice old questions to strengthen their preparation.
- Candidates must draw diagrams, flowcharts, etc, to practice well for the paper.
NEST Exam Syllabus 2026
The detailed syllabus topics of the NEST examination for all the courses offered have been shared below. The NEST 2026 exam syllabus will help candidates appearing for the exam to learn the topics they need to cover to score good marks on the examination.
NEST Physics Syllabus Topics
Students must check the detailed syllabus topics of the NEST Physics paper mentioned below. The topics will help students in NEST exam preparation.
- Units and Dimensions
- Young's Modulus
- Ohm's Law
- Kinematics
- Projectile Motion
- Laws of Motion
- Friction
- Work, Energy, and Momentum
- Simple Harmonic Motion
- System of Particles
- Law of Gravitation
- Conservation of Angular Momentum
- Collisions
- Hooke's Law and Stress-Strain Relations
- Pascal's Law
- Viscosity
- Bernoulli's Theorem
- Sound and Mechanical Waves
- Thermal Physics
- Electricity and Magnetism
- Capacitance
- Electric Current
- Biot - Savart's Law and Ampere's Law
- Magnetic Moment
- Electromagnetic Induction
- Optics
- Modern Physics
- Photoelectric Effect
NEST Mathematics Syllabus Topics
The exam syllabus topics for the NEST Mathematics paper are shared below.
- Algebra
- Quadratic Equations
- Arithmetic, Geometric, and Harmonic Progression
- Permutations and Combinations
- Binomial Theorem
- Probability
- Trigonometry
- Analytical Geometry
- Differential Calculus
- Integral Calculus
- Vectors
NEST Chemistry Syllabus Topics
Applicants can check the NEST exam Chemistry paper's detailed syllabus topics mentioned in the table below.
| Topics | Contents |
| Physical Chemistry |
Measurements in Chemistry Mole Concept Gaseous and Liquid States Atomic Structure and Chemical Bonding Thermodynamics Chemical EquilibriumIonic Equilibrium Electrochemistry Chemical Kinetics Solid State Solutions |
| Surface Chemistry |
Adsorption Colloidal State |
| Inorganic Chemistry |
Classification of Elements and Periodicity in Properties Hydrogen s-Block Element sp-Block Element sd-Block Element sf-Block Elements Coordination Compounds Metal and Metallurgy |
| Organic Chemistry |
Basic Concepts Reactive Intermediates Nomenclature Alkenes and Alkynes Aromatic Compounds Haloalkanes (Alkyl halides) Haloarenes Alcohols Phenols Ethers Aldehydes and Ketones Carboxylic Acids Amines Carbohydrate Amino acids and Proteins Polymers |
NEST Biology Syllabus Topics
The NEST exam syllabus topics for the Biology paper have been provided here for students' use.
- Cell Biology
- Genetics and Evolution
- Ecology
- Humans and the Environment
- Biotechnology
- Biology of Animal Systems - Digestive System, Circulatory System, Excretory System, Nervous System, Reproductive System
- Developmental Biology
- Immunology
- Biology of Plant Systems
- Systematics
NEST Exam Reference Books 2026
The subject-wise NEST exam books 2026 are provided here. Students must refer to the following book names to score good marks and prepare well for the upcoming examination.
NEST Physics Exam Books List 2026
Applicants must check the detailed book list for the NEST Physics paper mentioned in the table below.
| Book Title | Author/Publisher |
| Concepts of Physics | H. C Verma |
| Aptitude Test Problems | S. S Kotov |
| Objective Physics | Mahesh Jain |
| Practice Problems in Physics for Engineering Examinations | S. Mishra |
| Physics for Engineering and Medical Examinations | Ajit Singh Panwar |
| Problems in Physics | A. A Pinsky |
NEST Chemistry Exam Books List 2026
To score good marks in the NEST exam, students must refer to the following books names shared for the Chemistry paper.
| Book Title | Author/Publisher |
| A Textbook of Organic Chemistry for IITJEE | R. K Gupta |
| An Objective Approach to Organic Chemistry | R. K Gupta |
| Textbook of Chemistry for Class 11th and 12th | NCERT |
| IIT Chemistry | O. P Agarwal |
| Entrance Chemistry | Bhakta |
NEST Mathematics Exam Books List 2026
The NEST books 2026 for Mathematics paper for the candidates willing to appear for the exam is shared below.
| Book Title | Author/Publisher |
| Higher Algebra | Hall and Knight |
| Problems in Calculus of One Variable | I. A Maron |
| Plane Trigonometry | S. L Loney |
| Integral Calculus | Amit M Agarwal |
NEST Biology Exam Books List 2026
Candidates can refer to the books shared in the table below for the NEST Biology paper preparation.
| Book Title | Author/Publisher |
| Objective Biology | S Biswas & A Biswas |
| Textbook of Biology | NCERT |
| Elementary Biology for Class 12 | K. N Bhatia |
| Biology | S. C Verma |
| Biology | A. C Dutta |
Applicants are advised to follow the NEST preparation tips shared for all the courses to secure a good position in the exam and get the desired program.
Also Read: What are the Benefits of NEST Exam?
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