Joint Entrance Screening Test 2021

JEST 2021 – JEST 2021 Notification has been released now. Joint Entrance Screening Test (JEST) is conducted by several premier research institutes for admission to PhD and Integrated PhD Program in its different participating institutions.

Applicants seeking admission for a PhD/Integrated PhD Program in Physics or Theoretical Computer Science or Neuroscience or Computational Biology in one of the Participating Institutes may appear for the Joint Entrance Screening Test (JEST) 2021.

Also See: CMAT 2021 Notification

JEST 2021 Exam :

• The JEST Exam is held for two subjects, namely, Physics and Theoretical Computer Science/ Neuroscience/ Computational Biology. JEST is recognized as a National Eligibility Test (NET) by the Science & Engineering Research Board (SERB).
• In this article, we are providing detailed information about JEST 2021.
• The Science & Engineering Research Board (SERB) (statutory body established through an Act of Parliament) recognizes JEST as a National Eligibility Test (NET) in their office Memo vide OM No.SB/S9/Z-01/2015. Fellows working in SERB Programs and qualified in NET are eligible to get enhanced fellowship.
• Participating Institutes have their own eligibility criteria. Applicants who are expected to complete their final exams by August of each year are also eligible to appear for the JEST exam of that year.

Important Dates for JEST 2021

JEST 2021 Events	Important Dates
Online application starts from	11th January 2021
Last date to apply	14th February 2021
Admit Card availability	Third week of March 2021
JEST 2021 Exam	11th April 2021

Eligibility Criteria for JEST 2021

Listed below are tentative eligibility criteria of admission to M.Sc., PhD, and Integrated / M.Sc./ M. Tech. – PhD Programs in the participating institutes.

For PhD Program in Physics :

• Applicants should hold an M.Sc. in Physics or M.Sc./M.E/M.Tech in related disciplines.
• Applicants should hold an M.Sc. in Mathematics/Applied Physics/Applied Mathematics/ Optics & Photonics/ Instrumentation/ Electronics will also be considered at IIA.
• BE or B.Tech will also be considered at IISc, IMSc, ICTS-TIFR, IUCAA, JNCASR, NCRA-TIFR, TIFR-TCIS, RRI, IISER Mohali, IISER Pune, IISER Thiruvananthapuram and SNBNCBS.
• Talented final year B.Sc. and first year M.Sc. in Physics/Electronics/ Astronomy/Applied Mathematics applicants may also apply to be pre-selected for research scholarship at IUCAA.
• M.Sc. in Physics, Engineering Physics or Applied Physics will also be considered at IPR; at TIFR, only B.Tech Engineering Physics & M.Sc.. Physics are eligible.

For Theoretical Computer Science/ Neuroscience/ Computational Biology

• Applicants must have an M.Sc./ME/M.Tech/MCA in Computer Science and related disciplines (visit website of IMSc for further details).
• M.Sc./ME/M.Tech/MCA in any Engg or Science discipline, with good mathematical skills and strong interest in biological problems for PhD in Computational Biology at IMSc.

For Integrated M.Sc./ M.Tech-PhD Program

• For at HRI, IISER-Pune, ICTS-TIFR, SNBNCBS, NCRA-TIFR & TIFR-TCIS applicants with a Bachelor’s degree will also be considered for the Integrated M.Sc., PhD Program in Physics.
• At IMSc, graduates with a Bachelor’s degree in Science/Mathematics/ Statistics/Computer Sci./IT/Engg will also be considered for admission in Physics and in Theoretical Computer Science, as part of an integrated PhD Program; all applicants successful in the course work for this program shall be awarded an M.Sc. degree.

Also See: NEET 2021 Notification

For Integrated M.Tech-PhD Program at IIA

Applicants should hold Graduates with M.Sc. (Physics/Applied Physics)/Post-B.Sc. (Hons) in Optics and Optoelectronics/Radio Physics and Electronics/BE/B.Tech degree in subjects mentioned above will be considered (visit IIA website for details).

For Integrated PhD Program at IISER, Thiruvananthapuram :

Applicants should hold Graduates with Bachelor’s degree in Physics/Technology/Engineering will be considered for the Integrated PhD Program in Physics.

• BSc. Program at HRI
• B. Sc. (Physics) or B.E./B.Tech. degree in any discipline.
• HRI is starting a new M.Sc. Program in Physics from 2017. The Integrated Ph.D. programme in Physics at HRI is discontinued from 2017.

No of Attempts

There is no restriction on the number of times one can appear for the JEST examination.

Age Criteria

There is no restriction on age for appearing in JEST examination; however, each participating institute has its own eligibility criteria.

Exam Test

• The questions for JEST 2021 will be based on the general syllabi of graduation and post-graduation level courses offered by various Indian universities and institutions; some questions from previous year’s exams are available at www.jest.org.in.
• Syllabus of Physics and Sample questions of Physics and Theoretical Computer Science are available at the website.

Exam Centers

• JEST will be held at the locations indicated below.
• Ahmedabad, Aligarh, Allahabad, Bangalore, Bardhaman, Bhopal, Bhubaneswar, Calicut (Centre is subject availability. Second option will be allotted if centre is not available), Chandigarh, Chennai, Delhi, Goa, Guwhati, Hyderabad, Indore, Jaipur, Kanpur, Kharagpur, Kochi, Kolkata, Madurai, Mangalore (Centre is subject availability. Second option will be allotted if centre is not available), Mumbai, Nagpur, Nainital, Patna, Pune, Raipur, Roorkee, Sambalpur, Silchar, Siliguri, Srinagar, Trivandrum, Udaipur, and Visakhapatnam.

Exam Participating Institutes

• Visit the individual institute pages to view the programmes and subject areas being offered.
• ARIES (Aryabhatta Research Institute of Observational Sciences, Nainital); HBNI (Homi Bhabha National Institute, Mumbai); HRI (Harish-Chandra Research Institute, Allahabad); ICTS (International Centre for Theoretical Sciences (TIFR), Bangalore); IGCAR (Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research, Kalpakkam); IIA (Indian Institute of Astrophysics), IISc Bangalore; IISER Bhopal; IISER Kolkata; IISER Pune; IISER Mohali; IISER Thiruvananthapuram; IMSc (The Institute of Mathematical Sciences, Chennai); IOP (Institute of Physics, Bhubaneswar); IPR (Institute for Plasma Research, Gandhinagar); IUCAA (Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics, Pune); NBRC (National Brain Research Centre, Manesar); JNCASR Bangalore; NCRA-TIFR – Pune; NISER Bhubaneswar; PRL (Physical Research Laboratory, Ahmedabad); RRCAT (Raja Ramanna Centre for Advanced Technology, Indore); RRI (Raman Research Institute, Bangalore); SINP (Saha Institute of Nuclear Physics, Kolkata); SNBNCBS (Satyendra Nath Bose National Centre for Basic Sciences, Kolkata); TIFR-TCIS (TIFR Centre for Interdisciplinary Sciences, Hyderabad); TIFR (Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Mumbai : ); UGC-DAE CSR (UGC-DAE Consortium for Scientific Research, Indore); VECC (Variable Energy Cyclotron Centre), Kolkata.

Also See: UPSEE 2021 Entrance Exam

JEST 2021 Application Form

• Applicants for Physics/Theoretical Computer Science/Neuroscience can apply for JEST-2021 Online through Email applications and photocopies of printed applications will not be accepted.
• Details regarding the on-going programs at different institutions are available at JEST-2021 website www.jest.org.in.
• Applications for JEST-2021 can be submitted online Only; before filling the online application form, the applicant is requested to read the following instructions carefully.
• In case the jpeg file of your photo which has been taken with camera exceeds the limit, you should compress the file size using compression softwares available in the websites, such as https : //jpeg-optimizer.com, https : //www.imageoptimizer.net.
• For any further details regarding application, eligibility criteria and admission procedure, applicants are requested to visit the university website www.jest.org.in.

Application Fee

• An Application Fee of Rs.300 (Rs.150/- for SC/ST, Female applicants ONLY) is required to be paid along with the application which can be paid online using Debit/Credit cards and Net-banking. Payment by any other mode will NOT be accepted. Please check the Available Payment Options and Transaction Charges.
• Application Fee is waived for FEMALE applicants belonging to SC/ST. They need not pay the application fee.
• Please go through the refund policy (new tab) before paying the application fee.
• Payment of the fee will imply your agreement to the stated refund policies.

For further information, please visit JEST website https : //www.jest.org.in.