How to avoid negative marking in NEET 2025

Edited By: MADE EASY TEAM | Updated on Feb 13, 2025 04:38 PM IST | # NEET

Science students who want to pursue medical courses like MBBS, BUMS, BDS, BAMS, etc. would be quite familiar with the National Eligibility Cum Entrance Test, popularly known as NEET. It is an exam conducted by the National Testing Agency, NTA. NEET is conducted once every year (mostly in the month of May). It is one of the most competitive exams after class 12th. There are 180 questions in NEET, with each correct answer carrying +4 marks and every wrong answer carrying -1 marks. Every year millions of candidates appear in this examination, mostly with the aim of getting an MBBS in a government medical college. Being such a highly competitive exam, every single mark creates a large difference in the ranks of aspirants and consequently in their admission to medical college. Most of the aspirants lose marks due to negative markings. In this blog, MENIIT will provide certain tips to the NEET aspirants to avoid negative marking in NEET 2025.

Role of Negative Marks in NEET 2025

Before going further, let us first have a look at the marking scheme of NEET. In NEET, for each correct response, candidates get a score of +4, whereas each incorrect response fetches them a score of -1. Therefore, it becomes very important for aspirants to not mark the incorrect response.

Negative marks play a very important role in any exam. They affect the ranks and marks of aspirants significantly. Also, because of negative marks, aspirants avoid guesswork in the exam. Negative marks not only reduce marks and affect ranks, but they also waste the hard work of aspirants.

Strategies to reduce negative marks in NEET 2025

As said above, negative marking can affect the ranks and marks of aspirants significantly; therefore, it is important for aspirants to avoid scoring negative marks. Let us have a look at certain tips that can help aspirants to reduce negative marks in NEET 2025. By following these tips, students can reduce the deductions, maximize their positive scores, and improve their rank in NEET 2025.

Get familiar with exam pattern: Before going for any exam, it is of utmost importance for the aspirants to get acquainted with the exam pattern, including the number of questions. This would help the aspirants to strategize their preparation more efficiently, score maximum marks, and reduce the deductions.
Read questions carefully: NEET aspirants should avoid hustling to the questions. They should give proper time to every question in NEET UG so that the chances of scoring negative marks get reduced.
Avoid attempting unsure questions: Most aspirants think that attempting more questions means a higher chance of scoring positive marks, and while doing so, most of them attempt those questions about which they are not very sure, and hence they tend to lose marks. Therefore, aspirants should avoid attempting guesswork in order to increase their marks and improve their ranks.
Strengthen the basic concepts: To score good marks in NEET UG 2025, it is very important that aspirants have strong conceptual knowledge. Therefore, aspirants should focus on solid preparation as much as possible. Doing this would prepare the fundamentals and ensure that aspirants don’t commit mistakes in examinations.
Attempt mock test to analyse your performance: NEET aspirants should regularly attempt mock tests, not only to check their knowledge but also to analyze their performance and mistakes and try to avoid doing the same mistakes in the examination.
Keep practicing: “Practice makes a man perfect.” This old saying is valid for every NEET aspirant. For exams like NEET UG, which are highly competitive in nature, practice plays a very important role. Along with other things, practice is one of the major deciding factors of the rank of aspirant. NEET UG 2025 aspirants should try to attempt as many questions as possible during practice so that they can get familiar with the type of questions that are being asked in NEET UG. Solving previous year papers, attempting mock test and analysing them helps the aspirants to stay ahead of their fellow competitors. Also, this helps them to identify their weak points/concepts, which they can overcome before the examination.
Avoid oral calculations: No doubt oral calculations are a great time saver, but while doing calculations orally, there are chances of making mistakes, no matter how good you are at it. Therefore, aspirants should try to avoid oral calculations in order to avoid negative marking.
Don’t spend too much time on one question: Spending too much time on a particular question would eventually lead to the loss of time, which further would increase pressure, causing you to make silly mistakes. Therefore, aspirants should avoid spending too much time on a single question.
Review the answer: Most of the aspirants make this mistake that they don’t review their answers. There may be multiple reasons behind this, like lack of time, overconfidence, not having the habit of reviewing, etc. Reviewing the answers before marking them in the OMR sheet decreases the chances of making error. Aspirants should review/verify their answers before marking in the answer sheet.
Focus on speed, but don’t forget the accuracy: NEET aspirants have to attempt 180 questions in 180 minutes, which comes to 1 question per minute. To solve such a high volume of questions in a highly stressed environment is itself very challenging, but that is what NEET is all about; however, students should also remember that merely solving questions won’t lead them anywhere; solving questions along with high accuracy is required in NEET. Therefore, NEET 2025 aspirants should focus on speed along with accuracy.
Be calm and confident: Confidence plays a very important role in exams like NEET. Stress in the examination hall can lead to mistakes. Aspirants should keep their mind calm as well as be confident about their preparation.

Negative marks can affect the 1-year preparation of aspirants. To reduce their effect or to avoid negative marks, aspirants should follow a balanced approach, where they should attempt only those questions in which they are 100% sure. By following the above tips, aspirants can reduce negative marks in NEET 2025. These are general tips, and aspirants can modify them as per their requirements.

MENIIT wishes all the best to every NEET UG 2025 aspirant.

FAQs:

How to reduce negative marking in NEET?

Answer: To reduce negative markings in NEET, aspirants should stay calm, avoid guesswork, and review the answers before marking them in the OMR sheet.

How should I prepare for NEET in 2025?

Answer: To prepare for NEET in 2025, aspirant should focus on conceptual clarity along with regular practice and mock tests.

What is the pattern of NEET 2025 exam?

Answer: NEET 2025, would consist of 180 questions from physics, chemistry, and biology of class 11^th and 12^th. Each question would be of 4 marks. For every incorrect response candidates would get -1 marks.

Can I clear NEET in 3 months?

Answer: Clearing NEET in 3 month is a challenging task, but if the aspirants have clear conceptual knowledge then it is possible to clear NEET in 3 months.