The Joint Entrance Examination (Advanced), or JEE Advanced, is conducted by one of the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), chosen by rotation each year, under the guidance of the Joint Admission Board. It is held once a year, usually in May, a few weeks after JEE Main Session 2. The exam is a computer-based test with two compulsory 3-hour papers written on the same day. Only candidates who rank among the top performers in JEE Main Paper 1 can register.
What JEE Advanced is used for
- IIT admissions: JEE Advanced rank is the only route into the 4-year B.Tech, 4-year BS and 5-year dual degree programmes at all 23 IITs.
- B.Arch at IITs: qualified candidates can take the separate Architecture Aptitude Test (AAT) for B.Arch seats at the IITs that offer it.
- Other institutes: a few institutions such as IISc Bengaluru (BS programme), IISERs and IIST also use JEE Advanced ranks for some of their undergraduate seats, through their own admission processes.
- Not used for NITs: NITs, IIITs and GFTIs admit on JEE Main rank, not JEE Advanced rank, even though the counselling is shared.
Counselling and seat allotment
IIT seats are allotted through JoSAA (Joint Seat Allocation Authority), which runs one common online counselling for the IITs (on JEE Advanced rank) and for the NITs, IIITs and other government-funded technical institutes (on JEE Main rank). Candidates register on the JoSAA portal after the JEE Advanced result, fill a single list of institute and programme choices, and seats are allotted over about six rounds in June and July. After each round candidates can freeze, float or slide their seat, and must complete seat acceptance and upload documents (Class 10 and 12 mark sheets, JEE Main and Advanced admit cards and scorecards, category and PwD certificates if applicable, and photo ID) for online verification. Seats left vacant in NITs and some other institutes after JoSAA are filled through the separate CSAB special rounds.