In a significant move to fill thousands of vacant MD/MS seats, the government has drastically reduced the qualifying percentile cutoff for NEET PG 2025 Round 3 counselling. Here's what happened and what it means for PG aspirants.
What Changed?
After Rounds 1 and 2 of MCC AIQ counselling left a large number of seats unfilled, the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare (MoHFW) — in consultation with the National Medical Commission (NMC) — approved a significant reduction in the qualifying percentile for Round 3.
This decision added approximately 1,00,054 newly eligible candidates, bringing the total eligible pool to 2,28,170 candidates.
Why Were Seats Vacant?
Several factors contributed to the high number of vacant seats after Round 2:
- Candidate dropouts: Many candidates who were allotted seats in earlier rounds chose not to join, hoping for a better allotment in subsequent rounds or state counselling.
- Speciality mismatch: Less popular specialities and colleges in remote locations struggled to fill seats even when candidates were eligible.
- Fee concerns: Some deemed/private university seats remained unfilled due to high fees.
- Delayed counselling timeline: The extended counselling schedule caused overlaps with state counselling, leading to confusion and dropouts.
Round 3 Timeline
The Round 3 process involved a revised sequence:
- Resignations processed from Round 2 allotments
- Revised eligibility implemented with lower cutoff percentile
- Updated seat matrix prepared with vacancies from Rounds 1 & 2
- Choice filling and allotment for Round 3
- Final results released on February 5, 2026
- Stray vacancy round extended for remaining unfilled seats
Supreme Court Backing
The cutoff reduction faced legal challenges, but the Centre defended the decision before the Supreme Court, arguing that leaving MD/MS seats vacant when qualified doctors are available would be a waste of medical education infrastructure. The court allowed the reduced cutoff to stand.
Impact on Future NEET PG Cycles
This precedent has several implications:
- For NEET PG 2026 aspirants: If a similar pattern of vacant seats repeats, cutoff reductions in later rounds could become the norm rather than the exception.
- Strategy shift: Candidates who narrowly miss the initial cutoff may benefit from waiting for later rounds rather than dropping a year.
- Speciality planning: Less competitive specialities and newer colleges may become more accessible in later rounds.
Check Your Options
Use our NEET PG Rank Predictor to estimate your rank and PG College Predictor to find matching seats based on your score and category. Our data covers AIQ counselling seats across all specialities.