Guide · IIT JAM 2027 · M.Sc at the IITs
IIT JAM (Joint Admission Test for Masters) is the entrance exam for M.Sc and M.Sc-PhD programmes at the IITs: JAM 2027, run by IIT Kharagpur on 14 February 2027, fills around 3,000 seats at 23 IITs and over 2,000 more at IISc, NITs and other institutes. It is a three-hour computer-based test in seven subjects, open to final-year undergraduates and graduates with no age limit. Registration closes on 19 October 2026 and results are due on 18 March 2027 (JAM 2027 Information Brochure; JAM 2027 website). This guide covers who it is for, the papers, the fee, the full seat matrix by IIT, last year's cut-offs and closing ranks, and what an IIT M.Sc leads to.
What is IIT JAM for?
JAM is the single route into the IITs' science master's programmes. The brochure lists seven programme types it admits to: "(i) M.Sc., (ii) M.Sc. (Tech.), (iii) M.S. (Research), (iv) M.Sc. - M.Tech. Dual Degree, (v) Joint M.Sc. - Ph.D., (vi) M.Sc. - Ph.D. Dual Degree, and (vii) Integrated Ph.D." (JAM 2027 Information Brochure). Most seats are plain two-year M.Sc programmes. The rest are longer tracks that roll into a PhD, such as IIT Kharagpur's Joint M.Sc.-PhD in Physics or IIT Bombay's M.Sc.-PhD dual degrees in energy and environmental science.
Admissions run in two tiers. At the 23 Admitting Institutes (all the IITs), JAM scores are used "without any additional interview or written test". A second tier of Result Sharing Institutes uses the same score for "over 2000 seats for postgraduate programs at IISc, CFTIs, NITs, DIAT, IIEST Shibpur, IISER Pune, IISER Bhopal, IIPE, JNCASR, SLIET etc.", mostly through Centralized Counselling for M.Sc./M.Sc.(Tech) (CCMN) at ccmn.admissions.nic.in (JAM 2027 Information Brochure). The JAM 2027 About page puts the figures at 89 programmes at the IITs and 2,300+ result-sharing seats (JAM 2027 About page).
One line on the JAM 2026 website is worth keeping in mind from the start: "Qualifying in JAM does not guarantee admission, scholarship, or a job." (JAM 2026 website).
IIT JAM 2027 exam date and schedule
| Event | Date | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Information brochure released | 31 August 2026 | JAM 2027 important dates |
| Online application (JOAPS) opens | 11 September 2026 | Brochure, §3.1 |
| Last date to apply (extended from 12 October) | 19 October 2026 | Brochure, §3.1; JAM 2027 important dates |
| Correction window (paid) opens | 10 November 2026 (tentative) | JAM 2027 important dates |
| Exam: CY, GG, MA (forenoon) | 14 February 2027, 9:30 am to 12:30 pm | Brochure, Table 2.1 |
| Exam: BT, EN, MS, PH (afternoon) | 14 February 2027, 2:30 pm to 5:30 pm | Brochure, Table 2.1 |
| Result | 18 March 2027 | JAM 2027 website |
| Admission brochure | Second week of March 2027 | Brochure, §4.1 |
You can take one or two papers, but only if they fall in different sessions, so Mathematics plus Physics works while Mathematics plus Chemistry does not. The exam runs in around 114 cities across India, with no international centres (JAM 2027 Information Brochure; JAM 2027 website).
For a sense of the post-result timeline, JAM 2026 took admission applications from 27 March to 15 April 2026, declared the first admission list on 25 May and the fourth on 27 June, with an additional round on 3 July (JAM 2026 Admission Brochure). Expect JAM 2027 to follow a similar calendar, but check the 2027 admission brochure when it is out.
The 7 JAM papers and the exam pattern
The seven test papers are Biotechnology (BT), Chemistry (CY), Economics (EN), Geology (GG), Mathematics (MA), Mathematical Statistics (MS) and Physics (PH). Each paper has 60 questions for 100 marks in three sections, and all sections are compulsory (Brochure, §2.5 and §2.6).
| Section | Type | Questions | Marks | Negative marking |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | Multiple Choice (one correct of four) | 30 (10 × 1 mark, 20 × 2 marks) | 50 | 1/3 mark for a wrong 1-mark answer, 2/3 for a wrong 2-mark answer |
| B | Multiple Select (one or more correct) | 10 × 2 marks | 20 | None, and no partial marks |
| C | Numerical Answer Type | 20 (10 × 1, 10 × 2) | 30 | None |
Source: JAM 2027 Information Brochure, Table 2.3. A virtual on-screen calculator is provided; your own calculator is not allowed. Syllabi for all seven papers are in Annexure I of the brochure.
Who is eligible for JAM 2027?
The exam-level rule is short: "Candidates who have either completed their undergraduate degree or will be appearing in the final examination of their qualifying degree in 2027 are eligible to appear in JAM 2027." It is open to Indian and foreign nationals, with no age limit, and your degree must be complete before the admitting institute's admission date (JAM 2027 Information Brochure).
The real filter is the Minimum Educational Qualification (MEQ) of each programme, listed in the brochure's seat matrix. Many are subject-specific: IIT Madras M.Sc Chemistry wants "Chemistry for at least six semesters/three years, along with mathematics for two semesters/one year". Others are open: IIT Bombay and IIT Kanpur M.Sc Mathematics and Statistics say "No Restrictions", and IIT Bombay M.Sc Biotechnology accepts "Any Branch/Subject" (Brochure, Annexure II). Read the MEQ of every programme you want before you pick a paper.
IIT JAM application fee
| Category | One paper | Two papers |
|---|---|---|
| Female / SC / ST / PwD | ₹1,000 | ₹1,350 |
| All others | ₹2,000 | ₹2,700 |
Source: JAM 2027 Information Brochure, Table 2.2. Fees are non-refundable.
There are three more payments if you qualify. Applying for admission to IIT programmes costs a ₹750 processing fee. If you accept an offer, you pay a seat booking fee of ₹15,000 (General, OBC-NCL, EWS) or ₹7,500 (SC, ST, PwD), which is adjusted against your institute fee. Changing your category, gender, city or date of birth after submission costs ₹300, as does adding or changing a paper before 10 November 2026 (Brochure, §2.3, §4.1.3, §4.1.6).
How many seats? IIT JAM 2027 seat matrix by IIT
The brochure says there are "around 3000 seats in postgraduate programs at 23 IITs for the academic year 2027-28". Adding up every programme in its Annexure II gives 3,205 seats. Seats are allotted per paper, so a programme that accepts several papers (IIT Roorkee's M.Sc Economics takes EN, MA and MS candidates) has a separate quota under each, and the table counts each quota once (JAM 2027 Information Brochure, Annexure II).
| IIT | BT | CY | EN | GG | MA | MS | PH | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IIT Bombay | 39 | 71 | – | 38 | 50 | 56 | 91 | 345 |
| IIT (ISM) Dhanbad | – | 66 | – | 66 | 55 | – | 121 | 308 |
| IIT Kanpur | – | 74 | 24 | – | 49 | 78 | 73 | 298 |
| IIT Kharagpur | – | 67 | – | 53 | 38 | – | 84 | 242 |
| IIT Delhi | 11 | 77 | 15 | – | 68 | – | 68 | 239 |
| IIT Roorkee | 35 | 59 | 13 | 19 | 51 | 4 | 30 | 211 |
| IIT Guwahati | – | 60 | – | – | 60 | – | 60 | 180 |
| IIT Madras | – | 67 | – | – | 49 | – | 54 | 170 |
| IIT Gandhinagar | – | 45 | – | – | 45 | – | 45 | 135 |
| IIT Bhubaneswar | – | 25 | – | 37 | 28 | – | 35 | 125 |
| IIT Jodhpur | – | 40 | – | – | 40 | – | 40 | 120 |
| IIT Indore | 15 | 30 | – | – | 20 | – | 45 | 110 |
| IIT Mandi | – | 30 | – | – | 30 | – | 42 | 102 |
| IIT Patna | – | 30 | – | – | 30 | – | 30 | 90 |
| IIT Hyderabad | – | 30 | – | – | 20 | – | 30 | 80 |
| IIT Bhilai | – | 25 | – | – | 25 | – | 25 | 75 |
| IIT Ropar | – | 25 | – | – | 25 | – | 25 | 75 |
| IIT Tirupati | – | 25 | – | – | 25 | 5 | 20 | 75 |
| IIT Palakkad | – | 21 | – | – | 21 | – | 21 | 63 |
| IIT Dharwad | 15 | 15 | – | – | 15 | – | 15 | 60 |
| IIT (BHU) Varanasi | – | 25 | – | – | – | – | 25 | 50 |
| IIT Jammu | – | 20 | – | – | – | – | 20 | 40 |
| IIT Goa | – | – | – | – | 6 | – | 6 | 12 |
| All 23 IITs | 115 | 927 | 52 | 213 | 750 | 143 | 1005 | 3,205 |
Total seats per paper, all categories including PwD, summed by IITianVibes from the JAM 2027 brochure seat matrix. The brochure notes that MEQs and seat matrix "are subject to change as per decision of Admitting Institutes". IIT Kharagpur and IIT Bhubaneswar offer Joint M.Sc.-PhD programmes rather than plain M.Sc.
Physics (1,005 seats), Mathematics (750) and Chemistry (927) dominate. Physics is the only paper accepted at all 23 IITs; Chemistry is accepted at 22 (all but IIT Goa) and Mathematics at 21.
IIT JAM Biotechnology, Economics and Mathematics: where the seats are
Biotechnology (BT), 115 seats: IIT Bombay, M.Sc. Biotechnology (35); IIT Bombay, M.Sc.-PhD Dual, Environmental Sci. & Engg. (4); IIT Delhi, M.Sc. Biological Sciences (11); IIT Dharwad, M.Sc. Molecular Medicine (15); IIT Indore, M.Sc. Biotechnology (15); IIT Roorkee, M.Sc. Bioscience & Bioengineering (35).
Economics (EN), 52 seats: IIT Delhi, M.Sc. Economics (15); IIT Kanpur, M.Sc. Economics (24); IIT Roorkee, M.Sc. Economics (13). Only three IITs admit through the Economics paper, though IIT Kanpur and IIT Roorkee also take economics students through the Mathematical Statistics and Mathematics papers.
Mathematical Statistics (MS), 143 seats: IIT Bombay, M.Sc. Statistics (48); IIT Bombay, M.Sc. Operations Research (8); IIT Kanpur, M.Sc. Statistics (62); IIT Kanpur, M.Sc. Economics (16); IIT Roorkee, M.Sc. Economics (4); IIT Tirupati, M.Sc. Mathematics & Statistics (5).
Mathematics (MA), 750 seats across 21 IITs, from IIT Delhi's 68 to IIT Goa's 6. Several are Mathematics and Computing programmes (IIT Bhilai, IIT (ISM) Dhanbad, IIT Guwahati, IIT Hyderabad), and IIT Bombay has an M.Sc in Operations Research (JAM 2027 brochure, Annexure II).
How tough is JAM? 2026 applicants, qualifiers and cut-offs
JAM 2026, run by IIT Bombay, had 58,622 registrations, 48,170 who appeared and 15,814 who qualified across the seven papers (JAM 2026 Statistical and Performance Report). Registrations are counted per paper, and a candidate can sit two papers. Physics had the highest qualifying rate (49.3%), Economics the lowest (22.4%).
| Paper | Registered | Appeared | Qualified | GEN cut-off | Top raw score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Biotechnology (BT) | 13,202 | 11,084 | 2,593 | 42.30 | 85.67 |
| Chemistry (CY) | 12,961 | 11,021 | 3,249 | 18.65 | 79.67 |
| Economics (EN) | 3,563 | 2,807 | 629 | 40.63 | 87.33 |
| Geology (GG) | 2,043 | 1,813 | 627 | 25.98 | 73.00 |
| Mathematics (MA) | 12,059 | 9,617 | 3,463 | 12.65 | 82.67 |
| Mathematical Statistics (MS) | 3,675 | 2,705 | 754 | 13.33 | 76.33 |
| Physics (PH) | 11,119 | 9,123 | 4,499 | 12.04 | 68.67 |
| Total | 58,622 | 48,170 | 15,814 |
Source: JAM 2026 Statistical and Performance Report, Tables 3 and 4. "Registered" means candidates issued admit cards. Cut-offs are out of 100; OBC-NCL/EWS and SC/ST/PwD cut-offs are lower (for example 10.83 and 6.02 in Physics).
Low cut-offs do not mean easy seats. Qualifying only lets you apply; the seat goes by All India Rank. Roughly 15,800 qualifiers competed for about 3,000 IIT seats in 2026, and the top IITs filled their general seats from the top few hundred ranks.
General-category closing ranks after the final round (Round 6) of JAM 2026 admissions:
| IIT | Programme | Paper | GEN closing AIR |
|---|---|---|---|
| IIT Bombay | M.Sc. Physics | PH | 64 |
| IIT Bombay | M.Sc. Mathematics | MA | 55 |
| IIT Bombay | M.Sc. Chemistry | CY | 36 |
| IIT Bombay | M.Sc. Biotechnology | BT | 26 |
| IIT Bombay | M.Sc. Statistics | MS | 35 |
| IIT Delhi | M.Sc. Economics | EN | 22 |
| IIT Delhi | M.Sc. Chemistry | CY | 82 |
| IIT Delhi | M.Sc. Mathematics | MA | 145 |
| IIT Delhi | M.Sc. Physics | PH | 175 |
| IIT Kanpur | M.Sc. Economics | EN | 45 |
| IIT Kanpur | M.Sc. Statistics | MS | 89 |
| IIT Kanpur | M.Sc. Physics | PH | 153 |
| IIT Kanpur | M.Sc. Mathematics | MA | 242 |
| IIT Madras | M.Sc. Physics | PH | 227 |
| IIT Madras | M.Sc. Mathematics | MA | 239 |
| IIT Madras | M.Sc. Chemistry | CY | 250 |
| IIT Roorkee | M.Sc. Bioscience & Bioengineering | BT | 70 |
| IIT Indore | M.Sc. Biotechnology | BT | 78 |
Source: JAM 2026 opening and closing ranks (round-wise data published by IIT Bombay). Reserved-category closing ranks are higher; the file has every programme and round. Treat these as a guide for 2027, not a promise.
Do IIT M.Sc students get a stipend? Fees and scholarships
Generally, no. A two-year M.Sc at an IIT is a fee-paying course, not a funded one like an M.Tech with a GATE teaching assistantship. The JAM disclaimer quoted above says as much, and we found no IIT that pays all M.Sc students a monthly stipend.
The fees are low by IIT standards. At IIT Bombay, the 2026 batch of two-year M.Sc students pays a tuition fee of ₹8,250 a semester (nil for SC, ST and PwD students), and the first-semester academic total including one-time fees and deposits is ₹42,400, before hostel and mess (IIT Bombay fee circular 2026-27).
Need-based help exists. IIT Delhi, for example, "offers Merit-cum-Means scholarships to undergraduate students in engineering and technology and students of M.A., M.Sc. and M.P.P. Programmes. These scholarships are offered to about 25% of the students whose annual family income is upto Rs. 8 lakh." The scholarship is ₹4,000 a month for General, OBC and EWS students, and recipients are also exempt from tuition (IIT Delhi financial assistance page). Check your own IIT's scholarship page; schemes differ.
What happens after an IIT M.Sc? Placements and the PhD path
Placements for M.Sc students are real but thinner than for B.Tech. Two IITs publish clean 2025-26 numbers:
| IIT, 2025-26 | M.Sc placed | Placement rate | Median CTC | Average CTC |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| IIT Guwahati | 42 of 93 registered | 45.2% | ₹8.00 LPA | ₹9.48 LPA |
| IIT (ISM) Dhanbad, M.Sc. | 32 of 64 | 50.0% | ₹8.00 LPA | ₹9.16 LPA |
| IIT (ISM) Dhanbad, M.Sc.(Tech) | 35 of 72 | 48.6% | ₹15.00 LPA | ₹13.71 LPA |
Sources: IIT Guwahati Placement Report 2026 (B.Tech placement rate in the same report: 81.1%); IIT (ISM) Dhanbad Placement Report 2025-26, last updated 30 June 2026. "Registered"/"actively participated" counts only students who sat for placement, so students heading to a PhD are mostly not in the base.
For many JAM students, the placement number is not the point. A large share go on to PhDs in India or abroad, and several JAM programmes are built for that. Joint M.Sc.-PhD and dual-degree students convert to PhD status partway through. IIT Patna's integrated M.Sc.-PhD programmes, for instance, require "For migration to PhD with fellowship after 4 semesters of M.Sc., CPI ≥ 8.0" (JAM 2027 brochure, Annexure II). Once you are a PhD scholar you draw the standard fellowship; our IIT M.Tech and PhD stipend guide has the current amounts.
What JAM students say about preparation
"Always have syllabus in front of you, do syllabus till December maximum with tests too. Analyse yourself through pyqs(initially hi don't leave pyqs for last moment) or coaching material." (r/Indian_Academia)
"I started giving mocks around November time I guess, I had gone through the syllabus by that time from what I remember" (r/Indian_Academia, a JAM 2023 candidate)
The official JAM 2027 site has previous years' question papers and a mock test link (JAM 2027 website). Use them; the pattern has been stable.
How to check this yourself
- Dates, notices and corrections: JAM 2027 website (IIT Kharagpur).
- Full seat matrix and MEQs: Annexure II of the JAM 2027 Information Brochure.
- Last year's ranks: the JAM 2026 opening and closing ranks CSV.
- Applications: the JOAPS portal at joaps.iitkgp.ac.in.
Related guides
Taking the GATE route instead? See GATE cut-offs for IIT M.Tech and IIT M.Tech placements. For other ways into an IIT, read our guide to IIT online degrees, and for life on campus, the IIT hostel survival guide.
Got your IIT M.Sc seat? Campus hoodies for every IIT: Bombay, Madras, Kanpur, Delhi, Roorkee, Guwahati, and the rest of the 23.
By Arun Raghav S · Co-founder, IITian Vibes · Facts retrieved 1 October 2026 from the linked official pages and documents. Corrections to hello@iitianvibes.com.