No Barrier to MBBS dreams: 3 Senior Citizens Crack NEET 2025, Seek admission in TN Medical Colleges
Tamil Nadu- In a surprising twist to this year's NEET 2025 admissions, three senior citizens aged 68, 67 and 60, including two practising lawyers, have cleared the National Eligibility and Entrance Test-Undergraduate (NEET UG) 2025 exam and now applied for MBBS admission in Tamil Nadu medical colleges under the government school quota.
However, this has created a stir among the members of the state selection committee, who are now grappling with legal and procedural questions related to age, eligibility and the intent of the reservation policies.
In 2022, the National Medical Commission (NMC) removed the upper age limit and opened the door for candidates of all age groups to appear for the highly competitive medical exam, NEET. This change, aimed at making medical education more inclusive, has led to a rise in the number of older applicants in recent years, but never so much before.
Speaking to TOI, a senior official associated with the admission process said that this year many graduates and professionals are vying for medical or dental seats. "However, this is the highest number of applicants from the middle-aged we have seen since 2017." Officials also confirmed that at least 25 candidates above the age of 35 have applied for undergraduate medical and dental seats in the state this year.
Meanwhile, all three senior candidates have applied for admission under Tamil Nadu's 7.5% government school quota, which offers subsidised or free MBBS seats in both government and private colleges to students studying in government schools. Some applicants have scored enough marks to gain admission under the 69% reservation policy.
However, the applications have thrown up technical inconsistencies, particularly in the documents submitted under the special quota. Officials say that in some cases, the certificates don’t conform to the current format or fail to meet the exact eligibility wording outlined in the prospectus, adds ET
Though these applicants have fulfilled the educational requirements, the main dilemma for the authorities now is whether adult graduates, who had pursued alternative careers and have now returned to education, should be allowed to avail the quota that was originally created to uplift underprivileged youth.
