CLAT or Common Law Admission Test is an Indian centralised national level entrance exam for admission in one of the twenty-two National Law Institutes. The score of this exam is used by several self-financed and private law schools in India. Several public sector companies such as Coal India, BHEL, Steel Authority of India, ONGC, Oil India use the CLAT scores for their legal position recruitment.
The CLAT exam is considered one of the toughest exams in India, and the acceptance rate is approximately one percent every year. One can appear for the exam after the Higher Secondary Education or the 12th grade for entry into undergraduate courses in Law (BA LLB) or after graduation in Law for the Masters of Law (LLM) course.
Eligibility criteria for CLAT Exam
Only Indian citizens or nationals and NRIs can appear for the test. International students who desire to take admission to any course in Indian Law Universities must directly contact their chosen University for seats available in the quota for Foreign Nationals through CLAT 2022 exam.
The other eligibility criteria, like minimum education qualification, minimum age limit, or marks, have been released by the Consortium of National Law Universities (NLUs). They are as follows.
For undergraduate courses
Intermediate/Senior Secondary School, which is 10+2 or an equivalent certificate approved and is from a recognized board, is required by the applicant with not less than 45% marks in their aggregate total.
The total aggregate criteria for SC and ST are 45%. The test has no upper age limit, which means anyone eligible with the criteria above is qualified to give the test.
One must compulsorily fulfill these criteria for finding themselves eligible for the test.
For Postgraduate courses
Candidates appearing for the test must have completed their LLB/BL degree or an equivalent degree that is approved and from a recognized board. The candidate must not have less than 50% marks in aggregate. For SC and ST students, the criteria for aggregate marks is 45%. Candidates who have completed their degrees and qualified in their degree examinations via supplementary/compartments or repeat attempts are also eligible for the CLAT examination. But these candidates must provide proof of having passed their previous examinations with at least 50% marks on their date of admission.
Candidates appearing for the qualifying exam in March/April are also eligible to appear in CLAT for that year. These candidates will also be required to produce proof of their educational qualification at the time of CLAT test counselling and the admission process. If they fail to do so, their admission process might get terminated.
One must compulsorily fulfil these criteria for finding themselves eligible for the test.
Points to Note forCLAT Eligibility Criteria
If a candidate clears the entrance test but fails to meet the eligibility criteria of CLAT, they will be directly disqualified from the test. Thus, a clear understanding and fulfilment of the criteria is a must.
Candidates appearing for the qualifying exam, i.e., Class 12th for CLAT undergraduate and final year of graduation for CLAT postgraduate, must secure the minimum marks required by the council. Failing to get the minimum prescribed marks in the qualifying test will get them directly disqualified from the CLAT admission process.
Proof of the marks obtained in the qualifying exam with the respective exam result sheets /certificate has to be produced by the candidate appearing in the qualifying exam. These proofs are to be shown during the counselling and admission process. Failing to do so will lead to their admission being cancelled.
Those candidates appearing for the exam under the reserved category must submit their domicile certificate along with other mandatory documents to support their claim and get the benefits of the scheme.
Application fees for the CLAT exam
The application fees for giving the CLAT exam in Rs 4000/- only.
You can always take help from BYJU’S Exam Prep for important exams like CLAT, IIT-JEE, and other entrance exams. Even with a good understanding of the concepts, it may be challenging to plan and prepare for the exam with the proper syllabus segregation. In such cases, students can take expert guidance from trustworthy portals like BYJU’S Exam Prep.
