Agricultural Technology entrance exam: All aspiring candidates need to know

Agricultural technology is a new-age career option that many youngsters are interested in. Graduation in this technology is a must for candidates wishing to pursue a career in the field. However, candidates are required to qualify an entrance test to get admission into UG course on agriculture technology. This national level entrance exam, conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA) on behalf of Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), is the entry point to B.Tech and B.Sc. courses in agriculture across all central and state agriculture universities. Known as the Indian Council of Agricultural Research All-India Entrance Exam for Agriculture (ICAR AIEEA), the tentative date of registration for this test is June 2022. Here’s everything an aspiring candidates need to know. 

Eligibility criteria 

• All candidates must be Indian nationals with valid identity proofs. 
• Candidates must be aged between 16 to 20 years while registering for the exam. 
• Candidates must have successfully passed their class XII board exams under science stream (with compulsory Physics, Chemistry, Biology/Mathematics/Agriculture/Home Science). General category students need 50% or above to qualify for this entrance test, while reserved category students need 40% or above. 
• Candidates who wish to study under stream A must have had Physics, Chemistry, Biology/Agriculture/ Home Science; whereas, candidates who wish to study under stream B must have had Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics as part of their 10+2 curriculum. 
• Candidates who have not studied Physics and Chemistry, but have studied Agriculture, as part of their 10+2 curriculum are eligible for admission only under the State universities of Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh.  

Exam pattern  
ICAR AIEEA has a single paper with 3 sections. Both streams A and B have Physics and Chemistry as mandatory sections, while the final sections are Biology/Agriculture or Mathematics respectively. All the sections have 50 objective type questions each. The total number of questions are 150. The syllabus will follow any 10+2 curriculum.  

Marking scheme  
Each of the 150 questions will be rewarded with 4 marks, while incorrect responses will be penalized with a negative marking of 1. However, there is no negative marking for unattempted questions. The total marks of ICAR AIEEA are 600. Candidates can choose to answer their papers in either English or Hindi. 

Mode and duration  
ICAR AIEEA is conducted online, through computer-based mode. The duration of the entrance exam is 2 hours and 30 minutes.