National Institute of Open Schooling | NIOS
The National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS) formerly known as National Open School (NOS) was established in November,1989 as an autonomous organisation in pursuance of National Policy on Education 1986 by the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD), Government of India. NIOS is providing a number of Vocational, Life Enrichment and community oriented courses besides General and Academic Courses at Secondary and Senior Secondary level. It also offers Elementary level Courses through its Open Basic Education Programmes (OBE).
Under this programme, children can study without coming school. the NIOS is a national board that administers examinations for Secondary and Senior Secondary examinations of open schools similar to the CBSE and the CISCE to increase literacy and provide education to rural areas.
NIOS is the world’s largest open schooling system and third largest board following the CBSE and the ICSE with 4.13 million enrollments in India.
The NIOS collaborates with the Commonwealth of Learning (COL) and UNESCO. It also has study centers for Indian expatriates in the United Arab Emirates, Oman, Kuwait, Nepal, Canada, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Australia, United Kingdom, New Zealand, Malaysia, Singapore and the United States of America.
NIOS is accepted by all the universities and colleges in india. It is given equal recognition as CBSE and ICSE. You can take part in various competitive exams after completing 10+2 from NIOS like IIT-JEE and NEET etc. It is also accepted by IIM and other colleges.
☛ The learner has an option to choose any subject combination from the list of subjects offered in the scheme of studies in the below table . In addition vocational courses are also offered.
☛ The public examination are conducted by NIOS twice a year . A learner gets nine chances to appear in the public exam over a period of five years to complete.
☛ The learner has an flexibility of transfer of credit to a maximum of two passed subjects from a recognised board of school education.
☛ Students who pass out of NIOS are qualified to seek admissions in All India as well as State Medical, Engineering and various competitive examinations such as IIT, JEE, NEET and other professional courses on all the universities across the country and many prominent universities overseas, as well. They are also authorized to seek Government jobs, be it State or Central government.
Note: Students are allowed to choose any one subject from Groups C, D, E and F.
The languages offered in senior secondary course Group A are Hindi, English, Urdu, Sanskrit, Bengali, Tamil, Odia and Punjabi.
Mathematics, Home Science, Psychology, Geography, Economics, Business Studies, Painting, Data Entry Operation
Students are allowed to opt for only one subject from Group C.
Physics, History, Environmental Science, Library and Information Science.
In Group D, students are allowed to opt for only one subject.
Chemistry, Military Studies, Political Science, Mass Communication.
In Group E, students are allowed to opt for only one subject.
Biology, Accountancy, Military History, Introduction to Law.
In Group F, students are allowed to opt for only one subject. Tourism, Sociology, Computer Science, Physical Education and Yoga.
Under this programme, children can study without coming school. the NIOS is a national board that administers examinations for Secondary and Senior Secondary examinations of open schools similar to the CBSE and the CISCE to increase literacy and provide education to rural areas.
NIOS is the world’s largest open schooling system and third largest board following the CBSE and the ICSE with 4.13 million enrollments in India.
The NIOS collaborates with the Commonwealth of Learning (COL) and UNESCO. It also has study centers for Indian expatriates in the United Arab Emirates, Oman, Kuwait, Nepal, Canada, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Australia, United Kingdom, New Zealand, Malaysia, Singapore and the United States of America.
NIOS is accepted by all the universities and colleges in india. It is given equal recognition as CBSE and ICSE. You can take part in various competitive exams after completing 10+2 from NIOS like IIT-JEE and NEET etc. It is also accepted by IIM and other colleges.
Highlights of NIO Schooling
☛ There is no upper age limit for admission. However the minimum age of enrolment is 14 for secondary and 15 for senior secondary course.☛ The learner has an option to choose any subject combination from the list of subjects offered in the scheme of studies in the below table . In addition vocational courses are also offered.
☛ The public examination are conducted by NIOS twice a year . A learner gets nine chances to appear in the public exam over a period of five years to complete.
☛ The learner has an flexibility of transfer of credit to a maximum of two passed subjects from a recognised board of school education.
☛ Students who pass out of NIOS are qualified to seek admissions in All India as well as State Medical, Engineering and various competitive examinations such as IIT, JEE, NEET and other professional courses on all the universities across the country and many prominent universities overseas, as well. They are also authorized to seek Government jobs, be it State or Central government.
NIOS Admission
NIOS Admissions are conducted twice a year, usually between April-May (Block 1) and October-November (Block 2). However, interested candidates must enrol themselves as early as possible; late enrollment can attract late fees.NIOS Examination Scheme
The National Institute of Open Schooling conducts its public exams twice a year – during April-May and October-November. However, candidates who have sought admission for subject-wise learning can opt for On-demand Examination. These are held for secondary level and senior secondary levels. The result for these is usually announced six to seven weeks after the date of examination.| Exam Frequency | Biannual |
| Mode of Examination | Offline/ Pen-paper mode |
| Exam Duration | 3 Hours |
| Number of Study Centres | Academic: 3530 Open Basic Education: 1313 Vocational: 1379 |
NIOS Senior Secondary Education Syllabus
NIOS senior secondary course is equivalent to Classes 11 and 12. In this senior secondary course of education, students must study a minimum of five and a maximum of seven subjects. Students are allowed to choose a minimum of one and maximum of two languages from Group A and other subjects from Groups B, C, D, E and F as per their interests and future career plans.Note: Students are allowed to choose any one subject from Groups C, D, E and F.
Senior Secondary Course Group A
NIOS senior secondary course Group A includes languages and students have an option of choosing languages according to their interests. Altogether, NIOS has introduced nine languages at the senior secondary level and out of these nine languages, one or a maximum of two languages is compulsory for obtaining a pass certificate.The languages offered in senior secondary course Group A are Hindi, English, Urdu, Sanskrit, Bengali, Tamil, Odia and Punjabi.
Senior Secondary Course Group B
The senior secondary course is equivalent to Class 12. The students need to choose any five subjects and either one or a maximum of two languages from Group A. So, the total number of subjects should not be less or more than seven. Each subject carries 100 marks and the pass percentage for each subject is 33 per cent.Mathematics, Home Science, Psychology, Geography, Economics, Business Studies, Painting, Data Entry Operation
Senior Secondary Course Group C
The total number of subjects should not be less or more than seven. Each subject carries 100 marks and the pass percentage for each subject is 33 per cent.Students are allowed to opt for only one subject from Group C.
Physics, History, Environmental Science, Library and Information Science.
Senior Secondary Course Group D
The total number of subjects should not be less or more than seven. Each subject carries 100 marks and the pass percentage for each subject is 33 per cent.In Group D, students are allowed to opt for only one subject.
Chemistry, Military Studies, Political Science, Mass Communication.
Senior Secondary Course Group E
The total number of subjects should not be less or more than seven. Each subject carries 100 marks and the pass percentage for each subject is 33 per cent.In Group E, students are allowed to opt for only one subject.
Biology, Accountancy, Military History, Introduction to Law.
Senior Secondary Course Group F
The total number of subjects should not be less or more than seven. Each subject carries 100 marks and the pass percentage for each subject is 33 per cent.In Group F, students are allowed to opt for only one subject. Tourism, Sociology, Computer Science, Physical Education and Yoga.
