National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS)

In 1989, the government of India established the National Institute of Open Schooling for students who wish to complete their higher education and study vocational and community-oriented courses at senior secondary and secondary levels. Candidates who wish to complete their elementary education can do so through Open Basic Education Programmes (OBE) offered by the institute. Throughout this blog, we shall look at all the important perspectives of this board to help students with their future. 

Established	:	1989
Type	:	Governmental Board of School Education
Headquarters	:	Noida, Uttar Pradesh, India
Location	:	NOIDA Distt., Gautam Budh Nagar
Chairman	:	Sitansu S. Jena
Website	:	www.nios.ac.in

Must Read: NIOS Admissions for Class 10th for 2023-24

National Institute of Open Schooling

National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS), (formerly known as National Open School, changed in the year 2002) was established as a Board of Education in the year of 1989, under the guidance of the Ministry of Human Resource Development. It is a national board which provides secondary and senior secondary education along with some vocational courses for the students. The education of this board is the same as the other national boards such as CBSE and ICSE. The National Institute of Open Schooling has its headquarters in Noida, Uttar Pradesh, India, under the chairmanship of Pro. Saroj Sharma. The cumulative enrollment of NIOS was about 1.5 million students from 2004 to 2009 at secondary and senior secondary levels and enrols about 350,000 students annually which concludes NIOS as the largest open schooling system in the world.

Related Read: DU SOL

NIOS Admissions 2023 Dates

Block for Online Admission	Dates of Online Admission Stream-1	Fee	Examination in which the students can appear for the first time
Block-1 (April/May 2022)	16th March – 31 July	Normal Fee	April/May 2023
1 August – 15th August	with a late fee of Rs. 200/-
16th August to 31st August	with a late fee of Rs. 400/-
1st Sept. to 15th Sept	with a late fee of Rs. 700/-
Block II (October/November 2022)	16th Sept. to 31st January	Normal Fee	October/November 2023
1st February to 15th February	with a late fee of Rs. 200/-
16th February to 28th February	with a late fee of Rs. 400/-
1st March. to 15th March	with a late fee of Rs. 700/-

International Collaboration of NIOS

The National Institute of Open Schooling collaborates with UNESCO and the Commonwealth of Learning (COL). Furthermore, it has educational facilities and migrants in Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Oman, Kuwait, Nepal, Canada, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Australia, the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Malaysia, Singapore and the United States of America.

Related Read: SOL Admissions

National Institute of Open Schooling: Courses

The National Institute of Open Schooling provides the courses namely-

• Open Basic Education Programme, which includes the following three levels of courses mentioned below:-
  • OBE ‘A-Level course—Equivalent to class III
  • OBE ‘B’ Level course—Equivalent to class V
  • OBE ‘C’ Level course—Equivalent to class VIII
• Secondary Course which is equivalent to class X CBSE and ICSE.
• Senior Secondary Course which is equivalent to class XII CBSE and ICSE.
• Vocational Courses
• Life enrichment programmes
• D.EL.ED. course

Examinations in the National Institute of Open Schooling

As per relevant data, the National Institute of Open Schooling holds public examinations held in the month of April-May and October-November on an annual basis. Further dates are fixed by the institution only. However, one will also have to be eligible to appear through the On-Demand Examinations at Secondary Level and Senior Secondary level in those subjects only in which candidates have been admitted to the National Institute of Open Schooling for subject-wise learning.

NIOS ODE (On-Demand Examination)

The National Institute of Open Schooling also introduced the idea of On-Demand Examinations (ODES), allowing applicants to sit for the test whenever they feel ready. The applicants will not have a specific time or schedule for taking the test. The idea was originally presented in 2003 at the secondary level, and it quickly became clear that it was a wonderful move toward flexibility and distance learning. It made the entire test system independent of the time limit, which helped the students perform better because they could take the exam whenever they wanted.

After experiencing success at the secondary level, the idea was reintroduced at the senior secondary level in 2007. At the moment, ODE is being administered at the following Secondary and Sr. Secondary levels at NIOS Headquarters in Noida and its regional centres. Every month, for exams taken the month before, the ODES result is announced and made available on the NIOS website during the last week.

Must Read: All you need to know about NIOS Exams 2023

Eligibility and Documents Required

Following are the essentials you should know before taking admission to the National Institute of Open Schooling Board:-

Class 10th Examination

• Applicants should complete at least 14 years of age before taking admitted to the institution for their secondary examination.
• Class 8th or 9th pass certificate or school leaving certificate is mandatory and should be positively signed by the Principal and also the Gazette officer of the mentioned educational institution.
• Address proof and supporting documents like Aadhar card (self or parent’s), electricity bill, or rent contract (parents’).
• Caste certificate, if applicable (SC, ST, OBC)
• Certification from a government hospital if physically handicapped.
• Original documents of failure or compartment in class 10th examination for Transfer of Credit (TOC)
• Latest passport photograph (2 nos.)

Class 12th Examination

• Candidate age should be complete 16 years for taking admission in NIOS for Class 12th which is a Senior Secondary Course
• Scanned copy/Photocopy of 10th class or Secondary Education passed Mark sheet
• Address proof and supporting documents like Aadhar card (self or parent’s), electricity bill, or rent contract (parents’).
• Cast Certificate (if belongs to OBC, SC, ST)
• Certificate from a Government Hospital for a handicapped person
• Original Failure/ Compartment Without Laminated Mark sheet of class 12th for TOC (Transfer of credit)
• Two Latest Coloured Photographs (Passport Size)

Students should note that the NIOS board is the same as CBSE. After the NIOS board examination, you’ll get the same job and opportunities as a CBSE student, all you have to do is match the marks and eligibility criteria.

NIOS Results

Results of the public examinations are announced usually six weeks after the last date of examinations and students can check their results from the official website of the National Institute of Open Schooling.

NIOS Fee Structure

Course	General Category	Exempted Category*
	Male	Female	SC/ST, Ex-Servicemen, Persons with Disabilities(PWD)
Secondary Course
(i) for 5 subjects	Rs. 1800/-	Rs. 1450/-	Rs. 1200/-
(ii) for each additional subject	Rs. 720/-	Rs. 720/-	Rs. 720/-
Senior Secondary Course
(i) for 5 Subjects	Rs. 2000/-	Rs. 1650/-	Rs. 1300/-
(ii) for each additional subject	Rs. 720/-	Rs. 720/-	Rs. 720/-

For Stream 1

S.No	Course	Fees (in rupees)
1	Secondary and Sr. Secondary Registration fee (Per subject)	Rs. 480/-
2	Secondary, the cost of Course Material for each Subject	Rs. 360/-
3	Senior Secondary, cost of Course Material for each Subject	Rs. 400/-

For Stream 2, 3, and 4

Registration fee (Stream 2,3 and 4)	Fees (in rupees)
Secondary and Sr. Secondary (per subject) Stream 2,3 and 4 for all categories	Rs. 480/- (per subject)

Apart from this the Transfer of Credit (TOC) Fee for all streams is Rs. 180/- (per subject) and the Change of subject for all streams is Rs. 720/-

NIOS Subjects and Syllabus

Secondary Examination

The National Institute of Open Schooling subjects for Secondary Education is divided into two groups, i.e. Group I and Group II

• Group I (Language):- Hindi, English, Urdu, Sanskrit, Bengali, Marathi, Telugu, Gujarati, Kannada, Punjabi, Arabic, Odia, Persian, Tamil, Nepali, Malayalam, Assamese.
• Group II (Other subjects):- Mathematics, Science and Technology, Social Science, Economics, Business Studies, Home Science, Psychology, Indian Culture and Heritage, Accountancy, Painting, Ved Adhyayan, Sanskrit Vyakaran, Sanskrit Sahitya, Bhartiya Darshan.

Senior Secondary Examination

• Group A:- Hindi, English, Urdu, Sanskrit, Gujarati, Bengali, Tamil, Punjabi, Arabic, Persian.
• Group B:- Mathematics, Home Science, Psychology, Geography, Economics, Business Studies, Painting, Data Entry Operations, Tourism, Ved Adhyayan, Sanskrit Vyakaran, Sanskrit Sahitya, Bhartiya Darshan.
• Group C:- Physics, History, Library and Information Science.
• Group D:- Chemistry, Political Science, Mass Communication.
• Group E:- Biology, Accountancy, Introduction to Law.
• Group F:– Computer Science, Sociology, Environmental Science.

Check out: Subject-Wise CBSE Guide and Syllabus for Classes

NIOS Departments and Units

• Academic
• Vocational Education
• Student Support Services
• Administration
• Evaluation
• Media Unit / Telecast
• Computer Unit
• Minority Cell
• Material Production Dispatch & Distribution

Regional Offices of the Board and Regional Centres Website

Regional Offices	Jurisdiction / States Covered
Delhi I	East Delhi, North Delhi, North East Delhi, North West Delhi, Jhajjar, Gautam Budh Nagar and Ghaziabad
Delhi II	South Delhi, West Delhi, South West Delhi, Central Delhi, New Delhi, Gurgaon and Faridabad
Hyderabad	Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka
Pune	Maharashtra and Goa, Daman and Diu
Chandigarh	Haryana (excluding Faridabad, Gurgaon and Jhajjar), Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Jammu and Kashmir and Chandigarh
Kolkata	Sikkim, West Bengal and Andaman & Nicobar Islands and Subcentre Bhubaneswar
Bhubaneswar	Orissa
Kochi	Tamilnadu, Kerala and Pondicherry
Patna	Bihar and Jharkhand
Jaipur	Rajasthan and Gujarat
Bhopal	Madhya Pradesh and Chhatisgarh
Allahabad	Uttar Pradesh and sub-Centre Dehradun
Sub Regional Centre – Dehradun	Uttrakhand, Meerut, Bagpat, Saharanpur, Muzzafarnagar, Moradabad and J.P. Nagar (Amroha), dist. of UP

NIOS Exam Preparation Tips 

• Students must create a timetable or schedule with all the relevant subjects listed in order of importance so that the essentials are studied thoroughly and on time.
• The NIOS Syllabus should be read by students and carefully analysed. While preparing for the NIOS exams, attention should also be paid to the marking scheme and pattern.
• Before taking the actual test, students should complete a number of practice questions to assist them to manage their time and gain a sense of the kind of questions that will be asked.
• One of the most significant components of the study regimen should be taking notes. Taking notes facilitates speedy learning and is useful for last-minute revision and preparedness.

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