The Common Law Admission Test (CLAT) is a national level entrance examination that shortlists the qualified candidates for the various undergraduate and post-graduate law courses offered by top law universities and colleges across India. Every year around 40,000 students appear for the CLAT examination and the number of applicants is increasing considerably. There are 19 National Law Universities that conduct the CLAT examination each year on a rotational basis. Last year, i.e. 2017, the CLAT exam was conducted by the Chanakya National Law University, Patna on 14th May.
The National University of Advanced Legal Studies, Kochi has announced the examination date and other relevant details related to the CLAT examination 2018. If you are going to appear in the upcoming CLAT examination, then here is everything that you need to know about the examination.
Application
All the applicants need to fill in the application form online only. You are required to visit http://clat.ac.in/ for the online filing of the application. Online applications will be made available to all the aspirants from 1st January 2018 and the last date of application will be 31st March 2018. How to apply?
- Visit the website http://clat.ac.in/
- Register on the page using your valid email id and active mobile number.
- Click on the “Click here for New Registration” tab and fill in the requisites.
- Upon successful registration, you will receive a provisional registration number along with a password on your registered mail id and phone number.
- Use these credentials to log in to your account and then fill the online CLAT 2018 application form.
- Make sure to double-check the name entered by you, else miswritten name will be printed on your admit card, result, and the certificate as well which can leave you in trouble.
Eligibility Criteria
The eligibility criteria for the undergraduate and post-graduate courses are different, so make sure you check the relevant one.
Eligibility Criteria for Undergraduate programs (5-Year Integrated Law Degree Hon’s)
- For applicants belonging to unreserved/OBC/Specially Abled Persons/NRI/NRI Sponsored Categories – A pass in 10+2 or an equivalent examination with a minimum of 45% marks.
- For applicants belonging to SC/ST categories – A pass in 10+2 or an equivalent examination with a minimum of 40% marks
- Candidates appearing in the 10+2 examination in March/April 2018 can also apply for the CLAT 2018 examination. Note: The candidate will be required to produce proof of the minimum qualifying marks at the time of admission, failing which he will be denied the admission.
- There is no upper age limit for applying for the upcoming CLAT 2018 examination.
Eligibility Criteria for Post-graduate programs (1-Year LL.M Degree)
- For candidates belonging to the unreserved/OBC/Specially Abled Persons/NRI/NRI Sponsored Categories – An LL.B degree or an equivalent examination with a minimum of 55% of marks scored in the final year.
- For candidates belonging to SC/ST categories – An LL.B degree or an equivalent examination with a minimum of 50% marks scored in the final year.
- Candidates appearing in the final year LL.B examination in April/May 2018 can also apply for the postgraduate courses. Note: The candidate will be required to produce proof of the minimum qualifying marks at the time of admission, failing which he will be denied the admission.
- There is no upper age-limit for applying for the upcoming CLAT 2018 examination.
Exam pattern and subjects covered in the CLAT examination, 2018
For Undergraduate Programs
- The examination covers various topics belonging to the area of Logical Reasoning, Mathematics, Legal Aptitude, General Knowledge, and English including comprehension. These topics are chosen to justify the mental ability of the applicants and to determine whether they are fit for the law domain or not.
- The examination type will be multiple choice questions based and the time duration will be 2 hours.
- The paper will be of 200 marks.
- The candidate will get 1 marks for each correct answer and a -0.25 for each incorrect one.
For Post-graduate Programs
- The syllabus for the postgraduate programs covers various topics related to the area of Constitutional law, Jurisprudence and other law subjects like Criminal law, International law, and many others.
- The examination type will be a multiple choice question type and the total time allotted will be 2 hours.
- The paper will be of 150 marks.
- The candidate will get 1 marks for each correct answer and a -0.25 for each incorrect one.
CLAT scores are not only considered by the 19 NLUs but also considered by all other law colleges and universities present across the country. So if you want to make your career as a lawyer, then don’t wait further and apply for the upcoming CLAT examinations 2018. This will surely take you a step ahead in your career.