The Common Law Admission Test (CLAT) is an entrance exam conducted to admit students into any of the 24 national law schools in the country. It is conducted for both undergraduate and postgraduate studies of education. The exam is highly competitive and tests students on their aptitude for legal studies and other subject areas. It is conducted once a year during the first week of December (usually 1st of December).
The consortium of NLUs releases the application for CLAT every year approximately during the month July, when students can register themselves in the website and fill the application form. The fee for application for general students it is rupees 4000/- and for SC/ST it is rupees 3500/-. Students can also get previous years question papers by paying an additional of rupees 500/- along with their application fees. All the CLAT aspirants are advised to frequently check and stay updated regarding announcements or notifications from the consortium of NLUS through their website.
EXAM PATTERN IN DETAIL
The duration of CLAT exams for both Undergraduate as well as postgraduate studies is 2 hours (120 minutes). Students are given question paper with 120 questions, which is of one mark each. Given below is detailed tabular chart to understand the key differences and the points to be noted for CLAT UG and PG.
Factors |
CLAT UG |
CLAT PG |
| Conducted by | Consortium of NLUS | Consortium of NLUS |
| Age Limit | No upper Age Limit | No upper Age Limit |
| Minimum Educational Qualification | 10+2 or equivalent examination with; minimum 45% for General and 40% for SC/ST | Bachelor’s degree in law with; minimum 50% for General and 45% for SC/ST |
| Mode of exam | Offline mode and Objective questions | Offline mode and Objective questions |
| Subject areas focused | Legal Reasoning, Critical Thinking, Logical Reasoning, Current Affairs and GK and English | Constitutional Law, Jurisprudence, Administrative law and other law subjects focusing on contemporary issues |
| No. of Seats | 4094* | 1591* |
| Are there reservations/ domicile preferences | Yes | Yes |
| Difficulty Level | Moderate | Moderate-Difficult |
*The Number given is the closest approximate number based on recent data. It is the total number of seats including reservations and categories.
* Each NLUS will release notification regarding any update in their current reservation and quotas and the same is also in their individual brochures available in the consortium website.
SELECTION OF CANDIDATE
- After the CLAT marks are calculated students are ranked based on their scores, and admission is granted according to their rank and preferred NLU choices. Candidates are allotted seats based on merit, category based reservations and Preferred NLU seat availability.
- If two or more students have the same CLAT score, the tie is resolved by considering (i) higher marks in the legal aptitude section, (ii) older age, and (iii) a computerized lottery if the tie persists.
CLAT exam indeed serves as a gateway to prestigious law schools in India, and thorough preparation is the key to success. For more details on exam dates, eligibility, and syllabus, students can visit the Consortium of NLUs’ official website. Additionally, for expert guidance and structured preparation, approach Great Learnpro Academy.