New Delhi: The National Testing Agency has opened a small correction window that will allow students to make changes to their CUET-UG 2026 exam status, date and shift after widespread complaints of being allotted centers hundreds of kilometers away from their preferred cities.In a notice on Tuesday, the agency said candidates can opt for change of exam status, date and/or shift for their subject combination “as per the availability of slots”. The window of opportunity opened on May 5 and will remain open till May 7, 11.50 pm. The allotment will be done on “first come first serve basis”.

Many candidates across the country have flagged the logistical difficulties, need for frequent inter-state travel and rising cost of accommodation after being allotted centers outside their chosen cities.The agency said candidates who avail the facility will be issued revised admit cards, while those who do not avail the option within the stipulated period will have to appear as per their already allotted exam city, date and shift.The decision comes after days of criticism on social media, in which students from Delhi, Haryana, Bihar and other states shared examples of being given centers away from their homes during the one-month exam cycle from May 11 to May 31.One of them is Delhi resident Garv Mendiratta, who said she had chosen Delhi and NCR cities as a priority, but she was allotted Agra for the exams to be held on May 11, May 13 and May 30, which required her to travel frequently.Another candidate from Delhi, Sunil Sah, said he was allotted the Jaipur centre, while Delhi’s Devansh Solanki was allotted the center in Mohali.Some candidates also complained about being allotted multiple exams in different shifts on the same day, raising concerns over travel feasibility and exam fatigue.Students said scattered schedules and external allocations have increased travel and accommodation expenses, disrupted preparations and created uncertainty during one of the country’s biggest entrance exams.“I am a student of Haryana and you gave my center in Himachal. Now all my favorite states are missing in this revised exam state option. What should I do?” A candidate wrote on social media.Another student from Bihar wrote: “I have two exams on 14th and 19th May. I cannot afford to travel 350 km, return home and travel again. Please change my center to my hometown Darbhanga.”Responding to the criticism, the NTA said on social media that the situation was largely due to “high concentration of candidates in some cities and limited CBT testing center availability”, while assuring students that the concerns were being reviewed to minimize inconvenience.In a separate press release, the agency said that CUET-UG 2026 had received 15.6 lakh registrations, which would lead to 67.6 lakh tests. Each candidate has selected an average of four subjects.It said the exam was being conducted in 35 shifts across the country and involved 12,906 different subject combinations, making center allocation operationally complex.Explaining the challenge, NTA said that about 43% of the total candidates came from three states – Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Delhi – which together totaled about 29.9 lakh effective test examples in 9,922 subject combinations.The agency said the allotment was not simply a city-matching exercise, as it had to balance the candidate’s preferred city, subject combination and shift availability while working within the bounds of secure CBT infrastructure, trained invigilation staff and examination integrity requirements.According to the agency, 79% of the candidates got the city of their first choice, while 96.6% were allotted one of their preferred cities. The remaining 3.4% candidates were allotted centers outside their selected preferences, mainly in areas where the registration volume exceeded the available CBT capacity.Students and parents questioned the explanation and pointed out that external allocation on such a large scale was not seen in previous CUET cycles.Many called the issue a failure of planning.