Prepare for the NED Entry Test
The NED entry test splits its 100 questions evenly across Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry and English, so no single subject can carry a weak one.
What is the NED Entry Test paper pattern?
The NED Entry Test has 100 MCQs to finish in 2 hours. Mathematics has 25, Physics has 25, Chemistry has 25 and English has 25.
| Section | Questions | Share of marks | Even pace |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mathematics | 25 | 25% | 30 min |
| Physics | 25 | 25% | 30 min |
| Chemistry | 25 | 25% | 30 min |
| English | 25 | 25% | 30 min |
- Time
- 2 hours
- Total marks
- 100
- Negative marking
- None. A wrong answer scores 0.
- Calculator
- A scientific calculator is allowed
- Format
- Computer based
Checked on 12 November 2026 against NED admissions. Patterns change between test series, so confirm the latest instructions there before test day.
Find out where you stand before you study
The free NED diagnostic test follows the NED Entry Test pattern on a smaller scale. Take it first, and you will know which subject to start with.
How to get your best NED Entry Test score with AceMax
Six steps, in this order. Each uses a different part of AceMax, and each one builds on what the last showed you.
- 1
Find your weakest subject first
Take the free NED diagnostic test. It follows the NED Entry Test split on a smaller scale and tells you which subject to start with, so your first week goes where the marks are.
- 2
Put Mathematics first
Mathematics carries 25% of the NED Entry Test marks. Build custom tests by subject and chapter, and every test adapts to you: it pulls from mistakes you have not fixed yet, your weak chapters and the ones you have not tried.
- 3
Fix the concept, not just the question
When a chapter keeps costing you marks, read its topic notes and formula sheet, then ask Jojo in Mentor mode to walk you through the idea with a worked example.
See how Jojo answers - 4
Rehearse under the real timing
Sit mocks built to the NED Entry Test format, 100 MCQs in 2 hours, so the pace is familiar on the day.
- 5
Test yourself against other students
Join Prepathon, free timed papers with a national leaderboard, and Mockathon, full university-style mocks. Seeing your rank shows whether your score would hold on the day.
See Prepathon - 6
Review every miss, then track the trend
From any result, send a wrong answer to Jojo and get it worked through step by step. Your progress page shows which subjects are rising and which still need time.
NED Entry Test questions students ask
Something else on your mind? Ask Jojo.
The NED Entry Test covers Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry and English. Mathematics is the biggest section, with 25 questions, so it shapes your score more than any other part. The rest of the paper is Physics with 25, Chemistry with 25 and English with 25.
The NED Entry Test has 100 MCQs, and you get 2 hours to work through them. Every section sits in the same paper, so keeping your focus to the last question matters as much as knowing the content.
You get 2 hours. That is enough to attempt every question only if you keep moving, so practise full-length papers on the same clock before test day and the pace will feel normal.
On average about 72 seconds. In practice some questions take ten seconds and others take two minutes, so the skill is spotting the long ones early, moving on, and coming back once the quick marks are banked.
Mathematics. It carries about 25% of the marks, so a small gain in accuracy there moves your total more than the same gain anywhere else. It is the natural place to start, with the other sections built around it.
The NED Entry Test is marked out of 100. That score then goes into the NED merit formula alongside your Matric and Intermediate marks.
No. A wrong answer scores 0, so nothing is lost by guessing. That changes how you should sit the paper: never leave a question blank, and use the last few minutes to fill in anything you skipped.
A scientific calculator is allowed. Practise with the model you will take in, so you are not learning its buttons during the test.
It is computer based: you read each question on screen and choose your answer there. Practising on screen, as you do on AceMax, makes the format familiar before test day.
NED merit combines your test score with your Matric and Intermediate marks, each with its own weight. Because the test is part of that formula, a higher test score can make up for weaker school marks. The AceMax aggregate calculator applies the university's weights and shows your number.
Yes. The free NED diagnostic test on this page follows the NED Entry Test pattern on a smaller scale, and you do not need an account to take it. It shows your score and the subject to start with.
Yes. Jojo, the AceMax study partner, works through any question step by step and knows the NED Entry Test pattern. Send it a question you got wrong straight from your results, or switch to Exam coach mode for help with pacing and when to guess.
On the official NED admissions website. Dates and registration windows change from series to series, so AceMax does not repeat them here. Check the official page before you plan your preparation around a date.
Start with the diagnostic test to find your weakest subject. Then practise that subject by chapter, with tests that adapt to the mistakes you have not fixed yet. Once your accuracy holds, sit full-length papers at the real length, and send every question you miss to Jojo. A free account is enough to start.
Start your NED Entry Test preparation today
Take the diagnostic test, then practise the chapters that are costing you marks.