You do not need to clear JEE to study at IIT Madras. Anyone who has passed Class 12, in any stream and at any age, can apply for the institute’s online BS in Data Science and Applications. Qualifier applications for the January 2027 term are open until 29 January 2027, according to the programme website.
The Guindy campus offers the public more than one degree. NPTEL runs thousands of free online courses with paid certification exams. Each January, two student festivals, Shaastra and Saarang, open parts of the campus to visitors. Here is how to use each one.
The online BS degree: how entry works
Entry is through a qualifier process, not a one-day entrance exam. The admissions page says you get four weeks of online content in four subjects: English, Mathematics for Data Science, Statistics for Data Science, and Computational Thinking. You must submit weekly assignments. If your assignment scores are high enough, you can write a four-hour exam in person at the end.
- Who can apply: anyone who has passed Class 12 or its equivalent. Students who have written their Class 11 finals can also apply and join after Class 12. You should have studied Mathematics and English in Class 10.
- Application fee: ₹4,000 for General and OBC candidates, ₹2,000 for SC/ST or PwD candidates, and ₹1,000 for candidates who are both SC/ST and PwD.
- Passing: General candidates need at least 40% in each subject and a 50% average. Other categories have lower thresholds.
- JEE route: candidates eligible for the latest JEE Advanced can join the Foundation level directly.
The exam is held in 121 cities, 113 of them in India, so Chennai candidates can write it in the city.
What the degree costs
You pay course by course, each term, only for the courses you register for. The academics page lists the totals:
| Exit point | Credits | Total fees |
|---|---|---|
| Foundation certificate | 32 | ₹48,000 |
| Foundation plus one diploma | 59 | ₹1,29,000 |
| BSc degree | 114 | ₹2,86,000 to ₹3,10,000 |
| BS degree | 142 | ₹3,86,000 to ₹4,50,000 |
There are fee waivers based on family income. Families earning ₹1 lakh a year or less get 75% off. Those earning between ₹1 lakh and ₹5 lakh get 50% off. SC/ST and PwD learners get support at higher incomes too. Diploma and degree students who claim a waiver must submit income tax documents. Questions go to support@study.iitm.ac.in or 7850999966.
NPTEL: free courses, paid exams
NPTEL is the online learning initiative of the IITs and IISc, funded by the Union Education Ministry. It lists more than 3,200 courses for self-study. Watching lectures is free. You pay only if you want a certificate, by registering for a proctored exam at a centre.
- Exam fee: ₹1,000 per course. A January 2026 course announcement says SC/ST candidates, and PwD candidates with more than 40% disability, get 50% off.
- Eligibility for the certificate: each course sets its own rules. Usually you need a minimum average assignment score, such as 40 out of 100 in the course quoted above, as well as passing the exam.
- Timing: exams for the July to October 2026 semester are being held on several dates between 16 and 25 October, CareerIndia reported. NPTEL has announced a January to April 2027 semester. Last year, exams for the January semester were held in April.
Popular exam cities fill up early, so register for the exam as soon as your course opens it.
Shaastra and Saarang: the January festivals
Shaastra is the student-run technical festival. Its 27th edition ran from 2 to 6 January 2026 with about 80 events and 130 stalls. Alongside it, IIT Madras held an Institute Open House from 2 to 4 January 2026. School and college students, teachers and the general public could visit more than 100 labs after registering online through shaastra.org. The institute said about 35,000 people visited the 2025 open house.
Saarang is the cultural festival. Its 52nd edition ran from 8 to 12 January 2026, and IIT Madras expected over 80,000 visitors. There were evening professional shows, and the daytime World Fest concerts from 9 to 11 January were free.
No dates for the 2027 editions have been announced on official channels yet. If they follow the usual pattern, they will be in early January, and open house registration will close weeks before the event. The 2026 registration closed on 5 December 2025.
Quick answers
Can I join the IIT Madras BS without JEE?
Yes. Anyone who has passed Class 12 can take the qualifier route. Applications for the January 2027 term close on 29 January 2027.
How much does an NPTEL certificate cost?
The proctored exam costs ₹1,000 per course. Eligible SC/ST and PwD candidates pay half.
Is Shaastra open to the public?
The Institute Open House held during Shaastra is open to anyone who registers in advance. Check shaastra.org from November.
Information checked against official sources on 18 October 2026. Fees, dates and rules can change; confirm on the linked official pages before acting.
Sources
- BS in Data Science and Applications (IIT Madras)
- Admissions (IIT Madras BS Degree)
- Academics and fee structure (IIT Madras BS Degree)
- NPTEL home page
- Course announcements, Jan 2026 exam fee (NPTEL)
- IIT Madras invites public to Institute Open House 2026 (IIT Madras)
- Saarang 2026 press release (IIT Madras)
- NPTEL exam registration 2026 (CareerIndia)
