'Award grace marks': CBSE's July 28 supplementary exam sparks student outrage over college admissions

The Central Board of Secondary Education's (CBSE) decision to postpone the Class 12 supplementary examination to July 28 from July 15 has triggered a backlash from students. Many are claiming the delay could cost them college admissions and even an academic year. Soon after the board released the List of Candidates (LOC) forms for supplementary examinations, students flooded social media platforms with posts urging the board to either advance the examination date or extend the admission timelines in universities.

Since Common University Entrance Test, CUET UG results have been declared and most of the universities have announced cut-off for admissions, many students argued that by the time the supplementary results are declared in August, admissions at several universities and engineering institutes may already be closed.

One user wrote, "CBSE has totally lost its sanity today after it released the LOC forms to all the affiliated schools for registration of candidates for supplementary exams but postponed the date to 28th July from 15th July. This step wouldn't just delay the whole process of supplementary examination but ruin the lives of thousands of children who wouldn't be able to take admission in a college this year."

The user further urged the board to either prepone the exam to July 15 or issue a common notice through the education ministry to all universities to open and extend their counseling process by at least 20-30 days.

Another user, claiming to be Class 12 student, appealed directly to the board. He posted, "If the compartment exam is on 28 July 2026, many students may lose college admissions and an entire academic year. Please grant grace marks and save their future."

Grace marks

The demand for grace marks has grown, with students arguing that the delayed examination schedule is beyond their control. Some claim that JEE Main qualified candidates who were planning to improve their Class 12 scores through the supplementary examination may miss counselling deadlines.

One social media user posted, "Thousands of kids cracked JEE and were eagerly waiting for improvement exam may miss last chance to get in NIT as CSAB closes its registration by 3rd of August. It's cruel."

The criticism comes after CBSE had earlier indicated a different examination schedule. In the result document released on May 13, the board had stated, "Supplementary examinations will be conducted on 15.07.2026. This would be a single-day examination." It also mentioned that the submission of the List of Candidates (LOC) for compartment and improvement candidates would begin on June 2, 2026.

Who can appear in supplementary examination?

As 3 opportunities are given to clear the sompartment, hence, this examination would be the last opportunity. Here's who can appear.

• Candidates who have passed Class XII in 2026 and wish to improve their performance in one subject only.
• Candidates who have appeared in Class XII in 2026 and placed in compartment category.
• Candidates who have appeared in Class XII in 2025 and placed in compartment category.

While students have urged the board to either restore the earlier examination date or provide grace marks, CBSE has not yet responded to the demands.