CTET Eligibility Criteria 2026: Check Age Limit & Qualification

CTET 2026 Eligibility Criteria is mentioned by the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) in the official notification. You need to be an Indian citizen of at least 18 years of age to be eligible. The required educational qualification is a minimum of 50% in Class 12/ Graduation with a Diploma/ Bachelor’s in Education in general. However, the exact criteria differ for Paper 1 and 2. Those from reserved categories get a relaxation of 5% in the minimum required marks. Thus, you must check the details here before filling out CTET Application Form 2026.

CTET Educational Qualification for Paper 1 (Primary Teachers)

You need to have any one of the following educational qualifications to be eligible for the Primary Teachers’ test.

• Passed Class 12 or Senior Secondary with minimum 50% marks along with clearing or appearing in the final year of a 2-year Diploma in Elementary Education (D.El.Ed)
• Passed Class 12 with a minimum of 45% marks along with passing or appearing in the final year of a 2-year D.El.Ed as per the rules mentioned in NCTE Regulations of 2022.
• Passed Class 12 with minimum 50% marks along with clearing or appearing in the final year of a 4-year Bachelor of Elementary Education (B.El.Ed)
• Passed Class 12 with minimum 45% marks along with passing or appearing in the final year of a 2-year Diploma in Special Education
• Graduation in any stream with minimum 50% marks and a B.Ed
• Post Graduation with minimum 55% marks and 3-year integrated B.Ed-M.Ed

CTET 2026 Educational Qualification for Paper 2 (Elementary Teachers)

To be eligible for CTET Paper 2 (elementary teachers of Classes 6 to 8), you need to meet one of the following to fulfill the eligibility for CTET 2026.

• Graduation along with passing or appearing in the final year of a 2-year Diploma in Elementary Education (D.El.Ed)
• Graduation in any stream with minimum 50% marks along with passing or appearing in a 1-year B.Ed Course
• Graduation in any stream with minimum 45% marks along with passing or appearing in a 1-year B.Ed as per the rules mentioned in NCTE Regulations of 2022.
• Passed Class 12 with minimum 50% marks along with clearing or appearing in the final year of a 4-year BA B.Ed or B.Sc. B.Ed.
• Graduation in any stream along with clearing or appearing the 1-year B.Ed in Special Education.

CTET 2026 Eligibility Minimum Qualifying Marks

• The minimum qualifying mark for the General category is 60% or 90 marks out of 150.
• For OBC/ SC/ ST candidates, the minimum qualifying marks are 55% i.e. 82 marks out of 150

CTET 2026 Minimum Eligibility Criteria to Remember

According to the official website of CTET, you must fulfill the eligibility criteria as follows:

• National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE) Regulations as amended and notified from time to time. It includes the determination of minimum CTET qualifications for candidates to be recruited as Education Teachers and Physical Education Teachers in Pre-Primary, Primary, Upper Primary, Secondary, Senior Secondary, or Intermediate Schools or Colleges.
• Minimum qualifications are laid down in the recruitment rules for the teachers by the appropriate government where the school is situated or the recruitment rules for the teachers of Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangthan or Navodaya Vidyalaya Samiti.
• You should satisfy your eligibility before applying and shall be personally responsible if you are not eligible to apply as per the given eligibility criteria. It must be noted that even if you have been allowed to appear in the Central Teacher Eligibility Test, it does not mean that your eligibility has been verified. It will be finally verified by the concerned recruiting authority before the appointment.

CTET 2026 eligibility primarily focuses on educational qualifications and minimum marks as per NCTE guidelines, along with being an Indian citizen aged 18 or above. Candidates must ensure they meet all criteria before applying, as the final eligibility is verified during recruitment.