NIOS 12th Exam Pattern 2025: Check Subject Wise Pattern

Diksha Sharma

Updated On: September 24, 2024 09:02 PM

NIOS Exam Pattern for Class 12 is released by National Institute of Open Schooling every year on the official website. Students must go through the NIOS Class 12 Exam Pattern 2025 to have an insight into the type of questions and the marking scheme. 

NIOS 12th Exam Pattern
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NIOS exam pattern 2025 for class 12 is published by the National Institute of Open Schooling on its official website. The exam duration for each subject is 3 hours except for painting which is 1.5 hours. Candidates can choose the optional subjects from the list provided by NIOS. NIOS 2025 Exam Pattern includes 10 subjects worth 100 marks involving theory, internal, and practical components. The internal assessment will have a weightage of 10 marks, and the practical exam will carry 30 marks. NIOS Class 12 registration 2025 will be opened soon. Along with the official notification, the revised pattern is also released. Students must also go through the entire NIOS Class 12 Syllabus and ensure that they cover the whole syllabus well in time. The students can check on this page the subject-wise NIOS 12th Exam Pattern 2025 along with important details such as highlights, marking scheme, internal assessment, and more.

Quick Links:

NIOS 12th Board
NIOS 12th Date Sheet 2025
NIOS 12th Result 2025
NIOS 12th Previous Year Question Paper

NIOS 12th Exam Pattern 2025 Highlights

The table below shows some of the main highlights and factors related to the NIOS 12th Exam Pattern 2025:

Exam Mode

Offline

Medium

Hindi & English

Duration

3 Hours

Type of Questions

Multiple Choice, Long/Short Questions

Subjects

Science, Commerce, Arts

Total Marks

100

Negative Marking

No Negative Marking

Theory Exam

60

Practical Exam

30

Internal Assessment

10

Passing Marks

33% Aggregate in Each Subject & Overall

NIOS 12th Exam Duration 2025

For NIOS Class 12 exams, students will be given a total time of 3 hours. The optional papers including Mass Communication and Painting will be conducted for less duration. The details for all subjects are mentioned below:

Subjects

Marks

Time duration

Commerce (Business studies)

100

3 hours

Home Science

100

3 hours

Accountancy

100

3 hours

Sociology

100

3 hours

Chemistry

80

3 hours

Geography

80

3 hours

English

100

3 hours

History

80

3 hours

Mass Communication

80

3 hours

Painting

30

1 hour and 30 minutes

NIOS 12th Exam Pattern 2025

Along with the NIOS 12th Date Sheet 2025 , the board releases the NIOS 12th Exam Pattern 2025 every year. We have listed below in detail the NIOS 12th Exam Pattern 2025 for the students:

  • There will be a total of 7 subjects in the NIOS 12th Exam Pattern 2025. Out of these 7 subjects, 5 will be compulsory and 2 will be optional subjects.
  • The candidates will be free to choose their optional subjects from the list of subjects released by NIOS.
  • There will be internal assessments for 10 marks.
  • The overall score of the candidates will be calculated on the basis of the theory exam + practicals + internal assessment.
  • The students must obtain a minimum score & aggregate of 30 & 30% respectively to pass each subject and overall.
  • The student must pass in 5 subjects including at least one but not more than two languages.

Subject Wise NIOS 12th Exam Pattern 2025

While it is important for students to learn about the NIOS 12th Exam Pattern 2025, the pattern for the individual subject may vary in a few aspects. Hence, the students should also go through the subject-wise pattern to understand the nature of the questions. The following section will talk about the subject-wise NIOS 12th Exam Pattern 2025:

NIOS 12th Exam Pattern 2025 for English

As per the NIOS 12th Exam Pattern 2025, the English paper will be conducted for a total of 3 hours duration. The total marks for the exam will be 100. Given below is the section-wise exam pattern for the subject:

Sections

Marks

Prescribed texts

20 Marks

Functional Grammar

15 Marks

Functional writing skills

25 Marks

Comprehension (unseen passages)

20 Marks

Optional module

20 Marks

NIOS 12th Exam Pattern 2025 for Mathematics

As per the NIOS 12th Exam Pattern 2025, the Mathematics paper will be conducted for a total of 3 hours duration. The total marks for the exam will be 100. There will be internal assessments for 10 marks which will be conducted by respective schools. The students will have to acquire a minimum of 33% aggregate marks in the subject to pass. Given below is the section wise exam pattern for the subject:

Chapters

Marks

Complex Numbers & Quadratic Equations

10

Determinants & Matrices

10

Permutations & Combinations

8

Sequences & Series

8

Trigonometry

10

Coordinate Geometry

10

Differential Calculus

17

Integral Calculus

17

Optional

Statistics & Probability (or)

Vectors & Analytical Solid Geometry (or)

Linear Programming

10 each

NIOS 12th Exam Pattern 2025 for Physics

As per the NIOS 12th Exam Pattern 2025, the Physics paper will be conducted for a total of 3 hours duration. The total marks for the exam will be 70. The students will have to acquire a minimum of 33% aggregate marks in the subject to pass. Given below is the section-wise exam pattern for the subject:

Topics

Marks

Motion, force, and Energy

14

Electricity and Magnetism

14

Properties of Matter

8

Optics and Optical Instruments

8

Atoms and Nuclei

7

Semiconductors and their Applications

7

Heat and Thermodynamics

6

Optional Mode

Astrophysics

10

Electronics

10

Photography and Audio-Videography

10

Physics in Medical Sciences

10

NIOS 12th Exam Pattern 2025 for Chemistry

As per the NIOS 12th Exam Pattern 2025, the Chemistry paper will be conducted for a total of 3 hours duration. Given below is the section-wise exam pattern for the subject:

Chapters

Marks

Atom Molecule and Chemical Arithmetics

7

Atomic Structure and Chemical Bonding

12

States of Matter

12

Chemical Energetics

8

Chemical Dynamics

8

Chemistry of Elements

10

Chemistry of Organic Compounds

12

Optional

Environmental Chemistry (or)

Chemistry and Industry

15

NIOS 12th Exam Pattern 2025 for Biology

As per the NIOS 12th Exam Pattern 2025, the Biology paper will be conducted for a total of 3 hours duration. Given below is the section-wise exam pattern for the subject:

Chapters

Marks

Diversity and evolution of life

6

Cell, Cell functions, and Tissues

10

Functional morphology and Life processes in animals

11

Reproduction and Development

10

Heredity and Genetics

10

Population Explosion and Family Planning

4

Environmental Biology

8

Optional

Tools and Techniques in Biology (or)

Economic Biology (or)

Health Science (or)

Emerging Areas in BiologyBiochemistry, Biotechnology, and Immunobiology

10

NIOS 12th Exam Pattern 2025 for Business Studies

As per the NIOS 12th Exam Pattern 2025, the Business Studies paper will be conducted for a total of 3 hours duration. Given below is the section-wise exam pattern for the subject:

Chapters

Marks

Introduction to Business

16

Business as a Career

8

Trade and Service Activities

16

Management of Business

16

Financing of Business

12

Marketing

12

Optional

Office procedures and Practices (or)

Practical Banking (or)

Introduction to Factory Set-up (or)

Agency Services

20

NIOS 12th Exam Pattern - Marking Scheme

Similar to the exam pattern, the marking scheme is also different for different subjects in NIOS class 12th exam. Given below is the subject-wise marking scheme as per the NIOS 12th Exam Pattern 2025:

NIOS 12th Marking Scheme for English

Given in the table below is the NIOS 12th Marking scheme for English:

Sections

Marks Allotted

Literature

30

Grammar

30

Reading

15

Writing

25

NIOS 12th Marking Scheme for Mathematics

Given in the table below is the NIOS 12th Marking scheme for Mathematics:

Sections

Marks Allotted

Knowledge

25

Understanding

42

Application

10

Skills

8

Practicals

15

NIOS 12th Marking scheme for Physics

Given in the table below is the NIOS 12th Marking scheme for Physics:

Sections

Marks Allotted

Knowledge

25

Understanding

42

Application

10

Skills

8

Practicals

15

NIOS 12th Marking Scheme for Chemistry

Given in the table below is the NIOS 12th Marking scheme for Chemistry:

Sections

Marks Allotted

Knowledge

25

Understanding

42

Application

10

Skills

8

Practicals

15

NIOS 12th Marking Scheme for Biology

Given in the table below is the NIOS 12th Marking scheme for Biology:

Sections

Marks Allotted

Knowledge

25

Understanding

42

Application

10

Skills

8

Practicals

15

NIOS 12th Marking Scheme for Accountancy

Given in the table below is the NIOS 12th Marking scheme for Accountancy:

Sections

Marks Allotted

Knowledge

20

Understanding

50

Application

20

NIOS 12th Marking Scheme for Business Studies

Given in the table below is the NIOS 12th Marking scheme for Business Studies:

Sections

Marks Allotted

Knowledge

30

Understanding

50

Application

20

NIOS 12th Marking Scheme for History

Given in the table below is the NIOS 12th Marking scheme for History:

Sections

Marks Allotted

Knowledge

20

Understanding

50

Application

20

NIOS 12th Exam Pattern for Internal Assessment

The internal assessment as per NIOS 12th Exam Pattern 2025 will consist of one TMA (Tutor Marked Assessment ) for each subject. The weightage of the internal assessment will be 10% of the overall score. One TMA in each subject will consist of different question types such as short, long, and project based questions. Most of the questions will be application based. The students will be able to download the TMA from the NIOS website and submit them before the final date.

NIOS 12th Grading System

The NIOS 12th Grading System is done on the basis of the percentage obtained by the students. The grading is done for each subject as well as overall. Given in the table below is the NIOS 12th Grading System:

Percentage in 12th

Grade

Remarks

100% to 76%

A

Very Good

75% to 51%

B

Good

50% to 26%

C

Average

25% to 0%

D

Fail/ Re-Appear

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