All India Senior School Certificate Examination
Secondary education leaving exams in India
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The All India Senior School Certificate Examination or AISSCE also known as Senior School Certificate Examination, SSCE or Class 12 Board Exams, is the final examination conducted every year for high school students by the Central Board of Secondary Education on behalf of the Government of India.[1][2]
| Acronym | AISSCE, SSCE |
|---|---|
| Type | Pen-Paper-based standardized test |
| Administrator | Central Board of Secondary Education |
| Skills tested | Languages, Humanities, Mathematics, Science, Skill Subjects, General Studies, Health and Physical Education, Work Experience |
| Purpose | Senior Secondary School Completion |
| Duration | 3 hours (Standard subjects) 2 hours (Vocational subjects) |
| Score range | 165-500 (600, if 6 subjects are taken) |
| Offered | Yearly, between February and April (Note: Practical Exams are usually conducted between December and February) |
| Restrictions on attempts | Once. In case of failure, usually supplementary or Compartment exams are allowed. |
| Regions | India
Foreign: [a] |
| Languages | |
| Annual number of test takers |  16,33,730 (Registered 2024)16,21,224 (Appeared 2023) |
| Prerequisites | Intended for Class 12 Students in CBSE-affiliated institutions |
| Used by | Colleges and universities; for undergraduate programs |
| Qualification rate | 87.98% (2024) |
| Website | www |
It is the equivalent of the A-level examination in the United Kingdom.
Examination
Each subject in the examination is graded out of 100 marks.[3] For subjects like Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Home Science, Mathematics, Geography, etc. for which practical exams are also conducted, 30/20 marks are reserved for practicals and internals and 70/80 marks for the theory exams. In 2020, even for non-science/lab-based subjects, CBSE issued guidelines to conduct an internal assessment for 20 per cent of the aggregate score, prior to which the theory exam was the sole basis of evaluation till 2019. The theory exams are conducted for a duration of 3 hours, while the duration for practical exams depends on the subject. CBSE Board conducts the 10th and 12th National Level Examinations. Two times in the Year, Midterm and final term examination, which is conducted in November and February–March.[4]
CBSE issued guidelines for the addition of practical marks to mathematics in March 2019.[5] For practical exams, students have to perform practicals in other schools usually assigned by CBSE at random in the nearby state or area, maintain lab records and attend a viva voce. The CBSE gives a list of practical tasks to perform for students appearing for these practical exams.[6][7]
List of subjects
| Subject Code | Subject Name | Exam Duration (Theory) | Theory Marks | Practical or Internal Marks |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 301 | English Core | 3 hours | 80 | 20 (internal) |
| 001 | English Elective | 3 hours | 80 | 20 (internal) |
| 302 | Hindi Core | 3 hours | 80 | 20 (internal) |
| 002 | Hindi Elective | 3 hours | 80 | 20 (internal) |
| 041 | Standard mathematics | 3 hours | 80 | 20 (internal) |
| 241 | Applied mathematics | 3 hours | 80 | 20 (internal) |
| 042 | Physics | 3 hours | 70 | 30 (practical) |
| 043 | Chemistry | 3 hours | 70 | 30 (practical) |
| 044 | Biology | 3 hours | 70 | 30 (practical) |
| 083 | Computer Science | 3 hours | 70 | 30 (practical) |
| 030 | Economics | 3 hours | 80 | 20 (internal) |
| 055 | Accountancy | 3 hours | 80 | 20 (internal) |
| 054 | Business Studies | 3 hours | 80 | 20 (internal) |
| 029 | Geography | 3 hours | 70 | 30 (internal) |
| 028 | Political Science | 3 hours | 80 | 20 (internal) |
| 039 | Sociology | 3 hours | 80 | 20 (internal) |
| 039 | Psychology | 3 hours | 80 | 20 (internal) |
| 045 | Biotechnology | 3 hours | 70 | 30 (practical) |
| 048 | Physical Education | 3 hours | 70 | 30 (practical) |
| 074 | Legal studies | 3 hours | 80 | 20 (internal) |
| 194 | Japanese | 3 hours | 80 | 20 (internal) |
| 049 | Painting | 2 hours | 30 | 70 (practical) |
| 118 | French | 3 hours | 80 | 20 (internal) |
| 322 | Sanskrit Core | 3 hours | 80 | 20 (internal) |
| 844 | Data science | 2 hours | 80 | 20 (internal) |
| 076 | National Cadet Corps | 3 hours | 70 | 30 (practical) |
| 121 | Russian | 3 hours | 80 | 20 (internal) |
| 120 | German | 3 hours | 80 | 20 (internal) |
| 116 | Arabic | 3 hours | 80 | 20 (internal) |
| 816 | Horticulture | 3 hours | 70 | 30 (practical) |
| 050 | Graphics | 2 hours | 30 | 70 (practical) |
| 051 | Sculpture | 2 hours | 30 | 70 (practical) |
| 052 | Applied arts | 2 hours | 30 | 70 (practical) |
| 046 | Engineering Graphics | 3 hours | ||
| 837 | Fashion studies | 3 hours | ||
| 817 | Typography & Computer Application | 3 hours | ||
| 847 | Electronics & Hardware | 3 hours | ||
| 841 | Yoga | 2 hours | ||
Commonly opted combinations
| Stream | Core Subjects | Optional Subjects | Usual career paths |
|---|---|---|---|
| Science (Medical) | & others | Medicine, Pharmacy, Paramedics, Nursing, Dentistry, Veterinary medicine, Research, Scientist, Genetic engineering etc. | |
| Science (Non-medical) |
|
Engineering, Architecture, Information Technology, Military, Programming, Entrepreneurship, Aviation etc. | |
| Commerce (with maths) |
|
Finance & Investing, Data analytics, Chartered accountant, Financial Risk Management, Business Administration, FinTech, etc. | |
| Commerce (without maths) |
|
Accountant, Corporate law, PO, Clerk, Insurance, PR, Marketing, etc. | |
| Humanities |
|
Law, Civil services, Journalism, Archaeology, Psychology, Police etc. |
Results
The results of the examinations are usually declared in the first week of May to mid-June. In general, about 80% of candidates receive a passing score.[8] The Delhi High Court has directed the Central Board of Secondary Education and Delhi University to discuss the ways by which the results of the main exam, revaluation, and compartment exam can be declared earlier than usual so that candidates do not miss the cut-off dates.
In 2021, due to the COVID-19 crisis, the secondary school exams for classes X and XII had been cancelled.[9]
In the academic year 2021-22, Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) announced that the board examinations of class 10 and class 12, All India Secondary School Examination and the All India Senior School Certificate Examination would be held in two terms respectively. The first term examinations were held in November–December 2021 and second term in April–March 2022.