List of NLUs in India 2026: NIRF Ranking, Courses, Admission Process

Law Courses Offered by Top NLUs in India

The national law universities offer 5-year integrated LLB, 3-year LLB, LLM and PhD courses. Candidates may check the list of law programmes offered by NLUs below.

Law Programmes offered by NLUs

Some NLUs such as NLSIU Bangalore also offer Master of Public Policy, Certificate courses in various disciplines of law, and MBA courses.

NLU Courses Full List

NLU Admission Process

The NLU admission process consists of the candidates first appearing for a law entrance exam. Shortlisted candidates are then required to attend the counselling and seat allotment process. The steps in the NLU admissions are given below.

• Complete the registration for the entrance exam
• Appear for the exam and obtain a valid score
• Register for the counselling process
• Publication of merit list by the NLU/ Consortium
• Complete admission formalities such as document verification and payment of admission fee

Entrance Exams for NLUs

There are two law entrance exams for admission to national law universities (NLUs). The first one is the Common Law Admission Test (CLAT) organised by the Consortium of National Law Universities (NLUs). It is a common entrance exam for admission to 23 national law universities (NLUs). The second is the All India Law Entrance Test (AILET) of the National Law University Delhi. It is important to note here that NLU Delhi is not a member NLU of the CLAT Consortium, so the CLAT scores are not accepted by it. NLU Meghalaya also conducts its exams namely MEG UAT and MEG PAT for its UG and PG admissions respectively.

CNLU Patna also conducts a separate admission test for the LLM programme. The university’s UG programme is offered through CLAT.

Admission to NLUs through CLAT

The Common Law Admission Test or CLAT is one of the most popular law entrance tests. It is conducted offline, in pen and paper format, across the country. The application form for CLAT is typically released in July and the entrance exam is conducted in the first or second week of December. The consortium tries to complete its admission process before May. The first week of August is the time when most of the NLUs commence their classes.

Admission to NLU Delhi through AILET

The NLU Delhi’s entrance examination, AILET, is also an offline-based examination conducted across the country. The application form of AILET is released for BA LLB, LLM and PhD programmes, around August. The exam is conducted in December and the classes start in the first week of August.

NLUs Admission - Eligibility Criteria

The eligibility criteria for admission to law programmes are the same across all 22 national law universities under the CLAT Consortium. NLU Delhi specified its eligibility criteria separately in its admission notification. Even though the basic eligibility criteria remain the same for admission across NLUs. Here are the details of NLU's eligibility criteria.

NLUs admission eligibility criteria

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AILET Vs CLAT - A comparison

One can find many similarities and differences in CLAT vs AILET comparison. CLAT is essentially a comprehension-based test designed to examine the reading and critical thinking skills of the aspirant. AILET on the other hand is a mix of both comprehension and non-comprehension-based questions. Here is a brief analysis of these two NLU entrance exams.

CLAT and AILET - An overview of the pattern

Also Read -

• Detailed CLAT exam pattern

• Detailed AILET exam pattern

CLAT vs AILET - Comparison of syllabus and test structure

The syllabus of the AILET and CLAT exams are more or less the same. Both entrance tests are known for testing the necessary skills required for pursuing law. However, there are some differences between CLAT and AILET as well. For example, AILET has a test structure based on both comprehension-based questions as well as simple objective questions. In CLAT, however, almost the entire test paper will be based on comprehension-based passages of 300-450 words, making it a lengthy paper. Candidates may check the details of the CLAT and AILET test structure below.

CLAT Vs AILET: Syllabus and Test structure

Also Read -

• Detailed CLAT syllabus

• Detailed AILET syllabus

NLUs Fee Structure

For undergraduate law programmes, the annual fees of NLUs range from 1.5 lakh per annum to 2.62 lakh per annum. While, in the case of LLM programmes, the annual fees range from 1.13 lakh to 1.89 lakh. In top-ranked NLUs, the annual fees tend to be higher due to the various facilities offered by them in addition to regular classes. Candidates may check the details of NLU fee structure from the quick links given below.

Fees in NLUs

Top Universities in India

• LPU

• Chandigarh University

• KL University

• UPES

• BML