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    Top Hotel Management Entrance Exams in India: Complete Exam List and Course offered

    Top Hotel Management Entrance Exams in India: Complete Exam List and Course offered

    Sumeet SudarshanUpdated on 05 Oct 2026, 04:31 PM IST

    The hospitality and hotel management industry is rapidly growing, sparking more student interest in this field. Candidates can opt for diploma, undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in hotel management. Aspirants may have to appear for hotel management entrance exams to secure admission into these courses conducted by top hotel management colleges. NCHM JEE is the most popular entrance examination among students through which they can obtain a seat at IHMs.

    This Story also Contains

    1. Top Hotel Management Entrance Exams in India- Category-wise
    2. Top Hotel Management Exams in India: All you need to know
    3. National-level Entrance Examinations
    4. State-level Hotel Management Entrance Exams
    5. University-level hotel management entrance examinations
    6. Hotel-specific Entrance Exam/Test
    Top Hotel Management Entrance Exams in India: Complete Exam List and Course offered
    Top Hotel Management Entrance Exams in India

    The Council also centrally runs and regulates academics for B.Sc.Hospitality & Hotel Administration and ten other structured courses of study. Some of the renowned hotels also conduct their own entrance exams like Oberoi STEP, organized by the Oberoi Hotel and Group to offer admission. In this article, let's look at some of the top hotel management entrance exams in India.

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    Top Hotel Management Entrance Exams in India- Category-wise

    Level of Entrance Exam

    Entrance Exam Name

    Degree level

    National Level

    NCHM JEE

    AIMA UGAT BHM

    Both UG and PG

    Only UG

    State-level

    IPU CET BHMCT

    MAH HM CET

    AIHMCT OAT

    Only UG

    Both UG and PG

    Only UG

    University Level

    PUTHAT

    CUET

    Only UG

    Only UG

    Hotel run exams


    Ecole Hoteliere Lavasa

    IHM Aurangabad entrance test

    Only UG

    Only UG

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    Top Hotel Management Exams in India: All you need to know

    We have provided detailed information here on the exam conducting authority, hotel management courses, and the number of participating colleges/institutes that fall into the category of top-notch management entrance exams in India.

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    National-level Entrance Examinations

    1. National Council of Hotel Management Joint Entrance Examination (NCHM JEE): National Council of Hotel Management Joint Entrance Examination (NCHM JEE) is a national-level hotel management entrance exam that is conducted by NTA, which offers admission to qualifying candidates on the basis of their merit and rank. NCHMCT JEE is a popular hotel management entrance exam that is conducted for aspirants willing to take admission in various undergraduate programmes offered by the affiliated colleges and the participating institutes of the National Council for Hotel Management and Catering Technology.

    The Council centrally runs and regulates academics for B.Sc. Hospitality & Hotel Administration and ten other structured courses of study imparted at the affiliated 21 Central Institutes, 25 State Government Institutes, 01 Public Sector Undertaking and 27 Private Institutes of Hotel Management. NCHM JEE is conducted by the National Testing Agency. The BSc program in Hospitality and Hotel Administration is offered jointly by the National Council for Hotel Management and the Indira Gandhi National Open University. The hotel management courses it offers are:

    Duration of the course:

    • B.Sc HHA-3 years

    • M.Sc HHA-2 years


    2. AIMA UGAT BHM: All India Management Association (AIMA) conducts the Undergraduate Aptitude Test (UGAT) at a national level to offer admission to qualifying candidates. The entrance exam is conducted to offer admission to qualified candidates in the hotel management course of the BHM programme at an undergraduate level. The exam is conducted across various cities in India. AIMA UGAT BHM will be conducted as an offline exam of three hours' duration.

    3. Common University Entrance Test (CUET): Starting from 2024, many colleges and universities, including those in Uttar Pradesh, have started admitting students based on the scores obtained in the Common University Entrance Test (CUET) for their Bachelor of Hotel Management and Catering Technology (BHMCT) and other hotel management courses. CUET is a national level entrance exam that offers admission to qualifying candidates based on their merit and rank. The exam is conducted across various cities in India. CUET will be conducted as an online exam. The specific details about the exam, such as duration and format, will be announced by the respective universities and colleges.

    State-level Hotel Management Entrance Exams

    1. Maharashtra Hotel Management Common Entrance Test (MAH HM CET): The state-level competitive hotel management entrance examination — Maharashtra Hotel Management Common Entrance Test or MAH BHMCT CET is conducted to offer admissions to qualifying candidates for a four-year duration of the full-time undergraduate Hotel Management & Catering Technology course. For postgraduate courses, the Maharashtra Master of Hotel Management and Catering Technology Common Entrance Test (MAH MHMCT CET) is conducted. The offered hotel management course is approved by the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) and will be offered by government institutes, government-aided or unaided, and University Departments of institutes located in Maharashtra State. MAH BHMCT CET exam-related dates are announced on the official website.

    Course offered: Bachelor of Hotel Management & Catering Technology
    Duration of the course: 4 years

    University-level hotel management entrance examinations

    1. Panjab University Tourism and Hospitality Aptitude Test: PUTHAT is conducted by Panjab University to offer admissions for the B.Sc programme in Hospitality and Hotel Administration (H&HA) and Tourism Management. The Panjab University Tourism and Hospitality Aptitude Test (PUTHAT) shall be open to all such candidates who have passed the 10+2 Examination of the Central Board of Secondary Education, New Delhi, or its equivalent examination conducted by a recognised Board/University/Council. The hotel management courses offered by it are:

    Course offered:

    Duration of the course: 3 years

    2. CUET: Christ University Entrance Test is conducted for admission to BHM (Bachelor in Hotel Management) degree which is a four-year intensive programme. It is deemed to be a university. The infrastructural capabilities of the department can support a 4-year programme with a class strength of 60 students. Eligibility for the programme is a pass at the +2 level (Karnataka PUC / ISC / CBSE / NIOS / State Boards) in any stream (Humanities, Social Sciences, Commerce & Management, Sciences) from any recognised Board in India.

    Course offered: Bachelor of Hotel Management
    Duration of the course: 4 years

    Hotel-specific Entrance Exam/Test

    A few prestigious hotels offer their own hotel-specific courses/program. The list includes The Oberoi Group, which offers a Systematic Training and Education Programme (STEP). Furthermore, selected candidates do not have to pay course fees for the programme. Institute of Hotel Management, Aurangabad (affiliated to Taj Hotels and Resorts Limited) offers a B.A. (Hons) in Hotel Management and BA (Hons.) in Culinary.

    Quick Links -

    Names of the hotel groups offering such courses are listed below -

    1. IHM Aurangabad Entrance Exam: The Institute of Hotel Management, Aurangabad was set up with the joint efforts of Dr Rafiq Zakaria’s Maulana Azad Educational Trust and Taj Group with an aim to create a high-quality centre in hospitality education. The Indian hotel chain Taj Hotels Resorts and Palaces provides technical assistance for the course. Selected candidates are offered training/internship at Vivanta by Taj - Aurangabad.

    Courses offered:

    Duration of the course: 4 years

    2. Oberoi STEP - Oberoi STEP is conducted by the Oberoi Group of Hotels. Students can learn and then go on to work in various positions at the group's various hotels located across the country. As part of the selection process, the candidates have to go through online assessments and interviews to secure admission into the programme.

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    Conclusion

    Most people feel that after pursuing a course in hotel management, he/she can obtain a challenging role at the hotel. However, this is a stereotype. Nowadays, most of the colleges offer diplomas, short-term as well as specialised courses in culinary, housekeeping, and their likes. Thus, after pursuing a course from a good hotel management college, an aspirant can hope to become a hotel manager, chef, food and beverage manager, etc. However, an important point to note here is that most of the good hotel management colleges conduct a screening round/test in order to shortlist students for admission.

    Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

    Q: Who will conduct NCHMCT JEE?
    A:

    National Testing Agency (NTA) will conduct NCHMCT JEE tentatively in May.

    Q: What are university level hotel management exams?
    A:

    University level hotel management entrance exams are IPU CET, CUET and PUTHAT.

    Q: In which mode will NCHMCT JEE be conducted?
    A:

    NCHMCT JEE will be conducted in an online mode. The exam is of three hours duration.

    Q: Which are the state level exams for hotel management?
    A:

    UPCET BHMCT and MAH B.HMCT CET, MAH M.HMCT CET are the state level exams. WBJEE can also be counted among state level exams.

    Q: Which entrance exam is for hotel management?
    A:

    National Council of Hotel Management and Catering Technology Joint Entrance Examination or NCHMCT JEE (also known as NCHM JEE) is a national-level entrance exam conducted to offer admission to aspirants in hospitality and hotel administration programmes.

    Q: How many times is NCHMCT JEE conducted in a year?
    A:

    NCHMCT JEE is conducted once in a year.

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    Questions related to NCHM JEE

    On Question asked by student community

    Have a question related to NCHM JEE ?

    Hi Srija

    Yes, we have the previous year's question papers for you to practice for the NCHMCT JEE exam . Click on the link below to access and download the question papers.

    Hello,

    The NCHM JEE 2026 registration is expected to start in the second week of December 2025 .
    The application form will be available online.
    The last date to apply will likely be February or March 2026 .

    The exact dates will be announced in the official notification.

    Hope it

    Hello John,

    With an AIR of 586 in NCHM-JEE, you have a reasonable chance of getting into IHM Pusa, especially if the past cutoffs were around 200-400. Your rank is competitive, and while IHM Pusa is one of the top institutes, there might still be a possibility of admission depending

    Dear

    According to the information in the NCHM-JEE Exam , you are not required to attempt all questions . The exam consists of 200 questions , and you can attempt as many questions as you like within the given time limit of 3 hours . There is no limit on