Sainik School Admission 2027 Guide

🔄 Last verified: 26 September 2026 — Exam date ✅ CONFIRMED (tentative): 31 January 2027 (NTA exam calendar 2026-27, notice dated 16 September 2026, nta.ac.in). ⚠️ The NTA information bulletin for AISSEE 2027 has NOT been released yet (expected October 2026). Any website or video claiming “notification released” is misleading you — read why below.

Your child is in Class 5 or Class 8, and Sainik School has come up in conversation — a neighbour’s son got in, a colleague won’t stop talking about the discipline, the NDA dream. So now you’re asking the three questions every parent asks: Is the 2027 admission process open? When is the exam? And is my child even eligible?

Straight answers, no fluff. The exam is scheduled for 31 January 2027 ✅ — tentative, but it’s on NTA’s official calendar. The notification is not out yet, and the application portal isn’t live either. And eligibility comes down mostly to one thing: your child’s date of birth. Check that before anything else.

Last week, a father rang his friend at 10 pm. “The notification’s out, no? I saw a video on YouTube.” His friend laughed. “That video comes out every year. Check the official site.” That 10 pm phone call is exactly why this guide exists — so you never have to make it.

The 2027 timeline, honestly labelled

Every date below carries a label. ✅ means confirmed by an official source. 🔶 means our best projection from past cycles — solid, but not official yet.

A quick word on “tentative.” It means NTA has placed the date in its official calendar but reserves the right to shift it. In practice, these January dates have held steady for three straight cycles. Plan for 31 January; keep an eye on the bulletin when it drops.

Who can apply? (Eligibility)

For Class 6

• Age 🔶 PROJECTED: your child must be 10 to 12 years old as on 31 March 2027 — born between 1 April 2015 and 31 March 2017. This is a projection (the 2026 bulletin said 1 Apr 2014 – 31 Mar 2016; the window shifts one year each cycle). One day outside this window and the form gets rejected. No exceptions, no appeals.
• Must be studying in, or have passed, Class 5.
• Girls can apply ✅ — in the 33 established Sainik Schools, 10% of vacancies or 10 seats, whichever is more, are reserved for girls in Class 6. If you’ve read “25%” anywhere, that’s wrong. It’s 10% — firmly.

For Class 9

• Age 🔶 PROJECTED: 13 to 15 years as on 31 March 2027 — born between 1 April 2012 and 31 March 2014.
• Must have passed Class 8 from a recognised school.
• One heads-up that matters: the Class 9 paper is in English medium only. If your child studies in a Hindi-medium school, start bridging that gap now — not in December.

Age confuses more parents than everything else combined. There’s a detailed age-limit guide with worked examples — match your child’s birth date against it before you do anything else.

Exam pattern (2026 bulletin — expected to repeat in 2027)

NTA hasn’t changed this pattern in years, so here’s what you’re preparing for 🔶:

Two things worth knowing. First, no negative marking means your child should attempt every single question — an educated guess beats a blank every time. Second, the qualifying bar is 25% in each section and 40% overall ✅ — but that’s just to qualify, not to get a seat. Real cutoffs run much higher. (SC/ST candidates are exempt from the qualifying-marks rule.)

How many schools? One form covers them all

Your single AISSEE application covers every school: the 33 established Sainik Schools plus 69 newly approved schools admitting to Class 6 (19 of the new schools also admit to Class 9) ✅. You don’t fill separate forms — during counselling, you simply rank your preferred schools.

Application fee 🔶 EXPECTED

Based on the 2026 rates — the 2027 bulletin will confirm:

• ₹850 — General, OBC-NCL, and children of defence personnel
• ₹700 — SC / ST

The fee is paid online (card, net banking, or UPI). And here’s the thing — it’s non-refundable. Get the category right before you pay, not after.

How to apply (step by step)

1. Wait for the NTA bulletin (🔶 expected October 2026). The 2027 application portal is not live yet; the 2026-cycle portal was exams.nta.nic.in/sainik-school-society.
2. Register with a working mobile number and email. OTPs and admit-card alerts go here — use a number you actually answer.
3. Fill the form: personal details, school preferences, exam city choices.
4. Upload documents: photograph, signature, birth certificate, plus category / domicile / defence certificates wherever applicable.
5. Pay the fee online.
6. Download and print the confirmation page. Honestly, this is the step people skip and later regret. Print it. Keep it in a folder with everything else.

The step-by-step application guide walks through each screen. And before you touch the form, read the 7 mistakes parents make every year — thousands of forms get rejected annually over avoidable errors.

After the exam: counselling

Clearing the written exam isn’t the finish line — it’s the halfway mark. What follows is AISSAC (All India Sainik Schools Admission Counselling), run not by NTA but by the Sainik Schools Society at pesa.ncog.gov.in ✅. It’s fully online, free of charge, and runs for roughly 6 rounds ✅: registration → choice filling (school preferences) → seat allotment on merit + reservation + your choices → medical examination → admission.

Reservation in the 33 established schools ✅: 67% of seats for home-state candidates, 33% for other states; within that, 15% SC, 7.5% ST, 27% OBC-NCL, and 25% of the remaining seats for children of defence personnel. The full counselling guide explains choice-filling strategy — this is where many parents fumble despite good marks.

When should preparation start?

Now. Today. The exam is about four months away, and AISSEE rewards speed and accuracy — both are built over months, not weeks. If you’re starting now, the 3-month fast-track plan is your best friend. And if your child is a year junior, the early-preparation roadmap for 2028 is, frankly, the toppers’ route.

FAQs

Q1. Has the AISSEE 2027 notification been released? No. As of 26 September 2026, NTA has not released the information bulletin. It’s expected in October 2026. Treat “notification released” headlines as clickbait until you see it on nta.ac.in itself.

Q2. Is the 31 January 2027 exam date final? It’s on NTA’s official exam calendar (notice dated 16 September 2026), marked tentative. That’s as official as it gets before the bulletin. Plan around it.

Q3. What will the application fee be? 🔶 Expected: ₹850 for General / OBC-NCL / defence wards and ₹700 for SC/ST, per the 2026 rates. The bulletin will confirm.

Q4. Can girls apply for Class 6? Yes. In the 33 established schools, 10% of vacancies or 10 seats (whichever is more) are reserved for girls — not 25%, whatever some sites claim.

Q5. Do the new PPP-mode Sainik Schools need a separate form? No — one AISSEE form covers everything. During counselling choice-filling, you’ll see options for both established and new schools.

Q6. Is there any age relaxation? SC/ST candidates get relaxation in qualifying marks, not in age. Age criteria are applied strictly — the bulletin will have the final word.

Sources

• NTA exam calendar 2026-27 (notice dated 16 Sept 2026) — via Times of India
• AISSEE 2026 application details (NTA bulletin) — via Times of India
• Why 2027 dates aren’t out yet — the three-cycle pattern, EdexLive (8 Sept 2026)
• AISSAC counselling SOP (Sainik Schools Society) — PDF
• NTA AISSEE portal (2026 cycle) — exams.nta.nic.in/sainik-school-society