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NEET UG success story: At 51, NEET aspirant with 2 PhDs and MBA secures government MBBS seat
A resident of Tamil Nadu, Kumar had passed NEET UG 2026 exam with 192 marks out of 720 and secured government college seat.
Age is just a number for 51-year-old Suresh Kumar, who has proved that it is never too late to pursue a dream. After earning two PhDs and an MBA, Kumar has now secured a government MBBS seat through NEET UG 2026 with 192 out of 720 marks, taking a major step towards fulfilling his long-standing ambition of becoming a doctor.
A resident of Velankanni in Nagapattinam district of Tamil Nadu, Kumar had passed Class 12 in 1992 and, since then, wanted to pursue medicine, according to the TOI report. However, he could not secure a medical seat at the time. He later completed a postgraduate degree in pharmacology, followed by an MBA and earned two PhDs. He currently works in the diagnostics industry.
First attempt in 2022
In 2022, Kumar appeared for the NEET UG examination after the age limit for medical admissions was removed, but could not crack it.
However, in 2026, he again attempted the medical entrance exam after 18 months of preparation and cracked it. He secured 192 marks and secured a seat at Nagapattinam Government Medical College under the PwD quota.
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While working full-time, Suresh Kumar continued his preparation for the medical entrance exam. He would study at night, often from 10 pm to midnight, and also taught biology to his son to remain familiar with the subject. He regularly practised previous years' question papers and tracked his performance between 2023 and 2025.
A motivation post road accident
The motivation to appear for the NEET exam happened after he met with a road accident that affected his mobility. His family, including his wife Durga, a teacher, has supported his decision to return to college at an age when many people begin planning retirement. The couple have two children studying in Classes 8 and 10.
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Kumar is planning to live with his 72-year-old mother and cycle around 7 km to the medical college where he has been allotted a seat.
The Tamil Nadu government conducted offline counselling for special category candidates at the Multi Super Speciality Hospital in Chennai.
The Offline counselling commenced with 15 seats reserved under the sports category, 11 for children of ex-servicemen, 224 under the PwD category and 614 under the 7.5% quota for government school students. The PwD category recorded the lowest number of applicants, with 108 candidates for 224 seats.
Competition was highest in the sports category, where 280 candidates were vying for just 15 seats. Meanwhile, 366 candidates competed for 11 seats under the ex-servicemen quota, while 3,806 applicants competed for 614 seats under the 7.5% government school quota.
