This year's Secondary Education Examination (SEE) has begun. The exam began at 8 a.m. on Thursday.
This year, the examination has been made more transparent and organized. New guidelines have been issued to better manage the exams, speed up answer sheet evaluation, and publish results quickly. It is expected that these measures will reduce irregularities during the exams.
As in previous years, the Office of the Controller of Examinations (Grade 10) under the National Examination Board (NEB) is conducting the exams simultaneously across the country. According to Examination Controller Tukraj Adhikari, the SEE began at 8 a.m. on Thursday at designated examination centers nationwide.
A total of 512,421 students are participating in this year’s SEE, which concludes on April 12. Among them, 441,566 are regular students, while 70,855 are appearing for grade improvement. Female students outnumber male students this year, with 257,613 girls, 254,801 boys, and seven others participating. Notably, 23 students are taking the exam from a center in Japan. The NEB has designated 1,966 examination centers across the country for students from 11,379 secondary schools.
To ensure security during the exams, the NEB has deployed 15 police personnel, one center chief, one assistant center chief, one invigilator for every 20 students, one office assistant for every 100 students, and two additional staff members at each center.
Answer sheet evaluation within three days
This year, the NEB plans to complete the evaluation of answer sheets within three days after the exam ends. Furthermore, new provisions require that marks are printed on mark-slips, uploaded to "tabs," sealed in envelopes, and securely submitted to the Education Development and Coordination Unit within three days.
The centers will maintain a record of the answer sheet packets in a prescribed format. Subsequently, these sealed envelopes, labeled with the center and subject, must be sent to the Office of the Controller of Examinations (Grade 10).
According to the Secondary Education Examination (SEE) Management and Answer Sheet Evaluation Guidelines, 2026, examiners must reach the evaluation centers by the time the exam concludes. Arrangements must be made to ensure that examiners do not evaluate sheets from their own schools. Provisions have also been made to allow for result publication on a provincial basis.
Examiners are required to evaluate the answer sheets at the designate evaluation centers. Evaluations will take place in secure rooms equipped with CCTV where possible. Measures have been put in place to prevent irregularities such as taking answer sheets outside, evaluation by individuals other than the designated examiners, evaluation by unqualified teachers, or the loss or mixing of answer sheet bundles. The guidelines strictly prohibit mobile phones and other electronic devices in the evaluation rooms.
The guidelines state that answer sheets will be handed over to examiners on the day of the exam. In cases of negligence, penalties may include re-evaluation, deduction of remuneration, removal from the examiners' list, or departmental action according to prevailing laws.
Group monitoring prohibited
This year, group monitoring of the SEE has been banned. This decision follows complaints that representatives from various organizations entering exam halls for monitoring disrupted students' concentration. A committee, led by the chief district officer, has been formed in each district for monitoring.
The exams began on Thursday with the Compulsory English paper. The schedule follows with Compulsory Nepali on April 3, Compulsory Mathematics on April 5, Science and Technology on April 6, Social Studies on April 7, all subjects of the first optional group on April 8, all subjects of the second optional group on April 9, and remaining technical subjects on April 10, 11, and 12.
