Dubai: A student based in Dubai has recorded the best performance among overseas candidates in this year’s National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test for Undergraduates (NEET-UG), placing first in the National Testing Agency’s overseas category for 2026.
Sankalp Sandeep Naik, an 18-year-old from Dubai, scored 650 out of 720 marks, translating to an All India Rank of 1,398 and an overall percentile of 99.9253. Candidates who take the exam from centres outside India are assessed separately under NTA’s overseas category, and Naik’s result places him at the top of that list this year.
Preparation Disrupted by Exam Postponement
Naik’s NEET journey wasn’t a straight line. The exam’s postponement earlier in the cycle threw off months of planning, and he admits the setback hit him harder than any single topic in the syllabus.
“The postponement affected my rhythm,” Naik said. “For some time, I didn’t feel like studying. My family kept encouraging me to continue.”
He is a student at JSS Private School in Dubai and prepared for NEET through coaching classes at Ascentria while simultaneously working through his Class 12 CBSE board exams. Once boards wrapped up, NEET preparation took over completely, with the final five months built around structured revision cycles and repeated mock testing rather than fresh content.
What Changed at Home
Behind the scorecard was a household that rearranged itself around exam prep. Naik’s brother moved out of their shared bedroom and into the living room so Naik could study uninterrupted late into the night. His father stepped back from work commitments in the weeks leading up to the exam to be more available at home.
Cricket, which Naik used to play regularly, was paused. Family outings stopped happening. Even his 18th birthday came and went with his books still open on the desk.
“People See the Rank, Not the Routine”
Asked what gets missed when people talk about toppers, Naik didn’t point to intelligence or shortcuts — he pointed to consistency.
“People see the rank,” he said. “They don’t see the discipline behind it. The difficult part is changing your daily routine and staying with it.”
His advice to future NEET aspirants leans the same way: in the final weeks before the exam, revisit what you already know instead of chasing new material. Familiarity under exam pressure, he said, matters more than volume.
Next Stop: AIIMS Nagpur
Naik will stay back in India briefly to complete his admission formalities before returning to Dubai next month. He’s aiming for a seat at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Nagpur, with neurosurgery as his intended specialization.
About NEET-UG Overseas Category: NTA conducts NEET-UG at select international centres for Indian students studying abroad, including in the UAE. These candidates are ranked separately within the overseas category while remaining eligible for admission to medical colleges across India under the applicable quota rules.
