The Karnataka State Eligibility Test (KSET) 2026 provisional score list has revealed that 6,327 candidates scored at or above the General Merit (GM) cutoff marks recorded in 2025 across 33 comparable subjects, according to an analysis of the Karnataka Examinations Authority's (KEA) published data.
The analysis examined 1,17,638 candidate score entries from the 3,430-page provisional result list and compared their combined Paper 1 and Paper 2 marks with the corresponding subject-wise GM cutoffs announced for KSET 2025.
The findings provide an early indication of the distribution of scores across subjects. However, they should not be interpreted as the number of candidates who have qualified for KSET 2026, as the final subject-wise and category-wise cutoffs are yet to be declared.
Commerce recorded the highest number of candidates reaching the previous year's GM cutoff benchmark.
As many as 1,574 Commerce candidates scored 172 marks or above, matching or exceeding the 2025 GM cutoff.
Life Sciences followed with 1,022 candidates scoring at least 166 marks, while Computer Science and Applications recorded 670 candidates with scores of 160 or above.
Other subjects recorded the following numbers:
Political Science: 467 candidates scored 168 or above
Mathematical Sciences: 403 candidates scored 156 or above
English: 395 candidates scored 170 or above
Kannada: 312 candidates scored 156 or above
Chemical Sciences: 270 candidates scored 154 or above
History: 265 candidates scored 160 or above
Management: 65 candidates scored 206 or above
These figures include candidates from all categories whose provisional scores reached the respective 2025 GM benchmark.
They do not represent the number of General Merit candidates alone.
An interesting finding emerged in Management, where relatively few candidates reached the previous year's GM cutoff.
In KSET 2025, the Management GM cutoff stood at 206 out of 300. In the 2026 provisional list, only 65 of the 3,260 Management candidates, approximately 2%, scored 206 or above.
By comparison, Commerce recorded 1,574 candidates reaching its previous cutoff of 172, accounting for approximately 8.4% of its 18,682 candidates.
The contrast highlights differences in the distribution of marks across subjects.
However, it does not establish that the Management paper was more difficult or that its cutoff will decline this year. The eventual cutoff will depend on several factors, including the number of candidates, available qualification slots, category-wise competition and applicable selection rules.
The KSET 2025 cutoff document also provides the number of available qualification slots for each subject and category.
For example, Commerce had 552 General Merit slots in 2025, while English had 259 and Management had 116.
In comparison, the number of candidates reaching the previous GM cutoff benchmark in the 2026 provisional list stands at 1,574 in Commerce, 395 in English and 65 in Management.
These figures cannot be directly compared to determine qualification prospects, since the 2026 counts include candidates belonging to multiple categories, and the number of available slots may change between examination cycles.
Additionally, candidates securing identical marks at the qualifying threshold may affect the final number of qualified candidates.
Although the 2025 cutoffs provide a useful reference point, they cannot be treated as qualifying marks for KSET 2026.
The number of candidates scoring above a historical cutoff does not independently establish the level of competition within each reservation category.
The 2026 provisional list also does not constitute the final list of qualified candidates.
KEA will determine the final subject-wise and category-wise qualifying marks through the applicable result and selection process.
Candidates should therefore avoid concluding that they have qualified merely because their provisional marks are higher than the previous year's cutoff.
For now, the analysis offers a comparison of candidate performance across subjects, while the final KSET 2026 cutoffs and qualification lists remain awaited.
Candidates can monitor cetonline.karnataka.gov.in/kea/ for official announcements.