National Institute of Food Technology Entrepreneurship and Management (NIFTEM), Sonepat, is a deemed university established in 2012 by the Ministry of Food Processing Industries. Located in Sonepat, Haryana, the institute offers courses such as B.Tech and MBA, along with M.Tech and Ph.D. programmes in different specialisations.

Students can apply online through the institute website. The application fee stated for the process is INR 1,000.

  • For B.Tech admission, students must pass the 10+2 examination in a relevant field.
  • B.Tech selection depends on the JEE Main score, followed by online counselling conducted by NIFTEM.
  • M.Tech applicants need a relevant bachelor's or master's degree with at least 60% aggregate marks.
  • M.Tech admission uses the GATE score and a personal interview. Non-GATE applicants must take an entrance test and attend a personal interview.
  • MBA applicants must hold a bachelor's degree in any subject with a minimum aggregate of 50%.
  • MBA selection considers CAT or MAT scores, or an internal test, followed by GD/PI, work experience and academic performance.
  • Ph.D. applicants must have an M.Tech or another relevant master's degree with at least 60% marks.
  • Ph.D. admission is based on the Research Entrance Test (RET), followed by an interview or presentation conducted by NIFTEM.

NIFTEM Important Dates

Event Date
JEE Main 2027 Session 1 application period October 24 to November 22, 2026
JEE Main 2027 Session 1 application fee payment deadline November 22, 2026, up to 11:50 PM
JEE Main 2027 Session 1 late application period November 23 to November 26, 2026
JEE Main 2027 Session 1 late fee payment deadline November 26, 2026, up to 11:50 PM
JEE Main 2027 Session 1 application correction period November 27 to November 29, 2026, up to 11:50 PM
JEE Main 2027 Session 1 examination city announcement December 30, 2026
JEE Main 2027 Session 1 admit card release January 13, 2027
JEE Main 2027 Session 1 examination January 20, 21, 22, 23, 24 and 28, 2027
GATE 2027 deadline to correct scrutiny defects October 31, 2026
GATE 2027 city allotment notification January 4, 2027
GATE 2027 examinations February 6, 7, 13, 14, 20 and 21, 2027
GATE 2027 result announcement March 19, 2027
CAT 2026 admit card availability November 4 to November 29, 2026
CAT 2026 examination November 29, 2026
CAT 2026 tentative result announcement First week of January 2027
MAT December 2026 PBT registration deadline December 14, 2026
MAT December 2026 PBT admit card release December 17, 2026
MAT December 2026 PBT examination December 20, 2026
MAT December 2026 CBT registration deadline December 21, 2026
MAT December 2026 CBT admit card release December 24, 2026
MAT December 2026 CBT examination December 27, 2026
MAT December 2026 result announcement First week of January 2027

Disclaimer: Subject to revision. Kindly check with the official sources to confirm

NIFTEM UG Admission

NIFTEM follows the rules of its Academic Council and the Government of India for admission to the B.Tech in Food Technology and Management. The programme lasts 4 years and has an intake of 180 students.

Applicants must pass the 10+2 Science examination with at least 50% marks in every subject. Admission is decided through the candidate's JEE Main All India Rank, after which NIFTEM, Sonepat conducts online counselling.

Course Specialisation Seats Minimum Eligibility Selection Process
B.Tech Food Technology and Management 180 Pass the 10+2 examination in the Science stream with a minimum of 50% marks in all subjects JEE Main rank followed by online counselling

Additional B.Tech admission rules:

  • Students who passed the 10+2 examination in 2016 or 2017, as well as those appearing for it, can apply.
  • A student placed in the compartment category in the qualifying examination held during March or April cannot take admission.
  • 5% of the seats are set aside for PwD applicants.

NIFTEM PG Admission

NIFTEM runs a 2-year M.Tech programme in five specialisations. Each specialisation admits 18 students. Applicants need a bachelor's or master's degree in a relevant subject with at least 60% aggregate marks.

For GATE applicants, the institute prepares merit by multiplying the valid GATE score by 0.07, giving it 70% weight, and adding the interview marks. Applicants without a GATE score take the institute entrance test and must meet or exceed its cutoff to receive an interview call. The institute does not hold this entrance test if GATE-qualified applicants fill every seat.

Course Specialisation Minimum Eligibility Selection Process
M.Tech. FTM B.E./B.Tech. in Food Science, Food Science & Technology, Food Technology and Management, Food Technology, Food Process Engineering, Food Engineering, Dairy Engineering, Dairy Technology, Agricultural & Food Engineering or Dairy and Food Engineering; an M.Sc. in Food Technology, Food Science & Technology, Food Science, Dairy Technology or Food & Nutrition; or a qualification in a related allied field from a recognised university or institute GATE score and personal interview, or an entrance examination followed by a personal interview for non-GATE applicants
FPEM B.E./B.Tech. in Food Science, Food Science and Technology, Food Technology and Management, Food Technology, Food Process Engineering, Food Engineering, Dairy Engineering, Dairy Technology, Agricultural Process Engineering, Agricultural & Food Engineering, Agricultural Engineering, Biochemical Engineering, Chemical Engineering or Mechanical Engineering. A qualification in a related allied field from a recognised university or institute will also be preferred.
FPOM B.E./B.Tech. in Food Science, Food Science & Technology, Food Technology and Management, Food Technology, Food Process Engineering, Food Engineering, Dairy Engineering, Dairy Technology, Agricultural Process Engineering, Agricultural & Food Engineering, Agricultural Engineering or Mechanical Engineering from a recognised university or institute, or a qualification in a related allied field from a recognised university or institute
FSQM B.E./B.Tech. in Food Science, Food Science and Technology, Food Technology and Management, Food Technology, Dairy Technology, Dairy and Food Technology, Agricultural and Food Engineering, Biochemical Engineering or Chemical Engineering; an M.Sc. in Food Technology, Food Science and Technology or Food Microbiology from a recognised university or institute; or a qualification in a related allied field from a recognised university or institute
FSCM B.E./B.Tech. in Food Science, Food Science and Technology, Food Technology and Management, Food Technology, Dairy & Food Technology, Dairy & Food Engineering or Agricultural and Food Engineering; a four-year bachelor's degree in Agriculture or Horticulture; a two-year master's degree in Agriculture with Agronomy, Horticulture, Vegetable Sciences, Fruit Sciences or Post Harvest Technology; an M.Sc. in Post Harvest Technology, Food Science, Food Technology or Food Science and Technology; a master's degree in Agribusiness Management; or a qualification in a related allied field from a recognised university or institute

M.Tech seat reservations:

  • Foreign national applicants have 3 seats reserved in every specialisation.
  • Applicants with at least 40% disability receive a reservation of 3 seats.

The NIFTEM MBA follows a dual-specialisation format. Every student studies Food & Agri-Business Management and selects one additional stream from Marketing, Finance or International Business.

A bachelor's degree in any discipline with 50% aggregate marks is required. The minimum is 45% for SC and ST applicants. Final selection considers the CAT or MAT score, GD/PI performance, academic record and work experience. Applicants without CAT or MAT scores must sit for the institute's entrance test.

Course Specialisation Seats Minimum Eligibility Selection Process
MBA Dual Specialisation: compulsory Food & Agri-Business Management with optional Marketing, Finance or International Business 32 A bachelor's degree or equivalent in a relevant discipline with at least 50% marks or an equivalent CGPA CAT, MAT or CMAT score, or the internal test, along with GD/PI, academic performance and work experience

The category-wise MBA seat allocation is given below:

Category General OBC-NCL SC ST EWS Total
Seats 12 8 5 2 3 30+2*

*The additional 2 seats are reserved under the tuition fee waiver quota, limited to 5%.

NIFTEM MBA selection test

Applicants without a valid CAT, MAT or CMAT score must complete a 90-minute entrance test conducted by NIFTEM. Its sections, questions and marks are listed below.

Sections Number of Questions Marks
Section 1: Logical Reasoning 15 30
Section 2: Quantitative Analysis 15 30
Section 3: Verbal Ability/Reading Comprehension 20 40
Total 50 100

NIFTEM Ph.D. Admission

NIFTEM admits a total of 22 students across five Ph.D. specialisations. An applicant must have an M.Tech or a relevant master's degree with at least 60% marks. NET-qualified students receive preference.

Selection takes place through the Research Entrance Test (RET), followed by an interview or presentation organised by NIFTEM.

Course Specialisation Minimum Eligibility Selection Process
Ph.D. Agriculture and Environment Science (AES) M.Tech. in Food Science, Food Technology and Management, Food Safety and Quality Management or Food Supply Chain Management, or an M.Sc. in Food Science & Technology, Life Science, Agriculture, Environmental Science or an allied area from a recognised institute or university Research Entrance Test (RET), followed by an interview or presentation conducted by NIFTEM
Basic and Applied Sciences (BAS) M.Tech. in Food Science, Food Technology and Management, Food Technology, Dairy and Food Technology, Process Engineering and Management, Food Safety and Quality Management or Food Supply Chain Management from a recognised university or institute; or a master's degree in Food Science and Technology, Biochemistry, Microbiology, Chemistry, Biotechnology, Life Science, Agriculture Science, Environmental Science, Mathematics, Statistics, Operational Research, Physics or Material Science from a recognised university or institute
Food Business Management and Entrepreneurship Development (FBM & ED) M.Tech. in Food Plant Operation Management, MBA or an equivalent qualification, or PGDMA or an equivalent degree from a recognised university
Food Engineering (FE) M.Tech. in Food Science, Food Technology & Management, Food Process Engineering and Management, Food Technology, Food Process Engineering, Food Engineering, Dairy Engineering, Dairy Technology, Agriculture and Food Engineering, Medical Engineering, Automation & Robotics Engineering, Chemical Engineering or Biochemical Engineering
Food Science and Technology (FST) M.Tech. in Food Science, Food Technology & Management, Food Safety and Quality Management, Food Supply Chain Management, Food Technology, Food Process Engineering, Food Process Engineering and Management, Food Engineering, Dairy Engineering, Dairy Technology, Agriculture Process Engineering, Agriculture & Food Engineering, Food Biotechnology, or Food and Fermentation from a recognised institute; or an M.Sc. in Food Technology, Food Science & Technology, Food Science & Nutrition, Meat Science, Meat Technology, Animal Product Technology or Livestock Product Technology

Note: Applicants who have cleared UGC-NET, UGC-CSIR-NET including JRF, ICAR-NET including JRF, or SLET do not need to take RET.

NIFTEM Application Process

Applications are submitted online through the NIFTEM website. The stated procedure is:

  • Open the official NIFTEM website and select Admission 2020.
  • On the page that appears, choose Apply Now.
  • Complete the form and upload a passport-size photograph in PNG, JPEG, GIF or JPG format. The file must not exceed 1 MB.
  • Pay the application fee of INR 1,000 through a credit card, debit card or net banking.

NIFTEM Cutoff

For the General category, the overall NIFTEM JEE Main cutoff rank in 2024 was 77,352. The round-wise B.Tech Food Technology and Management ranks are shown below.

Course Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 Round 5
B.Tech Food Technology and Management 77352 87835 94664 106292

NIFTEM Scholarships

NIFTEM provides the following two scholarship options:

  • NIFTEM Merit-cum-Means Scholarship
  • NIFTEM Merit Scholarship

NIFTEM FAQs

Ques. What steps are used to pay the B.Tech fee through the internet?

Ans. Students can complete the online course fee payment as follows:

  • Go to the official NIFTEM website.
  • Select “Online fee submission SBI”.
  • Enter the institute information and registration ID.
  • Pay through net banking, a credit card or a debit card.

Ques. When does recruitment begin at NIFTEM, and which companies visit the campus?

Ans. Recruitment for final-year students begins in December after they complete their internship experience. Amul, Mother Dairy, Nestle, ITC and Tetra Pack are among the leading food companies that have hired institute graduates. The placement procedure includes pre-placement talks and on-campus recruitment.

Ques. How should a student choose between NIFTEM and IIFPT?

Ans. The suitable choice depends on the student's interests and plans after B.Tech. Both are sister institutes under MOFPI and are considered equally good. NIFTEM may suit students seeking stronger job opportunities in the corporate sector.

Ques. Do NIFTEM hostel rooms include private bathrooms?

Ans. No. Bathrooms are not attached to NIFTEM hostel rooms. Boys stay in two-sharing rooms, while girls are accommodated in three-sharing rooms.

Ques. What does NIFTEM stand for, and what does the institute teach?

Ans. NIFTEM means National Institute of Food Technology Entrepreneurship and Management. MOFP established it as a government-funded institute. It provides undergraduate, postgraduate and research programmes focused on food technology and is one of India's leading food technology institutes.

Ques. Is a JEE Main rank of 131000 enough for NIFTEM Sonepat?

Ans. No. Past B.Tech cutoff records do not indicate a chance of admission with a rank of 131000. Students should target a JEE Main rank above 45000 to remain on the safer side.

Ques. Which scholarship schemes does NIFTEM provide?

Ans. Students can seek support through these two schemes:

  • NIFTEM Merit-cum-Means Scholarship
  • NIFTEM Merit Scholarship

Ques. How is the NIFTEM LMS used by students?

Ans. The Learning Management System is NIFTEM's online learning platform. It supports online classes, gives students access to digital learning material and helps the institute manage each student's progress report in an organised way.

Ques. Which research topics have NIFTEM M.Tech students worked on?

Ans. M.Tech student research has covered:

  • Design of a bulk milk cooler
  • Processing of mushrooms
  • Solar energy drying systems for agricultural products
  • Novel food-processing technologies

Ques. What is the NIFTEM Knowledge Center, and when is it open?

Ans. NKC is short for NIFTEM Knowledge Center. It is the institute's library and information management system, and its working hours are 9.00 AM to 10.00 PM.