NursingNext Team
Author
Previous year papers are the most reliable guide to what NORCET asks. We sorted every question in our NORCET collection by subject, chapter and topic: 21 papers from NORCET-1 (2020) to NORCET-11 (2026), 2,993 questions in total. This post lists the chapters and topics that come up again and again, and how to use past papers without just memorising answers.
Which NORCET papers we analysed
| Year | Papers |
|---|---|
| 2020 | NORCET-1 |
| 2021 | NORCET-2 (two shifts) |
| 2022 | NORCET-3 (two shifts) |
| 2023 | NORCET-4; NORCET-5 Prelims (two shifts) and Mains |
| 2024 | NORCET-6 Prelims and Mains; NORCET-7 Prelims and Mains |
| 2025 | NORCET-8 Prelims and Mains; NORCET-9 Prelims and Mains |
| 2026 | NORCET-10 Prelims and Mains; NORCET-11 Prelims and Mains |
These are past-year papers as collected in our question bank. A few have slightly fewer questions than the official paper (for example, 199 of 200, or 155 of 160), so treat the counts as close estimates, not official AIIMS figures.
The 15 most-asked chapters in NORCET
Ranked by number of questions across all 21 papers. The last column shows how many of the 21 papers had at least one question from that chapter.
| # | Chapter | Subject | Questions | Papers (of 21) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cardiovascular, circulatory & haematologic disorders | Med-Surg | 159 | 21 |
| 2 | Respiratory function & care | Med-Surg | 129 | 21 |
| 3 | Perioperative nursing | Med-Surg | 101 | 20 |
| 4 | The newborn | Paediatrics | 87 | 20 |
| 5 | Fluid & electrolyte balance | Med-Surg | 68 | 21 |
| 6 | Neurological disorders | Med-Surg | 62 | 19 |
| 7 | Administration of medication | Foundations | 54 | 15 |
| 8 | Gastrointestinal disorders | Med-Surg | 47 | 18 |
| 9 | Schizophrenia | Mental Health | 46 | 19 |
| 10 | Urinary tract disorders | Med-Surg | 45 | 19 |
| 11 | Contraception & population dynamics | OBG | 40 | 17 |
| 12 | Skin and burns | Med-Surg | 40 | 18 |
| 13 | Endocrine & metabolic disorders | Med-Surg | 36 | 16 |
| 14 | Shock & multisystem failure | Med-Surg | 34 | 17 |
| 15 | CNS drugs | Pharmacology | 33 | 15 |
Three chapters (cardiovascular, respiratory, and fluid and electrolytes) appeared in every single paper. If you are short of time, start with these.
Most-asked topics
At the topic level, these came up most often:
| Topic | Subject | Questions | Papers (of 21) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Respiratory care modalities (oxygen therapy, chest physiotherapy, ventilation, chest drainage) | Med-Surg | 58 | 17 |
| Intraoperative nursing management | Med-Surg | 50 | 18 |
| Postoperative nursing management | Med-Surg | 37 | 16 |
| Complications of heart disease | Med-Surg | 34 | 15 |
| Electrolyte imbalances | Med-Surg | 31 | 16 |
| Haematologic disorders | Med-Surg | 31 | 16 |
| Assessment of neurologic function | Med-Surg | 25 | 15 |
| Medication dose calculation | Foundations | 25 | 11 |
| Schneider's first-rank symptoms and clinical features of schizophrenia | Mental Health | 21 | 12 |
| Burn injury | Med-Surg | 18 | 10 |
| Intrapartum fetal monitoring | OBG | 17 | 9 |
| Parenteral fluid therapy | Med-Surg | 17 | 11 |
| Contraception methods | OBG | 16 | 12 |
| Antipsychotic and antimanic drugs | Pharmacology | 15 | 9 |
| Hypovolaemic shock | Med-Surg | 15 | 10 |
The words in brackets describe what that topic usually covers in the curriculum. They are not the exact questions asked.
Subject-wise: what keeps coming back
Obstetrics & Gynaecology: contraception, normal labour, hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, third-stage complications such as PPH, malpresentation and cord prolapse.
Paediatrics: neonatal resuscitation, congenital malformations, thermal protection and kangaroo mother care, respiratory distress, dehydration and deficit therapy, growth and development, immunisation.
Mental Health: schizophrenia, mood disorders, psychiatric emergencies (suicide, violence), ECT and other therapies, anxiety disorders.
Pharmacology: antidotes, CNS drugs, antimicrobials, routes of administration and adverse effects, cardiovascular drugs.
Community Health: national health programmes, epidemiology, demography and vital statistics.
Microbiology & Infection Control: disinfection and sterilisation, common pathogens, immunity, hospital-acquired infections, biomedical waste rules.
GK & Aptitude (Prelims): Indian geography, current affairs, history; in reasoning, puzzles and seating arrangements, number series, analogy, direction sense.
Recent papers vs older papers
From NORCET-5 (2023) onwards, the papers in our collection come as a separate Prelims and Mains. In the latest advertisements (NORCET-10 and NORCET-11), the Mains is 160 questions and focuses on case scenarios. In the four latest Mains papers we have (NORCET-8 to NORCET-11), the average split was about 44 Med-Surg, 26 Paediatrics, 26 OBG, 16 Mental Health, 12 Pharmacology and 10 Community Health questions. Older single-stage papers are still useful for concepts, but practise recent Mains papers to get used to case scenarios.
How to use previous year papers well
- Solve first, then study. Take a paper under exam timing before you look at answers. Our NORCET previous year papers can be attempted as timed tests.
- Sort mistakes by chapter. If three wrong answers come from fluids and electrolytes, that chapter needs revision, not another full paper.
- Read the explanation, not just the key. NORCET rarely repeats a question word for word, but it often tests the same fact from a different angle.
- Revisit topics, not papers. After 4-5 papers, practise by chapter. The Q-Bank groups past-year questions by subject, chapter and topic.
- Keep a wrong-answer log. In NORCET, fewer wrong answers also breaks ties in rank, so cutting careless errors pays twice.
FAQ
Which chapter is asked most in NORCET? In our analysis of 21 papers, cardiovascular, circulatory and haematologic disorders (Med-Surg) had the most questions (159), and it appeared in every paper.
Are NORCET questions repeated from previous years? Exact repeats are uncommon, but the same topics are tested again and again. Respiratory care, perioperative nursing, fluids and electrolytes, the newborn and schizophrenia come up in almost every paper.
How many previous year papers should I solve? Solve all the recent two-stage papers (NORCET-5 onwards) under timed conditions, then use older papers for chapter-wise practice.
Is it enough to only study previous year questions? No. They show you where to focus, but the Mains uses new case scenarios. Study the concept behind each question so you can answer a different version of it.