Navodaya Vidyalaya Samiti (NVS) is an autonomous organisation under the Ministry of Education that runs the Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas (JNVs). According to its latest recruitment notification, 653 JNVs are functional across India except Tamil Nadu. They are co-educational, fully residential schools up to senior secondary level, located mainly in rural areas.
That residential model is what makes an NVS teaching job different from most other government school jobs, and it is the first thing to weigh before you apply. This guide covers what the job involves, the posts, pay and selection rules in the latest NVS recruitment, and where that recruitment stood in October 2026.
Checked against navodaya.gov.in and the CBSE recruitment notices linked below on 9 October 2026. No new NVS direct-recruitment notification for 2026 had been published when we checked.
What the job involves
Recruitment Notification 01/2025, a joint KVS and NVS recruitment conducted by CBSE, describes NVS teachers' working conditions directly:
- You live on campus. Teachers "are required to stay in the Vidyalaya campus", for which rent-free accommodation is provided where available.
- Duties go beyond teaching. They include House Mastership, remedial and supervised study, co-curricular activities, escorting students on migration and other official trips, and student welfare. Performance in these areas is assessed during probation.
- Special allowance. Selected candidates in NVS draw admissible allowances plus a 10% special allowance for residential duties (not admissible to the Assistant Commissioner post).
- Posting anywhere in India. Requests for a change of station are not entertained on initial posting, and TGT (Regional Language) appointees are initially posted outside their linguistic state.
- Probation: two years, which can be extended.
If living on a rural campus and taking on house duties suits you, NVS can be a strong fit. If not, a non-residential employer such as Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan may suit you better; see our KVS teacher jobs guide.
NVS posts in the latest recruitment
The NVS vacancies in Notification 01/2025 (tentative, and unchanged in total by the corrigenda) were:
| NVS post | Vacancies | Pay level (7th CPC) | Upper age limit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Assistant Commissioner (Academics) | 9 | Level 12 (₹78,800–2,09,200) | 45 in the notification; Corrigendum-2 states 50 |
| Principal | 93 | Level 12 (₹78,800–2,09,200) | 35 minimum, 50 maximum |
| PGT, plus PGT (Modern Indian Language) | 1,513 + 18 | Level 8 (₹47,600–1,51,100) | 40 |
| TGT, plus TGT (Third Language) | 2,978 + 443 | Level 7 (₹44,900–1,42,400) | 35 |
| Junior Secretariat Assistant (HQ/RO and JNV cadres) | 46 + 552 | Level 2 (₹19,900–63,200) | See notification |
| Lab Attendant | 165 | Level 1 (₹18,000–56,900) | See notification |
| Multi-Tasking Staff (HQ/RO) | 24 | Level 1 (₹18,000–56,900) | See notification |
By our count of the notification's tables, that is 5,841 NVS posts. The notification does not print an NVS-only total. The largest PGT subjects were Physics (186), Mathematics (167) and Biology (161), and the largest TGT subject was Computer Science (653).
Ages were reckoned on the closing date, 4 December 2025. Relaxations include 5 years for SC/ST, 3 years for OBC (non-creamy layer) and 10 years for women applying for PGT and TGT posts. If you qualify for more than one concession, the notification grants only the single highest one.
Eligibility in brief
- PGT: a master's degree in the subject with at least 50% marks, plus a B.Ed. with at least 50% (or an NCTE-recognised integrated course), and proficiency to teach in Hindi and English.
- TGT: a qualifying degree and B.Ed. (or an integrated course) with at least 50% marks, as specified for each subject.
- CTET: a valid CTET certificate is essential for TGT posts, except Music, Art, Work Experience, Librarian and Physical Education. The CTET clause does not list PGT posts.
How selection works
| Stage | What it is | Key rules |
|---|---|---|
| Tier-1 | Qualifying OMR screening test, 2 hours | 100 questions, 300 marks (reasoning, numeric ability, computer literacy, GK, English and one other Indian language; Multi-Tasking Staff have a different mix); 3 marks per question, 1 mark deducted per wrong answer; shortlist 1:10 for Tier-2 |
| Tier-2 | Subject knowledge test, 2½ hours | 60 objective questions (60 marks, 0.25 deducted per wrong answer) and 10 descriptive questions (40 marks) |
| Interview | For Assistant Commissioner, Principal, PGT and TGT | Shortlist 1:3 from Tier-2; 100 marks |
| Final merit | Interview posts | 85% Tier-2 + 15% interview |
Junior Secretariat Assistants take a skill test instead of an interview; Lab Attendant and Multi-Tasking Staff merit is based on Tier-2 alone.
Worked example: the 85:15 merit rule
Illustrative only. Candidate A answers 56 of the 60 objective questions in Tier-2, with 48 right and 8 wrong, and scores 28 of 40 in the descriptive part:
- Objective: 48 − (8 × 0.25) = 48 − 2 = 46 out of 60
- Tier-2 total: 46 + 28 = 74 out of 100
- With an interview score of 70: (74 × 0.85) + (70 × 0.15) = 62.9 + 10.5 = 73.4
Candidate B scores 78 in Tier-2 but only 50 in the interview: 66.3 + 7.5 = 73.8, which ranks above Candidate A. Tier-2, including the descriptive answers, decides most of the result, so practise writing short subject answers, not just objective questions.
Fees
For Notification 01/2025, the examination fee was ₹1,500 for PGT and TGT, ₹2,300 for Assistant Commissioner and Principal, and ₹1,200 for Junior Secretariat Assistant, Lab Attendant and Multi-Tasking Staff, plus a ₹500 processing fee. SC, ST, PwBD and ex-servicemen candidates did not pay the examination fee, but every applicant paid the processing fee. A candidate applying for the same post in both KVS and NVS paid the fee once.
Where the 01/2025 recruitment stands
| Step | Official date |
|---|---|
| Online registration | 14 November to 4 December 2025 (registered applicants could apply for further KVS or NVS posts until 15 December 2025) |
| Tier-1 | 10 and 11 January 2026 |
| Tier-1 result | 28 February 2026, per CBSE's public notice |
| Tier-2 | March 2026 |
| Tier-2 results | In phases from mid-August 2026; the 14 September 2026 release covered PRTs and JSAs |
| Interviews and final selection | Schedules through candidate logins; we found no final NVS selection list by 9 October 2026 |
For interview posts, CBSE says the Tier-2 result shows whether you are shortlisted for interview, with marksheets released after the final result.
A checklist before the next notification
Post and subject I am eligible for (degree, B.Ed. percentage, CTET if needed):
My age on the expected closing date, and the single highest relaxation I can claim:
Am I willing to live on campus and take house duties?
Am I willing to be posted anywhere in India (outside my linguistic state for TGT Regional Language)?
Tier-1 practice: one timed 100-question paper a week
Tier-2 practice: one set of descriptive subject answers a week
Date I last checked navodaya.gov.in and cbse.gov.in:
For other central options, see our central government jobs guide.
Frequently asked questions
Is there an NVS teacher recruitment notification for 2026?
Not as of 9 October 2026. The latest is the joint KVS and NVS Recruitment Notification 01/2025, which was still at the interview and result stage.
Do NVS teachers have to live on campus?
Yes. The notification says teachers are required to stay on the Vidyalaya campus, with rent-free accommodation where available, and take on residential duties.
Is CTET required for NVS PGT posts?
The notification's CTET requirement covers TGT posts (with some subject exceptions) and does not list PGT posts. Check the next notification, as rules can change.