Home / Posts / SC Top Class Scholarship 2026-27: fee support plus Rs 86,000 allowance, apply on NSP by 30 November

SCHOLARSHIP

SC Top Class Scholarship 2026-27: fee support plus Rs 86,000 allowance, apply on NSP by 30 November

By AiCoN | Published 18 October 2026 | Sources checked 18 October 2026 | Scoped recheck 24 October 2026

The Central Sector Scholarship of Top Class Education pays the tuition fee and non-refundable charges (capped at Rs 2 lakh a year per student at private-sector institutions) for SC students admitted to notified top institutions - IITs, IIMs, NITs, AIIMS, NLUs and others - plus an academic allowance of Rs 86,000 in the first year and Rs 41,000 every year after. Fresh applications for 2026-27 are open on the National Scholarship Portal; student applications close on 30 November 2026.

Scoped update: 2 November 2026. The live NSP scheme list now shows this scheme with student applications till 30 November 2026, defective application and institute verification till 15 December 2026 and nodal verification till 31 December 2026. Our earlier version said 31 October, 15 November and 30 November. Original publication date unchanged.

Official publisher artwork, cropped by AiCoN to omit the national emblem. Original: https://scholarships.gov.in/. Independent guide, not affiliated or sponsored.

Good to knowSlots are limited and shared among notified institutions; the institution selects students on entrance merit, and at least 30% of slots at each institution are reserved for girls. For private institutions the fee cover is capped at Rs 2 lakh a year per student. You cannot hold another scholarship at the same time. Keep your income certificate, caste certificate, bank details, admission rank and fee details ready before you apply.

Who can apply

Scheduled Caste students admitted to a full-time prescribed course at a notified institution (IIMs, IITs, IIITs, AIIMSs, NITs, NIFTs, NIDs, IHMs, NLUs, other Central Government institutions, NAAC A++/A+ accredited institutions, top-100 NIRF institutions, and Institutions of National Importance)
Total annual family income from all sources up to Rs 8 lakh
Both fresh admissions (first year) and renewals apply on NSP

What you get

Full tuition fee and non-refundable charges (ceiling of Rs 2 lakh per year per student for private sector institutions)
Academic allowance: Rs 86,000 in the first year, Rs 41,000 in every subsequent year - for living expenses, books and stationery, and a computer with accessories
Paid by Direct Benefit Transfer; students must deposit the fee with the institute within a month of receiving it

How to apply on NSP: step by step

Checked on the live National Scholarship Portal on 19 October 2026. NSP now uses One Time Registration (OTR) - do this first if you have never registered.

Open scholarships.gov.in (Academic Year 2026-27 is live), click Students → Apply now, then Register. Registration is free - no fee is required.
Read the OTR guidelines, tick the consent boxes and click Next. Register your active mobile number and verify it with the OTP; a reference number is sent to your mobile.
Complete eKYC: install the NSP OTR app and the Aadhaar Face RD app on an Android phone and do face authentication with the reference number. Your OTR ID is then generated. Aadhaar is required; a minor without Aadhaar can register with a parent's or legal guardian's Aadhaar.
Log in on NSP with your OTR ID, open Fresh Application for Academic Year 2026-27 and choose the Top Class Education scheme for SC students from the scheme list.
Fill the application form and upload the documents it lists.
Submit before 30 November 2026. Track the application in the same dashboard; institute and district/state verification happen after you submit.

National Scholarship Portal homepage for Academic Year 2026-27 with Students, Institutions, Officers, Public and Fellowship tiles — Step 1: the NSP homepage for Academic Year 2026-27 - start from the Students tile. Screenshot of the official National Scholarship Portal, captured 24 October 2026 (cropped to the top of the page). Tap or click the image to open it full size.

NSP Register page showing the 4-step One Time Registration flow: Guidelines, Register Mobile No, eKYC, Finish — Steps 2-3: the official NSP registration page with the 4-step OTR flow (Guidelines, Register Mobile No., eKYC, Finish) and the OTR guidelines. Screenshot of the official National Scholarship Portal, captured 24 October 2026. Tap or click the image to open it full size.

Steps 4-6 happen inside your own NSP login, so they are not shown as screenshots. Generating an OTR alone is not an application - you must still log in and submit the scholarship application.

Video guides

We searched YouTube on 19 October 2026 for a step-by-step application video for this scheme on the current NSP OTR portal in English and in Malayalam. The videos we found cover older portal versions or could not be verified to match the current portal, so we are not linking any rather than risk outdated or unrelated instructions.

Deadlines on the NSP scheme list (checked 2 November 2026): student applications close 30 November 2026; institute verification 15 December 2026; state/nodal verification 31 December 2026. Benefits and rules above are from the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment scheme guidelines published on NSP.

Scoped recheck, 24 October 2026

On 24 October 2026 we re-read the official scheme guidelines (applicable from 2025-26) and the live NSP scheme list, without logging in. Original publication date unchanged. The NSP list entry for this scheme shows: scheme open from 1 June 2026, student application open till 30 November 2026, defective-application and institute verification open till 15 December 2026, and DNO/SNO/MNO verification open till 31 December 2026. The student deadline is 30 November; the later dates are for verification, not for submitting a fresh application.

NSP Schemes On NSP list showing the Top Class Education for SC Students row with its application and verification dates — The NSP scheme list entry for this scheme, captured 24 October 2026 (1920px desktop capture, cropped to the scheme row; page header cropped out). Tap or click the image to open it full size.

Details from the guidelines that matter before you apply:

Only first-year students can get a fresh award. Second, third and fourth-year students are not eligible for a fresh scholarship.
The benefit is not given to more than two siblings in a family. You submit an affidavit at the institution that you are not the third sibling to use it.
The scholarship stops if you are not promoted to the next semester or class, and is released once you are promoted. If you change institution after selection, it is discontinued.
Self-employed parents or guardians need an income certificate from a revenue officer not below the rank of Tehsildar; employed parents need one from their employer.

Sources: NSP scheme list, official scheme guidelines (PDF). Checked 18 October 2026; application steps and video search re-checked 19 October 2026. This is an AiCoN explainer, not a government publication.