Girls outperform boys in HSLC & HSSLC exams

Girls once again performed better than boys in the High School Leaving Certificate (HSLC) and Higher Secondary School Leaving Certificate (HSSLC) examinations 2026 conducted by the Nagaland Board of School Education (NBSE).
NBSE on Thursday declared the results of HSLC and HSSLC examinations 2026, a day ahead of the scheduled date, citing a “technical problem related to the timer.” The board, however, informed that the date for collection of documents would remain unchanged as notified earlier, adding that provisional marksheets would be made available on the official website on April 24, 2026.
HSLC examination was conducted from February 13-26, 2026. A total of 22,765 candidates enrolled, out of which 16,406 qualified, resulting in an overall pass percentage of 72.07%. This marked a slight dip compared to the last year’s 75.16% but remained higher than several earlier years 71.87% (2024), 70.32% (2023), 64.69% (2022) and 69.42% (2021).
Aman Kumar of MGM Higher Secondary School, Dimapur, who topped the HSLC examination with 590 marks (98.33%), would receive both the NBSE Topper Award and the Governor’s Gold Medal.
Gender-wise performance showed girls leading with a pass percentage of 72.72% (8,888 qualified), while boys achieved 71.30% (7,518 qualified). Girls even dominated in the merit list, with 57 out of the top 20 positions secured by girls and only 23 by boys. Notably, a candidate from Government High School (GHS), Yachem, secured the 19th rank in the Top 20 list.
There continues to be a significant gap between government and private schools. Pass percentage of government schools stood at 43.26%, a decline from 48.41% in 2025, while pass percentage of private schools stood at 86.13%, marginally lower than 87.64% last year.
In district-wise performance of government schools, Kohima district led with 63%, followed by Mokokchung (55%), and Phek and Tseminyu districts (52% each).
Shamator district recorded the lowest at 11%.
In private schools, Mokokchung and Phek districts topped with 92%, followed by Kohima and Tseminyu at 90%.
HSSLC: A total of 15,468 candidates appeared for Higher Secondary School Leaving Certificate (HSSLC) Examination 2026 conducted from February 12-March 9, 2026.
The overall pass percentages across the three streams stood at 85.78% in Arts, 81.69% in Commerce, and 85.67% in Science.
Girls fared better than boys in all streams. In the Arts stream, girls achieved a pass percentage of 89.56%, compared to 80.84% for boys. In Commerce, girls recorded 83.36% while boys secured 80.53%. In the Science stream, girls passed at 87.57% against boys’ 83.13%.
The performance has shown a positive trend in the Arts stream, which improved to 85.78% this year from 84.05% in 2025. The Commerce stream recorded 81.69%, while Science stood at 85.67%.
Two students from Government Higher Secondary Schools featured in the merit list. A student from PM Shri GHSS, Chümoukedima secured the 7th rank in the Arts stream, while another student from PM Shri Mayangnokcha GHSS, Mokokchung achieved the 10th rank in the Science stream. Girls dominated the top 10 merit lists in two streams, securing 14 positions in Arts and 14 in science, while boys took 9 positions in commerce and 3 in science.