Daijiworld Media Network - Mangaluru
Mangaluru, June 17: Nikhil Sonnad, a student of Expert Pre-University College, Mangaluru, has secured the 17th rank at the All-India level in NEET 2025, emerging as the topper in both South India and Karnataka in the recently held UG NEET examination conducted for medical admissions.
While the national qualification rate for UG NEET stands at 56%, an impressive 99% of students from Expert PU College have qualified for medical admission. This outstanding result marks a new milestone in the academic history of the institution. Notably, 1.43% of all candidates in India who scored 601 marks or above in NEET 2025 are from Expert PU College — a statistic described as “unprecedented” by Prof Narendra L Nayak, chairman of Expert Group of Institutions.
Prof Nayak further shared that seven students scored more than 625 marks, 19 scored above 600, 57 crossed the 575-mark, 81 scored more than 550, and 146 students scored over 525. In total, 233 students scored more than 500 marks, 324 over 475, 440 over 450, 567 over 425, and 684 students surpassed the 400-mark milestone — a reflection of the academic depth at Expert.
Ten students from the college have secured ranks within the top 500 nationally. Fifteen are ranked within the top 1,000, and 24 within the top 2,000.
Despite this year’s NEET exam being particularly challenging, Nikhil Sonnad scored 670 out of 720. He had earlier secured a perfect 100 in all three core subjects in the II PUC board examination.
In the Karnataka Common Entrance Test (KCET 2025), he secured the following ranks:
Other Top Performers
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Nidhi K G: 648 marks, AIR 84
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Saish Shravana Pandit: 636 marks, AIR 159
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Shreyas Mallappa Mahalingapura: 632 marks, AIR 214
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Suchit P Prasad: 630 marks, AIR 226
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Varun Siddappa Gowder: 630 marks, AIR 241
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Siddesh B Dammalli: 626 marks, AIR 317
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Pooja: 623 marks, AIR 386
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Vachana L A: 620 marks, AIR 455
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Manish L: 619 marks, AIR 486
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Charan Gowda: 617 marks, AIR 549
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K Hanan Abdul Rehman: 617 marks, AIR 543
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N B Sanika: 611 marks, AIR 771
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Manvit Vishal S R: 607 marks, AIR 937
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Vachana Allama Prabhu Bagodi: 606 marks, AIR 994
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Tushar R Bhat: 603 marks, AIR 1175
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Chaitanya T Patil: 601 marks, AIR 1298
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Sai Lakshminarayana: 601 marks, AIR 1316
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Yogit Gowda H V: 601 marks, AIR 1320
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Yashas Gowda H P: 599 marks, AIR 1481
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Ninada Krishna Lashkari: 598 marks, AIR 1494
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Lakshya L Poojar: 597 marks, AIR 1554
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Shivanagowda S Patil: 594 marks, AIR 1802
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Prajwal N R: 593 marks, AIR 1929
All students enrolled in the NEET long-term course at Expert PU College qualified for medical admission. Among them, 9 scored above 525 marks, 18 scored above 500, 54 scored over 450, and 109 scored more than 400.
Earlier this year, Amulya Kamath of the college scored an exceptional 599 out of 600 in the II PUC science stream examination conducted by the Department of Pre-University Education. Additionally, 33 students secured top ten ranks across seven sections of KCET conducted by the Karnataka Examinations Authority. Among them were 15 overall top-ten ranks, including 2nd, 3rd, 5th, 7th, 8th, and 9th positions.
These consistent and outstanding accomplishments reaffirm the high academic standards set by students of Expert PU College. The institution also credits the tireless efforts and dedicated mentorship of its teaching staff for these remarkable outcomes.
Nikhil Sonnad and his parents felicitated
Nikhil Sonnad and his parents were felicitated at the event. Speaking on the occasion, Prof Narendra Nayak said, “Ten of our students are in the top 500 in general merit. This achievement reflects not just the brilliance of our students but also the untiring efforts of both teaching and non-teaching staff. With this result, Expert has once again proven that there is no substitute for hard work.”
Nikhil Sonnad said, “I am grateful to Expert for the opportunity to study here. I believe students should not study merely for marks but to explore how the universe works.”
Nidhi K G shared, “This is the day I had always dreamt of. Expert is truly an excellent institution. The teachers are like parents to us. I thank my parents for their relentless support and Prof Narendra Nayak for motivating me, especially during my early days at Expert.”
Looking ahead to the 40th year of the institution, Prof Nayak remarked, “It’s all about refinement. Every year, we aim to improve. Teaching is challenging because students come from diverse backgrounds. Our role is to harmonize that and guide them in one direction.”
The event was attended by director of Expert Educational Institutions Ankush Nayak, architect Deepika Nayak, AICE head Shyam Prasad, coaching head Gurdutt, Karunakar Balkur, principal of Valachil campus Dr N K Vijayan, principal of Kodialbail campus Ramachandra Bhat, academic core committee member Vinay Kumar, academic vice principal Subramanya Udupa, and others.