National Means-cum-Merit Scholarship · Class 8

NMMS Mental Ability Test (MAT)

The scholarship exam that rewards how you think: ₹12,000 a year, right through Class 12.

Two papers decide it. One, Mental Ability, is pure reasoning, not textbook facts. A skill you can train, a little each day.

For students in government, aided and local-body schools, with family income under ₹3,50,000 a year.

Each state runs its own NMMS exam, on its own dates. Ask your school: it can tell you how your state registers students. Source: the Central Sector Scheme (NMMS) revised guidelines, paras 1.4 and 2.1.

NMMS, in numbers

₹1,000
every month, to the bank
₹48,000
total, Classes 9-12
1,00,000
given every year
90+90
questions: MAT + SAT
A tree growing inside a mind Why start now

The mind grows like a tree. Plant the seed today.

You can't train for a race in the thirty days before it. A muscle grows with time, and so does the mind. Reasoning is no different: a skill that deepens with steady, daily practice, never a syllabus crammed at the end.

A seed is almost invisible when it's planted. Nurtured a little each day, it grows into a tree. Mental ability is that seed, and this app nurtures it in the mind, with the most essential tools of our time: mindfulness paired with science-backed learning.

Plant the seed today, and give the mind the time it needs to grow strong.

What · the exam

Two papers. One tests how you think, one tests school subjects.

NMMS is decided in Class 8 by two 90-minute papers. A student needs at least 40% in each (32% for SC / ST / PwD).

Tests how you think

MAT · Mental Ability Test

90 questions · 90 minutes · reasoning, not memory
  • Analogy & numerical series
  • Classification (odd one out)
  • Pattern perception
  • Hidden figures: the guidelines' list ends in "etc.", and each State/UT sets its own paper
Not in any textbook. A trainable skill.
Tests school subjects

SAT · Scholastic Aptitude Test

90 questions · 90 minutes · Class 7 & 8 level
  • Science (Class 7 & 8)
  • Social Science (Class 7 & 8)
  • Mathematics (Class 7 & 8)
The school syllabus (NCERT or your state board), already studied in class.

Concepts this exam tests

From the official syllabus, NMMS scheme guidelines, para 2.3 (each State/UT sets its own paper): “numerical series”.

Topics its syllabus names, in the app

From the official syllabus, NMMS scheme guidelines, para 2.3 (each State/UT sets its own paper): “numerical series”.

How · prepare for both

Two papers, two ways to prepare.

The Mental Ability paper isn't in any school textbook: it's a thinking skill you build by practising the right questions, the right amount, over time. That's exactly what Master Mental Ability does.

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Adapts to the learner

Harder as you improve, easier when you slip. No one bored, no one lost.

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Back before you forget

Spaced repetition returns a question right as it's about to fade, so it stays till exam day.

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Solve first, then see

You reason it out before the answer shows. That effort is where learning sticks.

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Calm before the clock

A moment to settle before each session. The same calm that helps on exam day.

For the SAT: the regular school subjects: Science, Social Science and Maths, from the Class 7 & 8 NCERT textbooks (or your state board). Best revised in class and at home. We don't sell you what school already gives you.
Works offline on Android

Practice anywhere. On Android, practice itself needs no internet.

On Android, all the questions live on your phone, so after install, daily practice costs zero data. The app needs the internet once to start, then at least once a week. In the web app, on a phone or computer, you practise in the browser while you are online.

Android works offline Full-screen web practice Progress saved online Zero data during practice
Try without an account

In the browser: no account, no card, no install. Solve one full session, then decide.

Built by

In 2007, in his second year at IIT Delhi, Vineesh wrote a book: Master Mental Ability in 30 Days. It has sold year after year ever since, without the publisher ever marketing it.

In the years since, he built other learning products and spent a decade working with children of every background in a holistic learning centre.

This app goes far beyond that book: everything he's learned about how children actually learn, built into something they practise, not just read.

More about us →

No risk to you

Don't trust us. See it work.

1

Try free

Solve a full session, no registration. Decide nothing yet.

2

Register

Like it? Sign up and get 15 days free. No payment, no auto-debit.

3

Practise daily

A little each day. The app decides what to practise and when to bring it back.

4

Share to keep learning free

Invite a friend preparing for NMMS: you both earn more free days.

Your questions

Common questions

Is it really free? Will money get taken from my account?

Free to try: no signup to start, no card, no auto-debit, nothing taken silently. When you want the full library there are three plans, by length: ₹499 for three months, ₹699 for six, ₹999 for a year. Each is a single payment for that period, not a subscription. When it ends we ask you, and nothing is ever taken automatically. You can also keep learning free by sharing the app, and you can always try before paying anything.

Is this app enough to clear NMMS?

It trains the Mental Ability (MAT) paper, the reasoning half. The SAT is school subjects (Science, Social Science, Maths), best revised with your Class 7 & 8 textbooks (NCERT or your state board's).

When should a Class 8 student start?

Now. Reasoning grows a little each day: a few months of steady practice beats last-minute cramming, because the exam tests thinking, not memory.

Will it work on my phone?

Yes. The Android app works offline: the questions live on your phone, so practice uses no data. It needs the internet once to start, then at least once a week. Get it on Google Play or the Indus Appstore. You can also practise in the web app, in the browser on your phone or computer, while you are online.

क्या यह ऐप हिंदी में है?

हाँ, पूरी तरह। हिंदी चुनिए और पूरी ऐप हिंदी में होगी: सवाल ख़ुद, विकल्प, और हर सवाल के बाद का हल, ऊपर से हिंदी लेबल चढ़ी अंग्रेज़ी ऐप नहीं। और यह पन्ना भी हिंदी में पढ़ा जा सकता है।

How much internet does it need?

On the Android app, very little. The questions are on your phone, so you can practise on a train, in a village with no signal, on a phone with no data pack. It needs the internet once to start, then at least once a week to keep your access active; that is also when your progress is saved online. If it goes longer than a week without connecting, practice pauses until it does, and nothing is lost. The web app needs a connection while you practise.

How do you apply for the scholarship?

Through your school, on your own state's portal. NMMS is conducted by each state, not centrally: your state sets the application window, the exam date and the fee. So ask your school for this year's dates; they change from state to state and from year to year. The National Scholarship Portal comes later: that is where a student who has already been selected claims the scholarship itself. Eligibility marks vary by state too, so confirm those with the school as well.

Still have a question about NMMS or the app? Message us on WhatsApp →

Start now

One trainable paper. ₹48,000 over four years.

Start the Mental Ability paper today, free. Whenever your state's exam falls, the paper it sets is the one you can actually train for.

Free to try.

www.mastermentalability.in/nmms