Documents for an online application: a checklist

Before you open the form

Read the How to apply part of the notice and list every file it asks for, with its format, KB range and size in pixels or centimetres. Application portals often log you out after some minutes without activity, so have every file ready in one folder before you start, not while the form is open.

The photo

A recent photo, on a plain white or light background, with your face filling most of the frame and both ears visible if the notice asks. Some exams want your name and the date the photo was taken printed at the bottom. Save it as a real JPG within the KB range: the exam page for your form sets all of this at once.

Signature, thumb impression and declaration

Sign on plain white paper with the ink the notice asks for, usually black, in your normal running hand, not in capital letters. For a thumb impression, press firmly once on an ink pad and then on white paper, without rolling. Some forms also want a handwritten declaration: copy the exact text from the notice in your own handwriting and sign it.

Certificates

Mark sheets, degree, caste, income, EWS, domicile, disability and experience certificates are usually uploaded as PDF, sometimes as JPG. Scan each one separately, keep pages in order, and bring each file under its limit. Check that names and dates on the certificates match what you type in the form.

Keep one master copy

Save the originals of your photo, signature and scans in a folder you keep. For each new form, make a fresh copy from the originals at that form's sizes, instead of shrinking a file that was already shrunk for another form: it stays sharper.

After you submit

Save the final application page or the application PDF, and the fee receipt, and write down your registration or application number. Keep a few prints of the same photo you uploaded: some exams ask for it on the admit card or at document verification, and it must match.