TNEA 2026: less than 45% seats filled after second counselling round

Less than 45% of the total engineering seats in Tamil Nadu have been filled after the second round of counselling for the Tamil Nadu Engineering Admissions (TNEA) 2026. As per data from TNEA authorities, nearly 89,000 students received provisional allotments by the end of the second round, a drop of about 4.5% compared to the same stage last year. Career counsellors expect several thousand seats to remain vacant after the process ends.

Computer Science and Engineering (CSE) and Electronics and Communication Engineering (ECE) remain the most preferred streams, though core streams like Electrical and Electronics Engineering (EEE) and Mechanical Engineering have seen a marginal rise in interest. Institutions in urban centres such as Coimbatore and Chennai are preferred for their industry links and placement opportunities. Counsellors note that rural students face greater difficulty in securing allotments even with high cut-off marks, and have urged the government or Anna University to address the gap.

Over 80% of seats in autonomous colleges have been filled, compared to less than 20% in non-autonomous colleges. Constituent colleges of Anna University saw a 10% drop in intake, attributed to low pass percentages and poor placement records. Seven institutions have achieved full intake, while more than 20 colleges have yet to fill a single seat. The portal for the third round of choice filling closes at 5 p.m. on August 19.