GATE Examination 2021: Dates, Papers, Exam Pattern, Application

GATE (Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering) 2021 examination details were released on 11 September 2020 by IIT Bombay on its official portal. The organizing institute for the GATE 2021 examination is IIT Bombay.

About GATE:

The Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering (GATE) is an examination that primarily tests the comprehensive understanding of various undergraduate subjects in engineering and science for admission into the Master’s Program of institutes as well as jobs at Public Sector Companies. GATE is conducted jointly by the Indian Institute of Science and seven Indian Institutes of Technologies at Roorkee, Delhi, Guwahati, Kanpur, Kharagpur, Chennai (Madras), and Mumbai on behalf of the National Coordination Board – GATE, Department of Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resources Development (MHRD), Government of India.

In the past, several Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs) have used GATE scores to shortlist the candidates for employment. A few such organizations are Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL), Gas Authority of India Limited (GAIL), Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL), National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC), Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL), Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) and Power Grid Corporation of India (PGCI). Although it must be noted that GATE qualification does not assure a PSU job, as that depends on the recruitment procedure of the concerned PSU.

Important Dates:

GATE Online Application Processing System (GOAPS) Website Opens	11th September 2020
Closing Date of REGULAR online registration/ application portal	7th October 2020
End of Extended period for online registration/application (with late fee of 500/-)	14th October 2020
Last Date for change of Category, Paper and Examination City (an additional fee will be applicable)	13th November 2020
Admit Card will be available in the Online Application Portal (for printing)	8th January 2021
GATE 2021 Examination Forenoon: 9:30 AM to 12:30 Noon Afternoon: 3:00 PM to 6:00 PM	6th February 2021 7th February 2021 13th February 2021 14th February 2021
Announcement of the Results in the Online Application Portal	22nd March 2021

Important Note: The health and safety of the candidates are of utmost priority. Due to the current COVID-19 pandemic situation, the dates mentioned here are subject to change. In rare cases, it may be necessary to postpone the GATE 2021 examination because of situations beyond the control of the GATE committee. All updates will be available on the website.

Paper Codes:

GATE 2021 will be conducted on 27 subjects (also referred to as “papers”).

PAPER	CODE	PAPER	CODE
Aerospace Engineering	AE	Instrumentation Engineering	IN
Agricultural Engineering	AG	Mathematics	MA
Architecture and Planning	AR	Mechanical Engineering	ME
Bio-medical Engineering	BM	Mining Engineering	MN
Biotechnology	BT	Metallurgical Engineering	MT
Civil Engineering	CE	Petroleum Engineering	PE
Chemical Engineering	CH	Physics	PH
Computer Science and Information Technology	CS	Production and Industrial Engineering	PI
Chemistry	CY	Statistics	ST
Electronics and Communication Engineering	EC	Textile Engineering and Fibre Science	TF
Electrical Engineering	EE	Engineering Sciences	XE
Environmental Science & Engineering	ES	Humanities & Social Sciences	XH
Ecology and Evolution	EY	Life Sciences	XL
Geology and Geophysics	GG

• Two new papers called “Environmental Science & Engineering (ES)” and “Humanities & Social Sciences (XH)” are being introduced in GATE 2021.

Exam Pattern:

Examination for all the 27 subjects (papers) will be conducted as an ONLINE Computer Based Test (CBT).

Particulars	Details
Examination Mode	Computer Based Test (CBT)
Duration	3 Hours
Number of Subjects (Papers)	27
Sections	General Aptitude (GA) + Candidate’s Selected Subject
Type of Questions	(a) Multiple Choice Questions (MCQ). (b) Remaining types i.        Multiple Select Questions (MSQ) and/or ii.        Numerical Answer Type (NAT) Questions
Questions for testing these abilities	Recall Comprehension Application Analysis & Synthesis
Number of Questions	10 (GA) + 55 (subject) = 65 Questions
Distribution of Marks in all Papers EXCEPT papers AR, CY, EY, GG, MA, PH, XH, and XL	General Aptitude: 15 Marks + Engineering Mathematics: 13 Marks + Subject Questions: 72 Marks = Total: 100 Marks
Distribution of Marks in papers AR, CY, EY, GG, MA, PH, XH, and XL	General Aptitude: 15 Marks + Subject Questions: 85 Marks = Total: 100 Marks
Marking Scheme	All of the questions will be of 1 mark and 2 marks

Pattern of Questions:

GATE 2021 may contain questions of 3 different types in all the papers:

• Multiple Choice Questions
• Multiple Select Questions (MSQ)
• Numerical Answer Type (NAT)

Negative Marking:

• For a wrong answer chosen in an MCQ, there will be negative marking. For 1-mark MCQ, 1/3 mark will be deducted for a wrong answer. Likewise, for 2-mark MCQ, a 2/3 mark will be deducted for a wrong answer.
• There are no negative markings for MSQ and NAT type questions.

Eligibility:

• A candidate who is currently studying in the 3rd or higher years of any undergraduate degree program OR has already completed any government-approved degree program in Engineering / Technology / Architecture / Science / Commerce / Arts is eligible for appearing in the GATE 2021 exam.

Candidates who have obtained/are pursuing their qualifying degree from countries other than India:

• Must be currently in the 3rd or higher years or completed their Bachelor’s degree (duration: at least 3 years) in Engineering / Technology / Science / Arts / Commerce.

Age Limit:

There is no age limit to appear for the GATE 2021 examination.

Application Process:

• Candidates have to register and fill the application via ONLINE mode ONLY at the GATE Online Application Processing System (GOAPS). The link will be made available on the GATE 2021 website.
• The entire process of filling up of the application form and uploading of certificates/documents etc. is in ONLINE mode only. The candidates should NOT send any hard copy of their application forms/documents etc. to IIT Bombay or any of the zonal GATE offices.
• Application for GATE 2021 must be submitted ONLINE (through GOAPS website, https://appsgate.iitb.ac.in) by paying necessary application fees.
• For GATE 2021, all information related to the application process will be available on the GOAPS website. The photograph, signature, category certificate (SC / ST / PwD), and/or Dyslexia certificate, wherever applicable, must be uploaded during the online application. Candidates MUST enter the valid photo identity (ID) number specified in any one of the following IDs: Aadhaar-UID, Passport, PAN Card, Voter ID, College ID, Employee ID, and Driving License. The candidates who do not possess any of these identity cards may please procure any one of them before making the application.

Application Fees

For Examination Centres in India	Regular Period (14th Sept. to 30th Sept. 2020)	During the Extended Period (1st Oct. to 7th Oct. 2020)
Female candidates (per paper)	₹ 750	₹ 1250
SC / ST / PwD* category candidates (per paper)	₹ 750	₹ 1250
All other candidates (per paper)	₹ 1500	₹ 2000
For Examination Centres outside India (All Candidates)
Addis Ababa, Colombo, Dhaka and Kathmandu (per paper)	US$ 50	US$ 70
Dubai and Singapore (per paper)	US$ 100	US$ 120

COVID 19 Situation:

• GATE 2021 scorecard will remain valid for THREE years from the date of announcement of results.
• Depending on the COVID-19 situation, the schedule of the GATE 2021 examination may change.
• Due to COVID-19 related international travel restrictions, examination at the International centers may be dropped, if the situation is not conducive by end of November 2020.

Official website | Information Brochure | Verify Dates here

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