Gate

Eligibility

The following are eligible to take GATE:^[6]

• Bachelor’s degree holders in Engineering/ Technology/ Architecture (4 years after 10+2/ Post-B.Sc./ Post-Diploma) and those who are in the final year of such programs.
• Master’s degree holders in any branch of Science/ Mathematics/ Statistics/ Computer Applications or equivalent and those who are in the final year of such programs.
• Candidates in the second or higher year of Four-year integrated Master’s degree programs (Post-B.Sc.) in Engineering/ Technology.
• Candidates in the fourth or higher year of Five-year integrated Master’s degree programs or Dual Degree programs in Engineering/Technology.
• Candidates with qualifications obtained through examinations conducted by professional societies recognized by UPSC/AICTE (e.g. AMIE by iE(i), AMICE(i) by the institute of Civil Engineers (India)-iCE(i)) as equivalent to B.E./B.Tech.

Those who have completed section A or equivalent of such professional courses are also eligible.

GATE disciplines and structure

At present, GATE is conducted in the following 22 disciplines. A candidate can select any one of these.^[3]

GATE Paper	Code	GATE Paper	Code
Aerospace Engineering	AE	Geology and Geophysics	GG
Agricultural Engineering	AG	Instrumentation Engineering	IN
Architecture and Planning	AR	Mathematics	MA
Biotechnology	BT	Mechanical Engineering	ME
Civil Engineering	CE	Mining Engineering	MN
Chemical Engineering	CH	Metallurgical Engineering	MT
Computer Science and Information Technology	CS	Physics	PH
Chemistry	CY	Production and Industrial Engineering	PI
Electronics and Communication Engineering	EC	Textile Engineering and Fiber Science	TF
Electrical Engineering	EE	Engineering Sciences	XE*
Ecology and Evolution	EY	Life Sciences	XL**

* Engineering Sciences (XE) Paper Sections (A and any 2 of B to G)	Code	** Life Sciences (XL) Paper Sections (H and any 2 of I to M)	Code
Engineering Mathematics (Compulsory)	A	Chemistry (Compulsory)	H
Fluid Mechanics	B	Biochemistry	I
Materials Science	C	Botany	J
Solid Mechanics	D	Microbiology	K
Thermodynamics	E	Zoology	L
Polymer Science and Engineering	F	Food Technology	M
Food Technology	G

General aptitude questions
Each subject's test contains 10 questions that test the "general aptitude" (language and analytic skills), apart from the core subject of the discipline.^[3]
Duration and examination type
The GATE examination consists of a single test of 3-hour duration that contains a total of 65 questions, worth a maximum of 100 marks. The questions consist of both multiple choice questions (MCQs) and numerical answer type questions.^[3] Numerical answer type questions^[9] does not contain any options for the answers, the candidate has to solve the numerical and write the answer in the spec given.
From 2014 onward, the examination for all the papers is carried out in an online Computer Based Test (CBT) mode where the candidates are shown the questions in a random sequence on a computer screen. The candidates are required to either select the answer (for multiple-choice question type) or enter the answer for numerical answer type question using a mouse on a virtual keyboard (keyboard of the computer is disabled). Candidates are provided with blank paper sheets for rough work and these have to be returned after the examination. At the end of the 3-hour window, the computer automatically closes the screen from further actions.