Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) on GATE

While preparing for GATE, there are many questions which might arise during the preparation process. Inorder to make it easier for you, we have compiled the following set of frequently asked questions for your quick reference:

GATE - Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering is an All-India Examination conducted jointly by the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore and the seven Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs). Every year one IIT or IISc is selected as the Organizing Institute. GATE is a passport for admission into M.E. / M.Tech. and M.Sc. Engg. courses in almost all the colleges / institutes / universities of the country. M.E. / M. Tech. is a four semester program and admission to these programs largely depends upon GATE percentile score.

GATE identifies meritorious and motivated candidates for admission to Postgraduate Programs in Engineering, Technology, Architecture, Science and Pharmacy at National level. The examination is a compulsory requirement for the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) scholarship / assistantship for M.E. and M. Tech. programs.

Financial Independence:-
- The starting salary for an M.E/M.Tech could range from 7.2 lacs to 15 lacs per annum. Moreover, the M.Tech stipend of ` 1.02 lacs per annum more than covers the course fee of 28000/- helping you earn while you learn. Hence, the levels of financial independence and job security associated withan M.E/M.Tech are very high.

Admission to the top colleges and universities:- - The GATE is mandatory for admission to postgraduate programs in top engineering colleges like the IISc, IITs and NITs.
- A good GATE score may a lead to scholarships in the various government engineering colleges in India.
- The Indian Institute of Managements (IIMs) consider the GATE score for admissions to their prestigious fellowship program(Ph.D in management).
- Some of the top 100 universities abroad, consider the GATE score for admissions to their M.S programs.
- The GATE score is required for admissions to the highly acclaimed Post Graduate Diploma in Industrial Engineering (PGDIE) offered by the National Institute of Industrial Engineering (NITIE).

Excellent Placements:
- Jobs in PSUs and faculty positions in the various engineering colleges in the country require a good GATE score. These blue chip PSUs include the Indian Oil Corporation , BSNL, BARC, CSIR and DRDO
- Placements at R&D divisions of MNC firms such as Microsoft, Sun Microsystems, Syntel , Google and Yahoo are also fairly common
- Junior Research Fellowship in CSIR Laboratories and CSIR sponsored projects require a GATE score
- Some government organizations/PSUs (like BARC, IOCL etc.) prescribe a GATE qualification as a requirement for applying to the post of a Scientist / Engineer.

Activities

Timelines

Starting date for online application submission

September 1, 2016 (Thursday)

Closing date for online application submission

October 4, 2016 (Tuesday)

Closing date for request for change of city

November 16, 2016  (Wednesday)

Admit Card availability

January 5, 2017 (Thursday)

GATE 2017 On-line Examination

March 27, 2017 (Monday)

Now, the test is objective type with a total of 65 questions. Out of this, 55 Questions are technical (25 questions of one mark + 30 question of 2 mark each) and 10 Questions are technical (5 questions of one mark + 5 question of 2 mark each). The Questions to be answered in total time of 3 hours.

The following categories of candidates are eligible to appear in:-
- Bachelors degree holders in Engineering/Technology/Architecture/Pharmacy and those who are in the final or pre-final year of such programs.
- Masters degree holders in any branch of Science/ Mathematics/ Statistics/ Computer Applications or equivalent and those who are in the final or penultimate year of such programs.
- Candidates in the second or higher year of the Four-year Integrated Master"s degree program (Post-B.Sc.) in Engineering/Technology or in the third or higher year of Five-year Integrated Master"s degree program and Dual Degree program in Engineering/ Technology.
- Candidates with qualifications obtained through examination conducted by professional societies recognized by UPSC/AICTE as equivalent to B.E./B.Tech. Those who have completed Section A or equivalent of such professional courses are also eligible.

Preparation time for GATE is subjective and depends on many factors such as the individual's aptitude, fundamentals, attitude, concentration level etc., Typically, a rigorous preparation of 4-6 months is considered good enough for getting into IISc or IITs.

There are many IISc alumni in India & Abroad (including M.Tech, PhDs & Post doctorate from MIT, USA) who provide the inspiration for the establishment of The GATE Academy, for such a noble cause. A brief profile of the some of the core team members is given below.

GATE exam has always been looked as a bench mark in terms of the quality of the question paper, concept and execution and served as a motivator for the higher education in the country.  It won’t be unfair to say GATE exam is quite a unique exam in the country, in terms of content, quality and application.  The GATE pattern has undergone significant changes over the last few years and the GATE’12 is not an exception. Instead of the usual 60 questions totaling 100 marks in year 2009 (i.e. GATE’09), GATE’10 & GATE’11 had a total of 65 questions totaling 100 marks. Out of these:

Last ten question (Q.56 to 65), comprising of 15 marks were from General Aptitude (verbal + Numerical  ability)
Negative marking pattern is  modified (as given in table below).
Also, the validity of the GATE score has been reinstated to be two years  (in year  GATE 2009,  Score card it  was valid for only one year)

We strongly believe that the GATE paper are designed so as so clearly segregate the good students from the others. Over the years our experience is that the students having good fundamental concepts and have developed a flare for solving the numerical & application oriented problems rather than doing just theoretical question, have done well in GATE.

Question 1 through 25 are one mark technical questions
Question 25 through 55 are two mark technical questions
Question 56 through 60 are one mark General aptitude questions
Question 61 through 65 are two mark General aptitude questions

Note:In GATE 2012, Validity of GATE  Score was  for a period of TWO YEARS  ONLY from the date of announcement of results.  Look for the announcement in IISc/IIT website and The GATE Aspire’s website (www.careerlauncher.com/gateaspire) for updates in GATE 2012. 

Patterns of Question papers Negative Marks for wrong Answer
Q.1   to Q.25: Will carry one mark each (sub-total: 25 marks). 1/3 mark will be deducted for each wrong answer.
Q.26 to Q.55 : Will carry two marks each (sub-total: 60 marks) 2/3 mark will be deducted for each wrong answer.
Q.48 through Q.51 (2 pairs) will be common data questions. Each question will carry two marks. 2/3 mark will be deducted for each wrong answer.
Question pairs (Q.52, Q.53) and (Q.54, Q.55) will be linked answer questions. - The answer to the second question of the last two pairs will depend on the answer to the first question of the pair. - If the first question in the linked pair is wrongly answered or is un-attempted, then the answer to the second question in the pair will not be evaluated. Each question will carry two marks. There will be negative marks only for wrong answer to the first question of the linked answer question pair i.e. for Q.52 and Q.54, 2/3 mark will be deducted for each wrong answer. There is no negative marking for Q.53 and Q.55.
Q.56 to Q.60: Will carry one mark each (sub-total: 5 marks).These question will be from the General Aptitude (Numerical ability + Verbal Ability) 1/3 mark will be deducted for each wrong answer.
Q.61 to Q.65: Will carry two marks each (sub-total: 10 marks). These question will be from the General Aptitude (Numerical ability + Verbal Ability) 2/3 mark will be deducted for each wrong answer.
CS REFERENCE SHEET
Complete Reference Guide GATE Guide Computer Science & Information Technology 2017, GK Publications
SUBJECT REFERENCE BOOK
MATHEMATICS - Higher Engineering Mathematics - Dr. BS Grewal Advance.
- Engineering Mathematics - Erwin Kreyszig.
- Advance Engineering Mathematics - Dr. HK Dass
PROGRAMMING AND ALGORITHMS - Data Structure & Algorithm in C - Mark Allen Weiss.
- Programming Languages - Ravi Sethi.
- Introduction to Algorithms - Corman, Rivest.
- Fundamentals of computer Algorithms - Horowitz.
-C programming - Kernighan and Ritchie
OPERATING SYSTEMS - Operating Systems - Galvin.
- Operating Systems - Stallings
DISCRETE MATH AND GRAPH THEORY - Discrete Mathematical Structures with applications to Computer Science - Tremblay and Manohar.
- Discrete Mathematics - Rosen.
- Discrete Mathematics for Computer Scientists - Mott
COMPUTER ORGANIZATION - Digital Electronics - Morris Mano.
- Digital circuits - Taub & Schilling.
- Microprocessor - Ramesh Gaonker.
- Computer Organisation - Hamacher
DATABASE - Database Systems - Korth
- DBMS - Ramakrishnan and Gerke
COMPUTER NETWORKS - Computer Networks - Tanenbaum


EC Reference Sheet
Complete Reference Guide GATE Guide Electronics and Communication Engineering 2017, GK Publications
SUBJECT REFERENCE BOOK
MATHEMATICS - Higher Engineering Mathematics - Dr. BS Grewal.
- Advance Engineering Mathematics - Erwin Kreyszig.
- Advance Engineering Mathematics - Dr. HK Dass
SIGNAL AND SYSTEM - Signal & System - Simon Hykin & Barry Van Veen.
- Signals & System Oppenheim & Schafer.
- Discrete Time Signal Processing - Oppenheim & Schafer.
- Digital Signal Processing Proakis
CONTROL SYSTEMS - Control System Engg. - Nagrath & Gopal.
- Automatic Control Systems - Benjamin C Kuo.
- Modern Control System - Katsuhiko Ogata.
- Design of feedback control system - Hostetter, Savant & Stefani
ELECTRIC CIRCUITS AND FIELDS - Network Analysis - Van Valkenburg.
- Network & System - D Roy & Choudhary.
- Engineering Circuit Analysis - Hayt & Kammerly.
- Electromagnetic Waves and Radiating Systems by E.C. Jordan and K.G. Balsain.
- Engg Electromagnetics - William Hayt Schaum series for problems
ELECTRONIC DEVICE + ANALOG CIRCUIT - Electronic devices and circuit Millman & Halkias.
- Electronic devices and circuit - Boylestead.
- Integrated Electronics: Analog & Digital Circuit and System - Millman & Halkias.
- Micro Electronics Circuit - Sedra & Smith.
- Linear ICs Gaekwad
ANALOG CIRCUITS - Electronics devices and circuits - Millman & Halkias.
- Electronics devices and circuits - Boylestead.
- Integrated Electronics: Analog & Digital circuits and system - Millman & Halkias
DIGITAL CIRCUITS - Micro Electronics circuit - Sedra & Smith.
- Digital Electronics - Morris Mano.
- Digital circuits - Taub & Schilling.
- Microprocessor - Ramesh Gaonker.
- Linear ICs - Gaekwad
ELECTRICAL AND ELECTRONIC MEASUREMENTS - Electronic Measurements & Instrumentation - A.K.Sawhney
ELECTRICAL MACHINES - P.S Bimbra Electrical Machines Electrical Machines by Nagrath and Kothari
POWER ELECTRONICS AND DRIVES - Power System Analysis BY JOHN GRAINGER &WILLIAM STEVENSON.
- Electric Energy Systems ; Olle Elegard.
- C L Wadhwa Electrical Power Systems


IN Reference Sheet
Complete Reference Guide GATE Guide Instrumentation Engineering 2017, GK Publications
SUBJECT REFERENCE BOOK
MATHEMATICS - Higher Engineering Mathematics - Dr. BS Grewal.
- Advance Engineering Mathematics - Erwin Kreyszig.
- Advance Engineering Mathematics - Dr. HK Dass
SIGNALS, SYSTEMS AND COMMUNICATIONS - Signal & System - Simon Hykin & Barry Van Veen.
- Signals & System Oppenheim & Schafer.
- Discrete Time Signal Processing - Oppenheim & Schafer.
- Digital Signal Processing Proakis.
- Electronic communication system - Kennedy.
- Communication systems - Simon Hykin.
- Principals of communication systems - Taub & Schilling
CONTROL SYSTEMS AND PROCESS CONTROL - Control System Engg. - Nagrath & Gopal.
- Automatic Control Systems - Benjamin C Kuo.
- Modern Control System - Katsuhiko Ogata.
- Design of feedback control system - Hostetter, Savant & Stefani.
- Process Control Instrumentation Technology- Curtis D. Johnson
BASICS OF CIRCUITS AND MEASUREMENT SYSTEMS - Network Analysis - Van Valkenburg.
- Network & System - D Roy & Choudhary.
- Engineering Circuit Analysis - Hayt & Kammerly
ANALOG CIRCUITS - Electronics devices and circuits - Millman & Halkias.
- Electronics devices and circuits - Boylestead.
- Integrated Electronics: Analog & Digital circuits and system - Millman & Halkias.
- Micro Electronics circuit - Sedra & Smith.
- Linear ICs - Gaekwad
DIGITAL CIRCUITS - Digital Electronics - Morris Mano.
- Digital circuits - Taub & Schilling.
- Microprocessor - Ramesh Gaonker
TRANSDUCERS, MECHANICAL MEASUREMENT
AND INDUSTRIAL INSTRUMENTATION
- Electronic Measurements & Instrumentation - A.K.Sawhney.
- Measurement Systems - Application and Design, Fourth edition- Doebelin E.O
ELECTRICAL AND ELECTRONIC MEASUREMENTS - Electronic Measurements & Instrumentation - A.K.Sawhney
ANALYTICAL, OPTICAL AND
BIOMEDICAL INSTRUMENTATION
- Electronic Measurements & Instrumentation - A.K.Sawhney.
- Analytical Instrumentation- Bela G. Liptak.
- Introduction to Fiber Optics- Ghatak, A, Thyagarajan, K


ME Reference Sheet
Complete Reference Guide GATE Guide Mechanical Engineering 2017, GK Publications
SUBJECT REFERENCE BOOK
MATHEMATICS - Higher Engineering Mathematics - Dr. BS Grewal.
- Advance Engineering Mathematics - Erwin Kreyszig.
- Advance Engineering Mathematics - Dr. HK Dass
ENGINEERING MECHANICS - Engineering Mechanics Vol. I & Vol. II - Meriam & Kraige.
- Engineering Mechanics - I. H. Shames.
- Engineering Mechanics - Beer & Johnson.
- Engineering Mechanics - CBS Publishers
STRENGTH OF MATERIAL - An Introduction to the Mechanics of Solids - Stephen H Crandall.
- Strength of Materials - Pytel & Singer.
- Strength of Materials - Timoshenko and Young
THEORY OF MACHINE - Theory of Machine - Nagrath & Gopal.
- Theory of Machine - S. S. Rattan.
- Theory of machine - R. S. Khurmi
MACHINE DESIGN - Mechanical Design - Shigley.
- Machine Design - Sharma & Agarwal
THERMODYNAMICS & ITS APPLICATIONS - Engineering Thermodynamics - P. K. Nag.
- Power Plant Engineering - Arora & Domkundwar.
- Referigeration & Airconditioning - Arora & Domkundwar.
- I.C. Engines - V. Ganesan
FLUID MECHANICS & HYDRAULIC MACHINES - Fluid Mechanics - K. Z. Schaffer.
- Fluid Mechanics - Schaum's series.
- Fluid Mechanics - A. K. Jain
HEAT TRANSFER - Heat Transfer - J. P. Holman.
- Heat transfer - D.S. Kumar.
- Heat Transfer - Arora & Domkundwar
MANUFACTURING ENGINEERING - Production Engineering - R. K. Jain.
- Manufacturing Science - A.K. Ghosh
INDUSTRIAL ENGINEERING - Industrial Engineering - Banga & Sharma
  • Percentile
  • All India Rank (Branch specific)
  • GATE score (with respect to all the participants in GATE exam, across all branches)
  • Absolute marks scored

Scorecard will be sent only to the qualified candidates. No information will be sent to candidates who did not qualify. GATE scorecard is valid for ONE YEAR only. Additional scorecards (up to a maximum of two) will be issued only once on request and on payment of Rs 300 per scorecard. Such requests should reach the Organizing Chairman, GATE before some stipulated date (typically by August 31) together with a bank draft for the amount mentioned as above in favour of Chairman GATE, IIT. These scorecards will be labeled as Additional Scorecard -1 and Additional Scorecard - 2.

  • Scorecard will be sent only to the qualified candidates. No information will be sent to candidates who did not qualify.
  • The GATE score card is a valuable document. Care should be taken to preserve it. Additional Score Cards, (up to a maximum of two) will be issued on payment just once.
  • The Score Card cannot be treated as a proof of category.
  • The score card of the Qualified Candidates will include GATE Score, Percentile Score and Rank.

The GATE score is calculated as follows:
gate score

m = marks obtained by the candidate.
a = average marks of all candidates who appeared in the paper mentioned on this scorecard, in the current year.
s = standard deviation of marks of all candidates who appeared in the paper mentioned on this scorecard, in the current year.

A typical qualitative interpretation of the GATE SCORE, for example, can be as follows:
The percentile score is calculated as follows:
Let N be the total number of candidates appearing in that paper and nc be the number of candidates who have the same all India rank c in the same paper (there can be bunching at a given all India rank). Then all the candidates, whose all India rank is r, will have the same percentile score P, where

P = {(no. of candidates securing marks less than the candidate concerned)/N} x 100

Multiple choice questions in all papers and sections will contain four answers of which only one is correct. The types of questions in a paper may be based on following logic:

  • Recall: These are based on facts, principles, formulas or laws of the discipline. The candidate is expected to be able to obtain the answer either from his/her memory of the subject or at most from a one-line computation.
  • Comprehension: These questions will test the candidate's understanding of the basics of his/her field, by requiring him/her to draw simple conclusions from fundamental ideas.
  • Application: In these questions, the candidate is expected to apply his/her knowledge either through computation or by logical reasoning.
  • Analysis and Synthesis: These can be linked questions, where the answer to the first question of the pair is required in order to answer its successor. Or these can be common data questions, in which two questions share the same data but can be solved independent of one another.

Common data questions:
Multiple questions may be linked to a common data problem, passage and the like. Two or three questions can be formed from the given common data problem. Each question is independent and its solution obtainable from the above problem data/passage directly. (Answer of the previous question is not required to solve the next question). Each question in this group carries two marks.

Linked answer questions:
These are problem solving question. A problem statement is followed by two questions based on the problem statement. The two questions are designed in such a way that the solution to the second question depends upon the answer to the first one. In other words, the first answer is an intermediate step in working out the second answer. Each question in such linked answer questions will carry two marks.

The questions based on the above four logics may be a mix of single, stand alone statement / phrase / data type questions, combination of option codes type questions or match items type questions.

OFFLINE
Application fee General & OBC Rs. 1000
SC/ST/PD Rs. 500
ONLINE
Application fee General & OBC Rs. 900
SC/ST/PD Rs. 400
Application Submission Process Application Submission Process
Step 1.
Procurement of Application FormCandidate can obtain a packet containing
(i) OFFLINE Application Form
(ii) Information Brochure
(iii) Acknowledgment Card
(iv) Envelope from:
1. Designated Bank Branches corresponding to each zone on cash payment.
2. Zonal GATE Office by sending a request letter and TWO self-addressed slips along with a Demand Draft for appropriate amount.
3. Zonal GATE Office after handing over Demand Draft for appropriate amount
Step 1.
Obtain a Demand DraftThe candidates must obtain a Demand Draft, drawn on any nationalized bank in favor of Chairman of the corresponding zonal GATE Office, the website of which the candidate wishes to submit online Application.
Step 2.
Fill in the Application Form
Step 2.
Online Application
Step 3.
Obtain SC/ST/PD/OBC (non creamy layer) Certificate
SC/ST/OBC (non creamy layer) and Disability Certificate should be obtained from appropriate authority, if applicable. Authorities who can issue SC/ST/OBC (non creamy layer) Certificates.
Step 3.
Take print out of Application Form Save the PDF file, take a printout, Sign at appropriate places and paste photograph.
Step 4.
Post/Submission Duly filled-in Application Form with appropriate enclosures must be sent by Registered or Speed post to the Chairman, GATE of the Zone, where the candidate prefers (corresponding to the 1st Choice of Examination City) to appear for the examination.
Or
It can be handed over personally to respective Zonal GATE Office.
Step 4.
Obtain SC/ST/PD/OBC (non creamy layer) Certificate
SC/ST/OBC (non creamy layer) and Disability Certificate should be obtained from appropriate authority, if applicable. Authorities who can issue SC/ST/OBC (non creamy layer) Certificates.
Step 5.
Post/Submission Duly filled-in Application Form with appropriate enclosures must be sent by Registered or Speed post to the Chairman, GATE of the Zone, the website of which has been used for making ONLINE registration.OR It can be handed over personally to respective Zonal GATE Office.

Till GATE 2015, there were total 22 question papers but from 2016 there is a new addition of another subject -Petroleum Engineering. Hence now there are total 23 question papers.

Before candidates had to bring their own calculators but now there will be an online scientific calculator available for the candidates while giving the examination.

No candidate will be allowed to get their own calculator with themselves in the examination hall. They will have to use online virtual calculator, this will be available on the official website of GATE.

List of PSUs hiring through GATE

Sl.No

Name of Company

Eligible Branches

1

Airport Authority of India (AAI)

EC

2

Bhaba Automic Research Center (BARC)

ME, CH, MT, EE, EC, CS, IN & CE

3

Bharath Broadband Network Ltd (BBNL)

EC, CS, EE

4

Bharat Electronic Limited (BEL)

EC, CS, EE, CE, ME

5

Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL)

ME, EE, EC, MT

6

Bank Note Paper Mill Pvt Ltd (BNPM)

ME, EE, EC, CH

7

Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL)

ME,IN, CH

8

Bihar State Power Holding Company Limited (BSPHCL)

ME, EE, EC

9

CABINET SECRETARIAT (Govt of India)

CS, EC, PH, CY

10

Central Electronics Limited (CEL)

ME, EE, EC, MT

11

Coal India Ltd

ME, EE, GG, MN

12

Container Corporation  of India Ltd (CONCOR)

ME, EE, EC

13

Delhi Development Authority (DDA)

CE, EE, ME

14

Damodar Valley Corporation (DVC)

EE, CE, IN

15

GAIL

CH, ME, EE, IN, CS, EC

16

Gujarat State Electricity Corporation Limited (GSECL)

MT, IN, EE, ME

17

Hindustan Petroleum Corporate Limited ()

ME, CE, EE, EC, IN, CH

18

Indian Oil Corporate Limited

CH, CE, CS, EE, EC, IN, MT, ME, PE, XE

19

IRCON International Ltd.

CE, ME, EE, EC

20

L&T Build India Scholarship

CE, ME, EE

21

Krishak Bharati Cooperative (KRIBHCO)

CS, EC, EE, ME, CE, IN

22

Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Ltd. (MDL)

ME, EE

23

Mineral Exploration Corporation Limited (MECL)

GG, CS, CY, ME

24

Mumbai Railway Vikas Corporation Ltd (MRVC Ltd)

CE

25

National Aluminium Company Limited (NALCO)

EE, ME, IN, EC, MT, CE, MN, CH, CS

26

National Textile Corporation

TF

27

NBCC Ltd

CE

28

NFL

CH, ME, EE, IN

29

NHAI

CE

30

NHPC

EE, CE, ME, GG

31

NLC (Neyveli Lignite Corporation Limited)

ME, EE, EC, CE, IN, CS, MN

32

NPCCL

CE

33

NTPC

EE, EC, ME, IN, CE, CS

34

Oil India

ME, GG

35

ONGC Ltd

ME, EE, CE, EC, PH, IN, CH, GG, CY, MA, CS

36

OPGC Ltd

ME, EE, CE, IN, PI

37

Power Grid

EE, EC, CE, CS

38

PSPCL

EE

39

Rail Vikas Nigam Ltd.

CE, EE, EC

40

RITES

CE, ME, EE, EC

41

THDC India Ltd.

ME, EE, CE

42

Vizag Steel

MT, ME, EE

43

WBSEDCL

EE,EC

The registration-cum-application fee for offline applications in 2009 was Rs.1000/- for General & OBC candidates and Rs.500/- for SC/ST/PD candidates (May change in the coming year). The fee for online application was Rs.900/- for General & OBC candidates and Rs. 400/- for SC/ST candidates. The registration fee is not refundable and the application form is not transferable.