Teaching & Research · Job + higher study

UGC-NET

University Grants Commission National Eligibility Test

Determines eligibility for Assistant Professor posts in Indian universities and colleges, award of Junior Research Fellowship (JRF), and admission to PhD programmes, across 87 humanities, social science, commerce and other subjects.

Eligibility

Master's degree or equivalent with at least 55% (50% for OBC-NCL/SC/ST/PwD/third gender); final-year students can apply. Four-year undergraduate degree holders with at least 75% may also appear. No attempt limit.

Age limit: JRF: not more than 30 years (relaxation of up to 5 years for OBC-NCL/SC/ST/PwD/women/third gender). Assistant Professor and PhD admission: no upper age limit.

Exam pattern

Computer-based test of 3 hours with no break, two papers in one sitting. Paper 1 (General Paper on Teaching and Research Aptitude): 50 questions, 100 marks. Paper 2 (subject paper): 100 questions, 200 marks. All multiple-choice, 2 marks per correct answer, no negative marking. Cut-offs are declared separately for JRF, Assistant Professor and PhD-only categories.

Syllabus at a glance

Paper 1 covers teaching aptitude, research aptitude, reading comprehension, communication, mathematical and logical reasoning, data interpretation, ICT, people and environment, and higher education system. Paper 2 follows the UGC subject syllabus, typically 10 units spanning the full postgraduate curriculum of the chosen subject.

Upcoming dates

Event	Date	Status
December 2026 application correction window (applications closed 31 Oct; fee payment extended to 1 Nov)	2-4 Nov 2026	confirmed
Exam city intimation slip	23 Nov 2026	confirmed
Admit card	7 Dec 2026	confirmed
December 2026 exam	14-18 and 21 Dec 2026	confirmed
Result	Jan-Feb 2027	expected
June 2027 cycle notification	Apr-May 2027	expected

Expected dates follow the usual calendar; confirm on the official notification before planning.

Free prep material

Official

UGC-NET official portal

Information bulletin, subject-wise syllabus, notices, answer keys and results.

Previous papers

UGC NET Bureau archive: previous question papers

Official UGC archive of subject-wise question papers from 2009 to 2018, plus syllabus pages; still useful for Paper 2 concept practice.

Mock tests

NTA mock tests

Free official CBT mock tests that replicate the exact exam interface.

Study material

e-Gyankosh (IGNOU)

Free IGNOU master's-level course material; excellent for Paper 2 in humanities, social sciences and commerce.

Study material

SWAYAM

Free UGC-approved postgraduate MOOCs mapped to many NET subjects.

Video course

JRFAdda on YouTube

Free Paper 1 lectures, previous-year paper solutions and subject sessions.

Standard books

Trueman's UGC NET/SET General Paper I - M. Gagan & Sajit Kumar (Danika Publishing)
UGC NET Paper I: Teaching and Research Aptitude - K.V.S. Madaan (Pearson)
UGC NET/JRF/SET Teaching and Research Aptitude (Paper I) - Arihant Experts (Arihant)
UGC NET Paper 1 Chapter-wise Solved Papers - Arihant Experts / Disha Experts
Subject-specific Trueman's or Arihant guide for Paper 2, backed by IGNOU e-Gyankosh units

How toppers play it

No negative marking: answer every question, and spend the first 50-60 minutes on Paper 1 so Paper 2 gets at least two hours.
Paper 1 is the scorer: data interpretation, logical reasoning and mathematical reasoning (about 15-18 questions) are formula-based and fully scorable with practice.
For Paper 2, solve the last 10 cycles' papers unit by unit; NTA repeats facts, authors, theorists and assertion-reason patterns.
Practise matching, chronological ordering and assertion-reason questions specifically; they now form a large share of both papers.
Target JRF-level marks (typically 65-70%+ aggregate in popular subjects) rather than the Assistant Professor cut-off, as the margin is narrow.