Doing a master's in India

Doing a master's in India

The GATE exam

          The Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering (GATE), is an All -India Examination conducted by the six Indian Institutes of technology and Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, on behalf of the National Coordinating Board - GATE, Department of Education, Ministry of Human Resources Development (MHRD), Government of India. Admission to Postgraduate Courses, with MHRD Scholarship / Assistantship, in Engineering / Technology / Architecture / Pharmacy at Colleges / Institutes will be open only to those who qualify in GATE. Some Colleges/ Institutes specify GATE as mandatory qualification even for admission of self-financing students. Candidates are required to find out the procedure for selection and award of Scholarship/Assistantship from the Institution to which the candidates wish to seek admission. Some industries and foreign universities have indicated their interest in GATE qualified candidates. GATE qualified candidates in the Engineering disciplines are also eligible for the award of Junior Research Fellowship in CSIR Laboratories.

Structure of Examination

          Candidates will be required to appear in a single paper of 3 hours duration among the following papers: Paper Code Agricultural Engineering (AG) Architecture (AR) Civil Engineering (CE) Chemical Engineering (CH) Computer Science & Engineering (CS) Chemistry (CY) Electronics & Comm.Engineering (EC) Electrical Engineering (EE) Geology & Geophysics (GG) Instrumentation Engineering (IN) Mathematics (MA) Mechanical Engineering (ME) Mining Engineering (MN) Metallurgical Engineering (MT) Physics (PH) Production & Industrial Engineering (PI) Pharmaceutical Sciences (PY) Textile Engineering & Fibre Science (TF) Engineering Sciences (XE) Life Sciences (XL)

           Papers XE and XL are general in nature and will comprise of the following sections

ENGINEERING SCIENCES (XE)

Engineering Mathematics (Compulsory) (A) Computational Science (B) Electrical Sciences (C) Fluid Mechanics (D) Materials Science (E) Solid Mechanics (F) Statistics (G) Thermodynamics (H)

LIFE SCIENCES (XL)

Chemistry (Compulsory) (I) Biochemistry (J) Biotechnology (K) Botany (L) Microbiology (M) Zoology (N)

           Candidates appearing in XE or XL papers are required to answer THREE sections (one compulsory and two others of candidate's choice out of the sections mentioned against the respective papers). Candidates qualified in XE or XL papers are required to be interviewed by the admitting institute. A candidate is expected to answer the paper appropriate to the discipline of his/ her qualifying degree. However, the candidate is free to choose any of the papers as per his/ her admission plan.

Eligibility criteria for appearing at GATE-

The following categories of candidates are eligible to appear at GATE: Bachelor's degree holders in Engineering/ Technology/ Architecture/ Pharmacy and those who are in the final or pre-final year of such programmes. Master's degree holders in any branch of Science/ Mathematics/ Statistics or equivalent and those who are in the final or pre-final year of such programmes. However, if the degree is in Master of Computer Applications, the candidate should have had courses in Mathematics at the Bachelor's or Master's level. Candidates in the second or higher year of the (Post B.Sc.) Four-Year Integrated Master's degree programme in Engineering/ Technology or in the third or higher year of the Five-year Integrated Master's degree/ Dual degree programme 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.

                                                                            

Conclusion

          Though most of this information is obtained as a result of our experiences in the last year, we make no guarantees as to the correctness of the information. Please check for changes. Any guidance that we have given is what we felt was best for us. Of course, if you have different ideas please feel free to use your own discretion.