UGC NET 2024 application form is expecting to release in April 2024 in online mode. The National Testing Agency may conduct UGC NET exam only once a year. The test is conducted to decide eligibility of a candidate for ‘Assistant Professor’ and ‘Junior Research Fellowship and Assistant Professor’ in colleges and universities across India. Read and follow this post to know all information about UGC NET 2024 and its related updates. You can also share your concern(s) if any using the comment box below. We are here to answer to all your concerns.

UGC NET 2024 Important Dates

The tentative dates related to UGC NET 2024 are provided in the table below:

UGC NET 2024 Eligibility Criteria

The basic eligibility for appearing in UGC NET 2024 is provided below:

Age limit:

• For JRF: The candidates should not be more than 31 years of age. There is a relaxation of 5 years is available for eligible candidates.

• For Assistant Professor: No upper age limit is prescribed for the post of Assistant Professor.

Relaxation in age limit:

• A relaxation of up to 5 years is provided to the candidates belonging to OBC Non-Creamy Layer (OBC-NCL)/ SC/ ST/ PWD/ Transgender categories and to women applicants.
• Relaxation will also be provided to the candidates with research experience, limited to the period spent on research in the relevant subject of post-graduation degree, subject to a maximum of 5 years.
• Three years relaxation in age will be permissible to the candidates with LLM degree.
• A relaxation of up to 5 years is provided to the candidates who have served in the armed forces subject to the length of service in the armed forces up to the first day of the month in which the concerned UGC NET is to be held.

Academic requirement:

• Candidates who hold a master’s degree in Humanities and Social Science (including languages), Computer Science & Applications, Electronic Science, etc from a recognized university with not less than 55% marks in aggregate are eligible.
• For OBC/ SC/ ST/ PWD/ Transgender candidates, the minimum marks requirement is 50%.
• Those who are in the final year of their master’s degree programme can apply too.
• PhD degree holders who have completed their master’s degree by 19th September 1991 also require only 50% marks in qualifying exam.

Exemption (eligibility for assistant professor):

• • The candidates who have passed the UGC/ CSIR/ JRF examination prior to 1989 are exempted from appearing in NET.
  • Those who have cleared the States Eligibility Test (SET) accredited by UGC for Assistant Professor held prior to 1st June 2002, are exempted from appearing in NET and are eligible to apply for Assistant Professor anywhere in India.
• For SET held from 1st June 2002 onwards, the qualified candidates are eligible to apply for the post of Assistant Professor only in the universities/ colleges situated in the State from where they have cleared their SET. 

UGC NET 2024 Application Form

The application form for UGC NET 2024 has been released in online mode on the official website www.ugcnet.nta.nic.in. To avoid last minutes rush, the candidates are advised to apply without waiting for the last date.

• Candidates need to fill a registration form first providing a unique email id, mobile number, name, father’s name, date of birth, gender, etc.
• After successful registration, the candidates can proceed towards filling of the application form.
• To fill the application form, the candidates will have to provide their rest personal and academic details.
• The applicants are also required to upload scanned copies of their photograph, and signature into application form.
• After providing all the details as asked in the application form, the candidates can submit it online along with the prescribed application fee.
• The applicants should keep a printout of the application form along with them in case of future reference.

Application fee:

Candidates can make payment of the application fee online via debit card/ credit card/ net banking/ Paytm. The application fee structure for different categories is provided below.

UGC NET 2024 Application Form Correction Method

NTA allows registered candidates to make necessary corrections in the application form within the given period of time. Nobody will be able to make corrections once the deadline for the same is over.

The tentative date of opening correction window for UGC NET 2024 may fall in the first week of May 2024. Candidates will be able to make correction in the application form in online mode.

UGC NET 2024 Exam Pattern

The exam pattern overview of the UGC NET 2024 is provided below:

• Mode of exam: Computer based test
• Number of papers: 2
• Duration of exam: 3 hours
• Number of questions: 150
• Total marks: 300
• Language mode: Candidates can select the language mode- English and Hindi.
• Marking scheme: For each correct response the candidate will get 2 marks.
• Negative marking: There is no negative marking for incorrect response.

UGC NET 2024 Syllabus

Check out the syllabus for the UGC NET for few subjects below. Rest can be found from the website www.ugcnetonline.in/syllabus-new.php.

General Paper on Teaching & Research Aptitude: Teaching Aptitude, Comprehension, Research Aptitude, Logical Reasoning, Mathematical Reasoning and Aptitude, Information and Communication Technology, Data Interpretation, etc

English: Drama, Poetry, Fiction, Non-Fictional Prose, English in India, Cultural Studies, Literary Theory post World War II, Literary Criticism, etc 

Library and Information Science: Data, Information, Knowledge and Wisdom, Information Industry, National Knowledge Commission, Types of Libraries, Library and Information Science Education in India, etc

Public Administration: Intro to Public Administration, Administrative Thought, Comparative & Development Administration, State & Local Administration, etc

History: Archaeological Sources, Indus/ Harappa Civilization, Gupta Vakataka Age, Emergence of Regional Kingdoms, Source of Medieval Indian History, Administration & Economy, etc

UGC NET Admit Card 2024

The admit card for the test will be made available on the official website around a month before the exam.

Candidates should download their admit card and take its printout to be carried to the exam center.

No candidate will be allowed to appear for the exam if they report to the exam center without admit card.

In case candidates are unable to download the admit card, they should approach the Help Line.

Admit card is an important document that should be kept safe by the candidates till they are granted fellowship.

Answer Key

Provisional answer key of the eligibility test will be displayed on the NTA website www.ugcnet.nta.nic.in.

Candidates can submit their objections on the answer key, if any, though the challenge link provided on the official website.

The candidates are required to pay an amount of Rs. 1000/- per question challenged.

NTA will consider the objections received and prepare a final answer key. NTA’s decision on the challenges shall be final.

UGC NET Result 

Authority will prepare the result of the NET on the basis of final answer key drafted.

The result will be declared through online mode on the official website of NTA as per the decided schedule.

Candidates who clear the exam will be considered for the fellowship award and for the post of Assistant Professor.

Assistant Professor and Fellowship Award

The eligibility for ‘Assistant Professor’ or for ‘Junior Research Fellowship and Assistant Professor’ will depend on the performance of the candidate in both the papers of UGC NET in aggregate.

Candidates who qualify the test for eligibility for Assistant Professor will be governed by the rules & regulations of the concerned universities/ colleges/ State governments.

Those who qualify for the award of JRF are eligible to pursue research in the subject of their post-graduation or related subject and are also eligible for Assistant Professor.

Such candidates will be eligible to receive fellowship of UGC under various schemes, subject to their finding placement in universities/ IITs/ Institutions.

UGC NET 2024 Cutoff

The cut off is nothing but the minimum marks that candidates necessarily have to acquire to become eligible for the said appointment. Candidates can check the cut off marks by visiting the official website of the concerned authority.

UGC NET 2024 cutoff will decided and notified based on a number of factors which also include exam level, number of candidates registered for admission etc. The cut off will be prescribed separately for unreserved and reserved category candidates. Candidates are necessarily required to achieve the minimum marks to become qualified for the appointment.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Question 1: If I do not wish to appear for the test, can I withdraw my application?

Answer: Online application form cannot be withdrawn once it is submitted successfully. Also, no refund on the submitted application fee is granted.

Question 2: I found an error in my admit card details. What should I do?

Answer: In case of any discrepancy in the particulars of the admit card, the candidates should immediately approach the Help Line. In such cases, candidates would appear in the examination with the already downloaded admit card. NTA will take necessary action to make correction in the record later.

Question 3: What if I made a mistake while filling the application form?

Answer: A correction window will be provided to the candidates to make changes in the details entered in the application form. Registration data however cannot be modified.

Question 4: What documents should be brought to the exam center on day of exam?

Answer: Candidates must bring the following documents to the test center:

• Printed copy of admit card downloaded from NTA website
• One passport size photograph (same as uploaded on the online application form)
• Any one of the authorized photo IDs in original, valid and non-expired– PAN card/ Driving License/ Voter ID/ Passport/ Aadhaar Card (With photograph)/ Aadhaar Enrolment No/ Ration Card
• PWD certificate issued by the Competent Authority, if claiming the relaxation under PWD category

Validity of the JRF Award

The validity period of the offer will be three years w.e.f. the date of issue of JRF Award Letter. However, for those candidates who have already joined M. Phil/ PhD, the date of commencement of Fellowship shall be from the date of declaration of NET result or date of their joining, whichever is later.

UGC NET 2024 Selection Process

The selection process of ‘Assistant Professor’ and ‘Junior Research Fellowship and Assistant Professor are based on reservation norms prescribed by the government of India. The procedure is required to be executed for the candidates who are successfully qualified in the entrance test.

Candidates are to be shortlisted for the ‘Assistant Professor’ and ‘Junior Research Fellowship and Assistant Professor Profile based on their rank secured in the merit list which is prepared category-wise.