CSIR NET Exam 2024: Exam Date, Syllabus, Pattern, Cut off

What is CSIR NET?

The full form of CSIR UGC NET is Council of Scientific and Industrial Research University Grants Commission National Eligibility Test. It is a national-level examination administered by the National Testing Agency (NTA) for the purpose of selecting applicants for Junior Research Fellowships (JRF) and determining their eligibility for lecturing positions in Indian universities and colleges.

It is a test that is being conducted to determine Indian nationals’ eligibility for Junior Research Fellowships (JRF) and Lectureships (LS)/Assistant Professor positions in Indian universities and colleges, subject to meeting the UGC’s eligibility criteria. Online applications for JRF/NET are invited twice a year on a pan-India basis via the Joint CSIR-UGC NET for JRF and LS/AP Press Notification. In 2020, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the test was conducted only once.

Both the CSIR NET and UGC NET exams are used to determine eligibility for college and university level lectureships, as well as to award Junior Research Fellowships (JRF) to Indian nationals pursuing a Ph.D. programme or conducting research. Aspirants frequently apply to both exams and prepare for them concurrently.

 

What is UGC NET?

The University Grants Commission National Eligibility Test (UGC NET) is a national-level examination that is used to recruit candidates for Assistant Professor and Junior Research Fellowship (JRF) positions in Indian universities and colleges. The National Testing Agency (NTA) administers the UGC NET exam twice a year in June and December.

Candidates interested in applying for Assistant Professor or Fellowship positions must pass the UGC NET 2024 exam, after which they will receive a NET certificate that will allow them to apply for and be considered for various available positions.

Similarities UGC NET and CSIR NET

Consider the following significant similarities between UGC NET and CSIR NET:

• Exam purpose: Shortlisting candidates for the positions of Assistant Professor and Junior Research Fellow is the goal of both exams.

• Frequency: Both exams are administered twice a year, in July and December.

• Exam level: Both exams are administered at the national level in multiple states and cities throughout India.

• Administering body: Both exams are administered by the NTA.

• Assessment: Candidates are evaluated on both their general aptitude and subject knowledge in both exams.

• Qualifying Criteria: The top 6% of qualifying candidates in both exams are declared eligible for lectureship, and approximately 2% to 3% of candidates are shortlisted for both JRF and lectureship.

 

Key Differences between UGC and CSIR NET

The UGC NET exam is offered in 81 subjects from a variety of streams. On the other hand, the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research’s (CSIR) National Eligibility Test (NET) is restricted to subject areas within the faculty of Science and Technology. Consider the following details:

Category	UGC NET	CSIR NET
Number of Subjects	81	5
Name of Subjects	List of UGC NET subjects	Chemical SciencesEarth, Atmospheric, Ocean and Planetary Sciences Life Sciences Mathematical Sciences Physical Sciences
Educational Qualification	Post-graduation in relevant streams such as Humanities, Social Science, Electronic Science, Computer Science & Applications, etc. with at least 55 percent aggregate	Degree in BTech/BE/BPharma/MBBS/BS (4 years)/Integrated BS-MS/MSc with minimum 55 percent aggregate
Age Limit	Candidates for JRF should be at least 30 years old.	Candidates for JRF should be at least 28 years old.

 

List of subjects for UGC NET are as follows:

UGC NET Subjects
Adult Education/Continuing Education/Andragogy/Non-Formal Education	Maithili	French (French Version)
Anthropology	Malayalam	Geography
Arab Culture and Islamic Studies	Management (including Business Admn. Mgt./Marketing/Marketing Mgt./Industrial Relations and Personnel Mgt./ Personnel Mgt./Financial Mgt./Co-operative Management)	German
Arabic	Manipuri	Gujarati
Archaeology	Marathi	Hindi
Assamese	Mass Communication and Journalism	History
Bengali	Museology & Conservation	Home Science
Bodo	Music	Human Rights and Duties
Buddhist, Jaina, Gandhian and Peace Studies	Nepali	Indian Culture
Chinese	Oriya	Japanese
Commerce	Pali	Kannada
Comparative Literature	Performing Art – Dance/Drama/Theatre	Kashmiri
Comparative Study of Religions	Persian	Konkani
Computer Science and Applications	Philosophy	Labour Welfare/Personnel Management/Industrial Relations/Labour and Social Welfare/Human Resource Management
Criminology	Physical Education	Law
Defence and Strategic Studies	Political Science	Library and Information Science
Dogri	Politics	Linguistics
Economics/Rural Economics/Co-operation/Demography/Development	Population Studies	Sanskrit
Education	Prakrit	Sanskrit traditional subjects
Electronic Science	Psychology	Santali
English	Public Administration	Sindhi
Environmental Sciences	Punjabi	Social Medicine & Community Health
Folk Literature	Rajasthani	Social Work
Forensic Science	Russian	Sociology
Tamil	Tribal and Regional Language/Literature	Spanish
Telugu	Urdu	Women Studies
Tourism Administration and Management.	Visual Art (including Drawing & Painting/Sculpture Graphics/Applied Art/History of Art)	Yoga

CSIR Exam Important Points

• Conducting Body: National Testing Agency (NTA)

• Exam Level: National

• Exam Frequency: Twice a year

• Mode of Exam: Online (Computer based exam)

• Exam Fees: General Category – INR 1000, OBC – INR 500, SC/ST – INR 250

• Exam Duration: 180 minutes

• Exam Time:

• • • Slot 1 – 09:00 am to 12:00 noon
      Slot 2 – 03:00 pm to 06:00 pm

• Number of Papers with marks: 

• • • Paper I – 200 marks
    • Paper 2 – 200 marks

• Total number of questions: 150 MCQs

• Marking Scheme:

• • • +2 for each correct answer
    • 0.25 mark deduction for each wrong answer

• Language: English and Hindi

• Number of Test Cities: 225

 

CSIR Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible to sit for the CSIR NET 2024 examination, an applicant must meet the following criteria:

• The candidate must be a citizen of India.
• The maximum age for the JRF position should be 28 years.
• There will be no upper age limit for lectureship positions.
• Applicants from various categories will receive appropriate accommodations.
• Applicants with bachelor’s degrees in any discipline, whether science, engineering, or another, are eligible for the fellowship only after being accepted/enrolled in a PhD or Integrated PhD programme within the two-year validity period.
• Candidates enrolled in a Master’s programme or who have completed 10+2+3 years of the above qualifying exam are also eligible to apply in the above subject under the ‘Result Awaited (RA)’ category.

CSIR Exam pattern

The CSIR NET exam pattern  details the question paper’s structure, which includes the total number of subjects, questions, exam duration, and marking scheme. Consider the following highlights of the exam pattern:

• Each CSIR NET question paper is divided into three sections: Part A, Part B, and Part C.
• The CSIR NET Part-A tests candidates’ teaching/research aptitude, reasoning ability, comprehension skills, divergent thinking, and general awareness.
• The questions in Paper B and Part C are based on the subject chosen by candidates from the following five categories: Earth, Atmospheric, Ocean, and Planetary Sciences, Chemical Sciences, Life Sciences, Mathematical Sciences, and Physical Sciences.
• The exam is worth 200 marks.
• There is a negative marking of 25 per cent (33 per cent for a few parts) for each wrong answer
• The examination consists of multiple-choice questions of the objective type (MCQs).
• The exam is three hours long.
• There is no discontinuity between the three sections.

 

Particulars	Exam Pattern Highlights
Exam mode	Online
Exam duration	180 minutes (3 hours)
Number of sections/parts	3
Total questions to be attempted	Chemical Sciences: 75Earth Sciences: 75 Life Sciences: 75 Mathematical Sciences: 60 Physical Sciences: 55
Type of questions	MCQs; 4 options with only 1 correct option
Total marks	200 for each paper
Negative marking	Yes (0.25 mark deduction for each wrong answer)
Language of paper	English and Hindi

CSIR Subjects

The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) Human Resource Development Group has prescribed the CSIR NET syllabus for 2024. (HRDG). The CSIR UGC NET syllabus covers topics from all five disciplines: Earth, Atmospheric, Ocean, and Planetary Sciences, Chemical Sciences, Life Sciences, Mathematics, and Physical Sciences. The complete CSIR NET syllabus is available here for all subjects as prescribed by the CSIR. Candidates should familiarise themselves with the syllabus well in advance of the exam.

The NTA administers the CSIR NET exam to determine candidates’ eligibility for Junior Research Fellowships (JRF) or Lectureships (LS)/ Assistant Professor positions in Indian universities and colleges.

The subjects for which the CSIR UGC NET examination is conducted are listed below:

CSIR NET Subjects	CSIR NET Subject Codes
Chemical Sciences	701
Earth, Atmospheric, Ocean and Planetary Sciences	702
Life Sciences	703
Mathematical Sciences	704
Physical Sciences	705

 

The CSIR NET syllabus for Part A is identical for all five subjects. Part A of the examination includes questions on General Science, Quantitative Reasoning, and Analysis and Research Aptitude. Part A contains twenty multiple-choice questions (MCQs), and candidates must answer any fifteen of them. Each question is worth two marks. Part A receives a total of 30 marks out of a possible 200. Consider the following syllabus for Part A:

PART A:

Reasoning:

• Analytical Reasoning
• Syllogisms
• Analogies
• Directions
• Coding-Decoding
• Classification
• Alphabet Series
• Symbols and Notations
• Similarities and Differences
• Number Series
• Blood Relationships
• Arrangements
• Statements
• Data Sufficiency
• Non-verbal Reasoning
• Visual Ability
• Graphical Analysis
• Data Analysis

Quantitative Aptitude

• Simplifications
• Number System
• Average
• Algebra
• Percentage
• Time & Work
• Simple & Compound Interest
• Time & Speed
• HCF, LCM Problems
• Area
• Profit & Loss
• Bar Graph, Pictorial Graph, Pie Chart
• Ratio & Proportion
• Permutation & Combination

Data Interpretation & Graphical Analysis

• Mean
• Median
• Mode
• Measures of Dispersion
• Graphical Analysis: Bar Graph, Line Graph, Pie-Chart and Tabulation

PART B and C:

The syllabus for Part B and C is subject-specific. The table below summarises the major topics covered in each of the five subjects for both parts.

Subject	Topics of Part B & C	Marking Scheme
Earth Sciences	Part B The Earth and the Solar System Earth Materials, Surface Features and Processes Interior of the Earth, Deformation and Tectonics Oceans and Atmosphere Environmental Earth Sciences Part C Geology – Mineralogy and Petrology Geology – Structural Geology and Geotectonics Geology – Paleontology and its Applications Geology – Sedimentology and Stratigraphy Geology – Marine Geology and Paleoceanography Geology – Geochemistry Geology – Economic Geology Geology – Precambrian Geology and Crustal Evolution Geology – Quaternary Geology Geology – Applied Geology Geology – Physical Geography Geology – Geophysics Geology – Meteorology Geology – Ocean Sciences	There is a negative marking of 25 per cent in Part A and B and 33 per cent in Part C for each wrong answer.
Chemical Sciences	Inorganic ChemistryPhysical Chemistry Organic Chemistry Chemistry in nanoscience and technology Catalysis and Green Chemistry Medicinal Chemistry Supramolecular Chemistry Environmental Chemistry	There is a negative marking of 25 per cent for each wrong answer
Life Sciences	Molecules and their Interaction Relevant to BiologyCellular Organization Fundamental Processes Cell Communication and Cell Signaling Developmental Biology System Physiology – Plant System Physiology – Animal Inheritance Biology Diversity of Life Forms Ecological Principles Evolution and Behavior Applied Biology Methods in Biology	There is a negative marking of 25 per cent for each wrong answer
Physical Sciences	Mathematical Methods of PhysicsClassical Mechanics Electromagnetic Theory Quantum Mechanics Thermodynamic and Statistical Physics Electronics and Experimental Methods	There is a negative marking of 25 per cent for each wrong answer
Mathematical Sciences	AnalysisLinear Algebra Complex Analysis Algebra Ordinary Differential Equations (ODEs) Partial Differential Equations (PDEs) Numerical Analysis Calculus of Variations Linear Integral Equations Classical Mechanics Descriptive Statistics, Exploratory Data Analysis	There is a negative marking of 25 per cent in Part A and B and there is no negative marking for Part C

CSIR NET Exam Fees

The application fee will be determined by the category to which an individual belongs. The application fee for each category is listed below:

If you belongs to UR Category (Unreserved) then your exam fee as well as the cut off will be higher for csir net and ugc net.

 

Category	CSIR NET Application Fee
General	INR 1000
OBC (Non- Creamy Layer)	INR 500
EWS	INR 500
SC/ ST	INR 250
PwD	INR 250
Transgender	INR 250

 

CSIR NET Application Process

Candidates interested in applying for the CSIR NET 2024 examination are required to complete the application form. The application form is completed online.

Candidates are required to visit the CSIR’s official website, which is located at https://csirnet.nta.nic.in/. The application procedure for completing the form is as follows:

• To begin, candidates must register online.
• Log in using the username and password you created during the registration process.
• Fill out the application form using the application number and password shared with you via email and phone.
• Upload the scanned documents in accordance with the requirements. There will also be instructions for the same.
• After submitting the form, pay the application fee using one of the available online payment gateways.

CSIR Admit card:

The admit card will be distributed within one month of the application being submitted. Candidates must submit the completed application form within the specified time period in order to obtain the CSIR NET admit card.

Candidates can download their admit cards after they are released on the CSIR’s official website by logging into their accounts. Without an admit card, candidates will be denied entry to the exam centre.

Candidates must follow the steps outlined below in order to download their admit cards:

Step 1: Navigate to the CSIR’s website, which is located at www.csirnet.nta.nic.in.

Step 2: Click on the “Click here for Admit card” link.

Step 3: Using your application number and password, log in to your account.

Step 4: After logging in, the candidate’s admit card will be displayed.

Step 5: You may download and print the admit card for future reference.

CSIR NET Exam Centres

The exams will be held in various states throughout the country, each with its own exam centre. The following is a list of exam centres:

List of CSIR NET Exam Centres
Bangalore	Guwahati	Nagpur
Bhavnagar	Hyderabad	Pilani
Bhopal	Imphal	Pune
Bhubaneshwar	Jammu	Raipur
Chandigarh	Jamshedpur	Roorkee
Chennai	Jorhat	Srinagar
Cochin	Karaikudi	Thiruvananthapuram
Delhi	Kolkata	Udaipur
Guntur	Lucknow	Varanasi

CSIR NET Certificate

Candidates who pass the exam can download their CSIR NET June 2021 certificate by following the steps below:

• To learn more, please visit the official website at ecertificate.nta.ac.in.
• Choose ‘Joint CSIR-UGC NET’, enter the captcha code, and click ‘Submit’.
• Enter the roll number or application number, the candidate’s date of birth, the examination session, and the captcha code.
• Download the CSIR NET 2023-24 certificate.
• The following is the direct link to download the CSIR NET certificate for June 2021: https://ecertificate.nta.ac.in/candidateLoginPage.php.

 

Candidates who have qualified the CSIR NET June 2021 exam for CSIR JRF/LS and JRF only (Part I) positions are required to send self-attested copies of the following documents to certificate@csirhrdg.res.in via email:

• The Marks Statement (CSIR NET scorecard) is available at csirnet.nta.nic.in.
• Class 10 certificate (issued by the respective board) as proof of date of birth.
• Degree/provisional degree awarded upon passing the qualifying examination/MSc/equivalent degree.
• Final grade report containing the required percentage of marks.
• CGPA/SGPA/OGPA/CPI conversion formula from their respective University/Institute or a certificate from the concerned University/Institute specifying the percentage of marks earned in the qualifying degree.
• In the case of a dual degree, marks/periods are divided.
• SC/ST Certificate, if applicable.
• Latest OBC Caste Certificate (non-creamy layer) in accordance with the format specified on the NCBC website (www.ncbc.nic.in).
• PwD candidates must submit certificates in accordance with Government of India regulations.
• Certificate of EWS category (Income and Asset Certificate) issued by the appropriate competent authority for the financial years 2020-2021 or 2021-22 in the format specified in Appendix-V of the Joint CSIR UGC JRF NET June 2021 Information Bulletin.
• After the CSIR verifies candidates’ documents, they will be issued the CSIR NET E-certificate 2024.

CSIR NET Certificate Validity

The validity of the CSIR NET certificate varies for JRF and Lectureship positions, as detailed below:

• The CSIR NET JRF award letter is valid for two years.
• Lectureship/Assistant Professor: The validity of the CSIR NET certificate for Lectureship/Assistant Professor is indefinite.

CSIR NET Result

These qualified candidates will receive a National Fellowship beginning July 1, 2024. The CSIR UGC NET result is released in the form of a scorecard, which includes information about candidates’ exam qualifying status, as well as their marks and percentages obtained. The CSIR NET scores and percentages are published in aggregate and by paper. Candidates can access their CSIR NET results by following the steps outlined below:

• Visit the organisation’s official website at https://csirnet.nta.nic.in.
• To access the scorecard, click on the link provided below.
• Input the application number and the applicant’s date of birth.
• The scorecard can be downloaded.

CSIR NET Answer Key

The NTA releases the CSIR NET final answer key. Candidates may obtain the CSIR NET answer key by following the instructions below:

• Visit the organisation’s official website at https://csirnet.nta.nic.in.
• To access the final answer key, click on the link.
• Examine the corrected responses.
• Obtain the PDF

Frequently Asked Questions(FAQs)

1. What distinguishes CSIR NET from UGC NET?

Ans: The NTA conducts the CSIR NET in order to shortlist candidates for JRF awards and to determine candidates’ eligibility for Assistant Professor positions in Science subjects only. On the other hand, the NTA administers the UGC NET in order to select candidates for the JRF and Assistant Professor positions in all other subjects (total 81).

2. What is the stipend awarded to candidates who pass the CSIR NET exam for JRF?

Ans: Qualified candidates are compensated with a monthly stipend of INR 31,000 for the first two years. If the fellow is registered for a PhD, the stipend is increased to INR 35,000 in the third and subsequent years.

3. Is it necessary to appear for all three sections of the CSIR NET examination?

Ans: Yes, candidates must appear for all three components of the CSIR NET exam in order to qualify for the CSIR NET E-Certificate. Only those candidates who pass all three parts are awarded the certificate.

4. How many attempts are permitted for the UGC NET?

Ans: Candidates may retake the UGC NET exam at any time during their lives. However, candidates’ eligibility for JRF is determined by their age. The candidate must be between the ages of 18 and 30 to sit for the UGC NET Exam for JRF. There is an age relaxation for women and candidates who are OBC/SC/ST/PwD.

5. Are students enrolled in IGNOU and PGDM programmes eligible to sit for the UGC NET exam?

Ans: Yes, students enrolled in IGNOU and PGDM programmes are eligible to sit for the UGC NET exam. All IGNOU candidates must have earned a post-graduate degree in one of the subjects listed. There are no restrictions on colleges; however, they must be government-recognized.