GATEWAY TO A GREAT JOB- GATE 2013

Online Exam : Jan 20, 2013
Offline Exam : FEB 10, 2013

GATE scores are used not only for admission to major institutions but also for recruitment in many PSUS, says

This is a good time to be an engineering graduate. With many public sector undertakings now recruiting through the Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering (GATE), science and engineering graduates in the country can look forward to secure and lucrative jobs. GATE is conducted for admission to postgraduate programmes in engineering and science at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore, Indian Institutes of Technology, National Institutes of Technology and other engineering colleges in the country.

The all-India examination conducted jointly by the IISc and seven IITs, including IIT Bombay, IIT Delhi, IIT Guwahati, IIT Kanpur, IIT Kharagpur, IIT Madras and IIT Roorkee. It primarily tests the comprehensive understanding of various undergraduate subjects in engineering and technology.

 All about GATE 2013 

GATE 2013 will be a threehour exam with 65 questions (30 one-mark questions and 35 two-mark questions) totalling up to 100 marks with questions from core subjects, engineering maths and general aptitude. “Questions from the core engineering subjects far outweigh the other two areas with 70% weightage. General aptitude and engineering maths with 15 marks each, however, play a vital role in maximising the score. A good performance in aptitude and maths ensures the minimum qualification marks in GATE,” says Prudhvi Reddy, course director of GATE at TIME. IIT Bombay is the organising institute for GATE 2013. One-third of the marks allotted to each question are deducted in case of a wrong answer. 

How GATE can help you

Along with a chance to pursue higher education, GATE comes with multiple benefits. With the introduction of the aptitude section from 2010, focused preparation for GATE comes handy for other PSU exams such as Coal India Limited, Steel Authority of India Limited, GAIL India Ltd etc and also campus recruitment interviews. GATE scores are considered as the merit criterion by organisations such as Powergrid, Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd, IndianOil Corporation Ltd, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited, Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited, HECL and National Thermal Power Corporation, for recruitment to the posts of executive trainees and management trainees. “In the last five years, it has more than quadrupled from 1.8 lakh applicants in 2008 to 7.7 lakh applicants in 2012. Out of the total applicants, only 15-20% of the applicants manage to qualify in GATE. This means that it is highly competitive,” says Reddy. The GATE score is valid for two years. Since GATE is also the entrance test for MTech/ME/direct PhD courses in India, it has other advantages too.

“It gives great research and development opportunities. All GATE qualified students pursuing a masters programme at any college are eligible for a financial assistance of R8000 per month from the ministry of human resource development,” says Abhijit Chaudhury, director, GATE Forum.