The UGC NET Exam Dates have been announced for the December 2023 cycle. The exam will be held from 6th to 14th December 2023. The National Testing Agency (NTA) conducts the UGC-NET exam for 83 subjects in Computer Based Test (CBT) mode twice every year. The exam is conducted to determine the eligibility of the candidates for the posts of Junior Research Fellow and Assistant Professor in universities across the country. Read on to check all details and the latest updates of the UGC NET Exam 2023. 

• The UGC NET exam is one of the most competitive examinations for Government Teaching Jobs in India for becoming Lecturers, Assistant Professors and Junior Research Fellows in higher education institutions. 
• The exam comprises two papers - Paper 1 which is common for all candidates, while Paper 2 is a subject-specific test.
• Candidates can choose out of 83 subjects from the UGC NET subject list, based on the subject they have studied at the Master's level. 
• Indian candidates with Master’s degrees or equivalent examinations from universities/ institutions recognised by UGC with a minimum of 55% Marks applied for the Exam.
• There is no upper age limit for the post of Assistant Professor.
• Candidates can choose to appear for the UGC NET exam for either JRF, Assistant Professor, or both posts.

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Full Form of UGC NET

The full form of UGC-NET is the University Grants Commission - National Eligibility Test. It is an eligibility test for those aspiring to be eligible for JRF and Assistant Professor posts in higher education institutes of the country.

What is the UGC NET Exam?

The UGC NET Exam is conducted each by NTA to screen eligible candidates for the post of Assistant professor and/or Junior Research Fellowship in Indian universities and colleges. After qualifying for the examination, candidates can apply for the said posts in the institutions of their choice. However, their final selection will depend on the selection criteria specified by the respective university/institute.

Detailed Overview of UGC NET Exam 2023

Check important details like application dates, mode of application, exam date, etc., of the UGC NET Exam 2023 from the table below

UGC NET Latest Updates

17th November 2023: UGC NET Exam Dates Out

The UGC NET Exam Schedule for the Dece,ber 2023 cycle has been released. The exam for over 80 subjects will be conducted from 6th December 2023 to 14th December 2023. Check the subject-wise schedule from the attached PDF.

Download UGC NET Exam Dates Notice PDF

27th October 2023: UGC NET 2023 Application Date Extended!

UGC NET Application Date has been extended. On 27th October 2023, UGC released the Notice to extend the application dates for UGC NET 2023 December cycle Candidates can Register for UGC NET till 31st October 2023. Earlier, the last date to apply for UGC NET December 2023 cycle was 28th October 2023. 

19th September 2023: UGC NET Exam Dates Out

The UGC NET Exam Dates for the December 2023 cycle have been announced. The exam will be scheduled from 6th to 22nd December 2023.

6th September 2023: UGC NET Certificate Out

The NTA has released the UGC NET Certificate and JRF Award Letter. This is for the June 2023 cycle.

Direct Link to Download UGC NET Certificate June 2023 Cycle

Direct Link to Download UGC NET JRF Award Letter

UGC NET Notification 2023 and Important Events

The UGC NET notification PDF contains all the details about the exam. The candidates can find the following details in the official notification 2023 once it is out:

• Application process
• Registration dates
• Exam dates and schedule
• Validity of UGC NET Score
• Exam centres list
• Admit card
• Verification of eligibility

Download UGC NET Notification (December 2023)

UGC NET Application Process 2023

The candidates will have to apply for the exam on the official website of NTA. The steps to be followed to apply online for the UGC NET Exam have been given below.

Direct Link to Register to UGC NET 2023 (December Cycle)

Step 1: Visit the official website of UGC.

Step 2: UGC NET Application Form will be showcased on the screen. 

Step 3: Fill in all the required details ( personal and educational details) in the UGC application form carefully without any mistakes.

Step 4: Candidates can then proceed to upload the scanned photograph

Step 5: After the photograph has been attached a message consisting of the application number will be displayed on the screen.

Step 6: After that, the required fee must be paid

Step 7: Once the payment is done, you can take the printout of the Application form 2023 for future reference.

Note - Candidates are also requested to download and install the SANDES application as a secondary channel to receive time-to-time notifications from NTA.

Application Fees

It is really important to know about the UGC NET application fee which all candidates are required to pay for registering themselves for the examination. The detailed application fee for different categories is shown below in table-

Eligibility Criteria

The candidates must have a Master’s degree with an aggregate of 55%. The candidates who appear for the JRF Exam should not be above the age of 30 years (as of 01.12.2022). The candidates applying for the Assistant Professor post have no upper age limit. Several age relaxations are offered to candidates which are given in the table below.

Check in-depth details on UGC NET Eligibility criteria here!

Exam Pattern & Syllabus

The Examinations will consist of two papers as said above: 

• Paper I is a compulsory paper that all candidates need to give

• Paper I will consist of 50 questions for 100 marks (2 marks each) with no negative markings.

• Paper II needs to be chosen by the candidates based on his/her specialization. 

• The important subjects which are a part of the Paper 2 are Economics, Political Science, Philosophy, Psychology, History, Commerce, Management, English, etc. The total number of subjects in Paper 2 is 83. Paper II will have 100 questions for 200 marks (2 marks each) with no negative marking.

The important topics under UGC NET Paper - I Syllabus is discussed below-

• Teaching Aptitude 
• Research Aptitude
• Comprehension
• Communication
• Mathematical Reasoning and Aptitude
• Logical Reasoning
• Data Interpretation
• Information and Communication Technology (ICT)
• People, Development and Environment
• Higher Education System

Validity of UGC NET Score

After scoring a valid UGC NET score, that is more than the cutoff or qualifying marks, candidates will be issued with a UGC NET certificate. As per the new NTA and UGC norms, the UGC NET score for the Junior Research Fellowship is three years from the date of issuance of the UGC NET JRF certificate. Whereas, for the Assistant Professorship, the score is valid forever. Hence the candidate's UGC NET scores will be valid for lifetime in case of Assistant Professorship bur but for JRF, there is a limit of three years.

Also check - UGC NET Certificate Validity

UGC NET Application Fees 

It is really important to know about the UGC NET application fee which is needed to be paid for registering yourself for the examination.

The detailed application fee for different categories is shown below in Table-

UGC NET Reservation Policy

The exam is a national-level exam that is conducted twice a year. Many students from all fields and categories attempt this exam. UGC NET applies a reservation policy in Universities and institutions at the central level as per the Government of India reservation policy. As per this reservation policy, candidates from different categories will be eligible for the following per cent of reservations for seats at various Central Universities:

UGC NET Selection Process 2023

The UGC NET is a qualifying exam for candidates willing to apply for Assistant Professor and JRF posts in Government Universities and Institutes. The selection process for the appointment of the NET-qualified candidates to these posts will be decided by the respective institution. However, to qualify for the NET exam candidates must keep in mind the following:

• The candidates from the general category should score 40% in aggregate (in both papers) and the candidates from other categories need to secure at least 35% in aggregate in order to qualify for the post of Assistant Professor & JRF 
• 6% of the total candidates who appeared will be qualified for the post of assistant professor.
• The number of candidates qualified or rejected is decided based on the formula developed by UGC which can be understood by the example given below-

UGC NET Subject Topic Weightage

The candidates can go through the detailed UGC subject-wise topic weightage as per the previous year's trends to get an idea about the no. of questions from each topic of the syllabus. Details of the same are tabulated below.

UGC NET Exam City Intimation 2023

The candidates can check the exam city allotted to them for the Exam by following the steps mentioned below:

• Visit the official website of UGC NET.
• Click on the ‘Advance City Intimation for UGC’ link present on the screen.
• Fill in your application number, date of birth and security pin to access it.
• Check your exam city.
• Take a printout of the same for future usage.

Hopefully, this article on the UGC NET Exam 2023 was informative for all the candidates. The candidates can prepare for various other such examinations through live classes, online test series, mock tests, etc. by downloading the Testbook App.