Common University Entrance Test
Entrance exam for universities in India
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Common University Entrance Test (CUET) is a standardised test in India conducted by the National Testing Agency at various levels for admission to undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in Universities and other participating institutes.[2] It is also the way to some Deemed universities across India.[3][4]
Computer-based test (CBT)
| Acronym | CUET |
|---|---|
| Type | Paper-based Computer-based test (CBT) |
| Administrator | National Testing Agency (since 2021) |
| Skills tested | Language, domain-specific subject, general aptitude and reasoning |
| Purpose | Admission to various Universities and participating institutes |
| Year started | 2010 |
| Duration | Section 1A, 1B - 60mins for each language Section 2 - 60mins for each Subject Section 3 - 60minutes |
| Score range | 250 per subject (Max. 5 subjects can be chosen) |
| Offered | Once a year |
| Regions | India |
| Languages | English, Hindi, Marathi, Gujarati, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Urdu, Assamese, Bengali, Punjabi, Odia |
| Annual number of test takers |  1,071,735 (2025)[1](UG) |
| Website | cuet |
History
CUCET was first conducted to admission for seven central universities for 1,500 seats in 41 undergraduate, postgraduate and integrated courses from 2010. The application form was filled up through CUCET-2010 which held on 19 and 20 June 2010 in about 30 examination centers spread across the country.[5] From its inception in 2010 till 2020, the CUCET was conducted by the Central University of Rajasthan for 12 Central Universities. The National Testing Agency took over the conduct of these exams in 2021.[6] In 2024, as a part of National Education Policy 2020, CUET is introduced as revamped version of CUCET making it compulsory for all 45 central universities and other universities to adopt it.
Exam pattern and structure
All question papers are MCQ-based organized into different parts.
For UG Programmes
Starting 2024, the CUET exam pattern has three sections, which are Section IA – 13 Languages, Section IB – 20 Languages, Section II – 27 Domain-Specific Subjects, and Section III – General Test.
The CUET-UG consists of the Language Test, Domain-Specific papers, and the General Test.[7] Candidates can opt for a combination of at most 2 languages and 6 domain-specific subjects or 3 languages and 5 domain-specific tests. CUET entrance test 2024 will now be conducted in two slots. The duration of the first slot is 45 to 195 minutes, and the duration of the second slot is 45 to 225 minutes. CUET-UG 2023 was conducted in 3 slots of 3 hours each.[8]
The marking scheme includes 5 marks for each correct answer, and 1 mark will be deducted for each wrong response.
| Section 1A -
13 languages |
Section 2 -
27 Domain-specific Subjects[9] |
Section 3 -
General Aptitude Test | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Subjects |
|
STEM:
Commerce/Business:
Humanities and Social Sciences:
Arts, Sports & Others:
|
|
| Syllabus |
|
Based On Latest Syllabus Prescribed As Per NCERT. |
|
| Pattern & Duration | 50 MCQs to be answered in 50 Minutes (per subject)[11] | 50 MCQs to be answered in 60
Minutes (per subject) |
50 MCQs to be answered in 60 minutes as per 2025
circular[10] |
For PG Programmes
CUET PG will have 72 more test papers for various courses. The complete mapping of test paper code versus course and university is provided by NTA in the information brochure.[12]
| Languages & Linguistics | Sciences & Mathematics | Engineering & Technology | Education | Arts | Commerce & Management | Humanities & Social Sciences | Indology, Religion & Philosophy | Others |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Linguistics:
Indian Languages:
Foreign Languages:
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Library and Information Science:
Mass Communication and Journalism:
Physical Education, Yoga and Sports:
|
Negative marking
Negative marking scheme is followed with a deduction of 1 mark for each wrong answer.
Application fees
Only online applications are accepted for CUCET-2024, and application fees for various categories are listed below.
For CUET-UG: (According to Data of CUET-UG 2024) [14]
For CUET (UG) – 2024, fees will be charged based on the number of subjects chosen by the candidates. The following fee structure is applicable for CUET (UG) - 2024:
For CUET-PG: (According to Data of CUET-PG 2024) [15]
For CUET (PG) – 2024, fees will be charged based on the number of subjects chosen by the candidates. The following fee structure is applicable for CUET (PG) - 2024:
| Category | Up to 02 Subjects | For each Additional Subject |
|---|---|---|
| General (UR) Applicants | ₹1,200 (US$13) | ₹600 (US$6.30) |
| OBC/EWS Applicants | ₹1,000 (US$10) | ₹500 (US$5.20) |
| SC/ST Applicants | ₹900 (US$9.40) | ₹500 (US$5.20) |
| PWD Applicants | ₹800 (US$8.30) | ₹500 (US$5.20) |
| Centres outside India Applicants | ₹6,000 (US$63) | ₹2,000 (US$21) |
Participating Universities
CUET-UG
Admission to the following universities is done through CUET-UG in 2024 (only undergraduate and integrated master's dees)-
CUET-PG
Admission in the following universities is done through CUET-PG in 2024 (only master's degrees and postgraduate diplomas):