CSIR NET Exam Pattern 2025 [New], Check Subject Wise Examination Pattern

The CSIR NET is an eligibility test which is attempted by thousand of aspirants every year. The reason is simple, qualifying the CSIR NET shall make the candidates eligible for award of Junior Research Fellowship and appointment as Assistant Professor and admission to Ph.D. only in Indian universities and colleges. Hence, to clear the exam which is in demand is the dream of many. That is where the CSIR NET Exam Pattern plays the key role. Actually, without a complete overview of the CSIR NET Examination Pattern it becomes difficult for the aspirants to start the preparation. So for the sake of candidates we have shared the complete CSIR Exam Pattern according to the subjects on this page. Hopefully this will be an useful piece of information for the intenders.

CSIR NET Exam Pattern 2025 Overview

Exam Conducting AuthorityNational Testing Agency (NTA)
Exam NameCSIR-UGC NET (December & June)
Exam TypeEligibility Test
No of Papers05 (Five)
Mode of ExaminationComputer Based Test (CBT)
Pattern of ExaminationObjective Type with MCQ
Application Period25th September to 24th October 2025
Exam Date18th December 2025
Exam City Intimation Slip8th December 2025 onwards
Page CategoryExam Pattern
Official Websitecsirnet.nta.ac.in
CSIR NET Exam Pattern 2025 according to the subjects are shared on this page before the candidates get into the details of syllabus.

NTA CSIR NET Examination Scheme

The first and foremost information is that the NTA conducts the CSIR NET Examinations in Computer Based Test (CBT) mode. The Examination is held for 05 (five) subjects namely – Life Sciences, Chemical Sciences, Mathematical Sciences, Physical Sciences, and Earth Sciences. Candidates can appear for one or more subjects as per their eligibility. The CSIR NET Question Paper will consist of three parts. All the parts will consist of objective type, multiple choice questions. There will be no break between papers. The Exam pattern for the Single Paper MCQ test shall is as follows –

  • The MCQ test paper of each subject shall carry a maximum of 200 marks.
  • The exam shall be for duration of three hours.
  • The question paper shall have three parts – Part A, B & C.
Part ‘A’ This part shall be common to all subjects. This part shall be a test containing a maximum of 20 questions of General Aptitude. The candidates shall be required to answer any 15 questions of two marks each. The total marks allocated to this section shall be 30 out of 200
Part ‘B’This part shall contain subject-related conventional MCQs. The total marks allocated to this section shall be 70 out of 200. The maximum number of questions to be attempted shall be in the range of 20-35.
Part ‘C’This part shall contain higher value questions that may test the candidate’s knowledge of scientific concepts and/or application of the scientific concepts. The questions shall be of analytical nature where a candidate is expected to apply the scientific knowledge to arrive at the solution to the given scientific problem.  The total marks allocated to this section shall be 100 out of 200.

CSIR NET Exam Pattern According to Subjects

Here, we discussed the exam topics test, duration, marking scheme according to the subjects of the test. Candidates can use these information to cover each and every topics to have a perfect preparation. So, let us check the details of the examination scheme of CSIR NET Examination scheme one by one.

CSIR NET Exam Scheme for Chemical Sciences

PartSubjectNo of QsNo of Qs to attemptMarksDuration
Part ‘A’ General Science, Quantitative Reasoning & Analysis and Research Aptitude2015303 Hours
Part ‘B’Core Subjects403570
Part ‘C’Knowledge of scientific concepts and/or application of the scientific concepts.6025100
TOTAL12075200
There will be negative marking @ 25% for each wrong answer.

CSIR NET Exam Scheme for Earth Sciences

PartSubjectNo of QsNo of Qs to attemptMarksDuration
Part ‘A’ General Science, Quantitative Reasoning & Analysis and Research Aptitude2015303 Hours
Part ‘B’Core Subjects503570
Part ‘C’Knowledge of scientific concepts and/or application of the scientific concepts.8025100
TOTAL15075200
For Part ‘A’ and ‘B’ there will be Negative marking @25% for each wrong answer. The Negative marking for Part ‘C’ shall be @ 33% for each wrong answer.

CSIR NET Exam Scheme for Life Sciences

PartSubjectNo of QsNo of Qs to attemptMarksDuration
Part ‘A’ General Science, Quantitative Reasoning & Analysis and Research Aptitude2015303 Hours
Part ‘B’Core Subjects503570
Part ‘C’Knowledge of scientific concepts and/or application of the scientific concepts.7525100
TOTAL14575200
There will be negative marking @ 25% for each wrong answer.

CSIR NET Exam Scheme for Mathematical Sciences

PartSubjectNo of QsNo of Qs to attemptMarksDuration
Part ‘A’ General Science, Quantitative Reasoning & Analysis and Research Aptitude2015303 Hours
Part ‘B’Core Subjects402575
Part ‘C’Knowledge of scientific concepts and/or application of the scientific concepts.6020100
TOTAL12060200
For Part ‘A’ and ‘B’ there will be Negative marking @25% for each wrong answer. No Negative marking for Part ‘C’.

CSIR NET Exam Scheme for Physical Sciences

PartSubjectNo of QsNo of Qs to attemptMarksDuration
Part ‘A’ General Science, Quantitative Reasoning & Analysis and Research Aptitude2015303 Hours
Part ‘B’Core Subjects252070
Part ‘C’Knowledge of scientific concepts and/or application of the scientific concepts.3020100
TOTAL12075200
There will be negative marking @25% for each wrong answer.

Here is the complete information on CSIR NET Exam Pattern. Candidates may find it useful during the preparation. However, for more updates on NTA CSI NET the candidates may refer the links shared below.

CSIR NET Links
NotificationCSIR NET Notification
Application FormCSIR NET Application Form
Exam PatternCSIR NET Exam Pattern
SyllabusCSIR NET Syllabus
Previous PapersCSIR NET Previous Papers
Exam City IntimationCSIR NET City Intimation
Admit Card / Exam DateCSIR NET Admit Card
Answer KeysCSIR NET Answer Keys
ResultsCSIR NET Result

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