UGC NET December 2026 Notification Out: Dates, Fees, Eligibility and Exam Pattern
The National Testing Agency (NTA) released the UGC NET December 2026 notification on 8 October 2026 and the online application is open. A corrigendum on 16 October 2026 revised the exam schedule. Here is everything you need before you apply.
Important dates
| Event | Date |
|---|---|
| Notification and application start | 8 October 2026 |
| Last date to apply and pay fee | 28 October 2026 (11:50 pm) |
| Late-fee window (₹500 extra) | 29 – 31 October 2026 |
| Correction window | 2 – 4 November 2026 |
| Exam city intimation slip | 23 November 2026 (expected) |
| Admit card | 7 December 2026 (expected) |
| Exam dates (revised) | 14, 15, 16, 17, 18 and 21 December 2026 |
Application fee
| Category | Fee |
|---|---|
| General / Unreserved | ₹1,150 |
| General-EWS / OBC-NCL | ₹600 |
| SC / ST / PwD / Third gender | ₹325 |
Pay online by net banking, debit/credit card or UPI. After the 28 October deadline you can still apply until 31 October with a ₹500 late fee.
Who can apply
- Master's degree with at least 55% (General/EWS) or 50% (OBC-NCL, SC, ST, PwD, third gender). Final-year students can apply provisionally.
- Four-year bachelor's degree with 75% (70% for reserved categories) can apply for JRF and PhD admission, but not for Assistant Professor.
- Age: JRF — maximum 30 years as on 1 December 2026, with up to 5 years' relaxation for women, OBC-NCL, SC, ST, PwD and third gender. No upper age limit for Assistant Professor and PhD admission.
Exam pattern
| Paper | Questions | Marks |
|---|---|---|
| Paper 1 (Teaching & Research Aptitude) | 50 | 100 |
| Paper 2 (your subject) | 100 | 200 |
| Total | 150 | 300 |
Both papers are taken together in one 3-hour computer-based test with no break. Each question carries 2 marks and there is no negative marking. The corrigendum also says attempted questions are evaluated even if marked for review.
How you can qualify
- Category 1: JRF + Assistant Professor + PhD admission
- Category 2: Assistant Professor + PhD admission (without JRF)
- Category 3: PhD admission only
Read our step-by-step guide to filling the form and the UGC NET FAQ.
Start practising today — free till 31 December
Solved previous year papers and unit-wise mock tests: Paper 1, Computer Science, English and Psychology.
We check these details against the NTA bulletin and news reports at the time of writing. Always confirm dates in the official notice at ugcnet.nta.ac.in before you act.
Unit-wise mock tests, all free till 31 December.