This presentation is aimed at providing a brief overview of the National and State Level Eligibility Tests; as well as discuss their significance for pursuing a career in higher education in India.

1. NET/SET: What? How?
And Why?
By: Prakruti Bhatt,
Research Scholar,
Department of English,
Maharaja Krishnakumarsinhji Bhavnagar University

2. UGC NET: What is it?
● The “National Eligibility Test (NET) is conducted for determining the eligibility of Indian nationals ‘only for
Assistant Professor’ or ‘for Junior Research Fellowship and Assistant Professor both’ in Indian Universities
and Colleges” (National Testing Agency)
● The test was earlier conducted by the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) but from December
2018 it is being conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA)
● “ Candidates who have secured at least 55% marks (without rounding off) in Masters Degree OR equivalent
examination from universities/institutions recognised by the University Grants Commission (UGC) in
Humanities (including languages) and Social Science, Computer Science & Applications, Electronic Science
etc. are eligible for this Test.” (National Testing Agency)

3. SET: What is it?
● “The test conducted by UGC and UGC/CSIR is referred as the National Eligibility Test (NET) while the
equivalent test conducted by the State government is called State Level Eligibility Test (SLET) or State
Eligibility Test (SET).” (Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda, Vadodara.)
● “Unlike the NET/UGC-CSIR Combined Test the candidates who qualifies the SET is only eligible for being
selected as Assistant Professor and not for the award of Junior Research Fellowship (JRF).” (Maharaja
Sayajirao University of Baroda, Vadodara.)

4. Prerequisites:
1. DYOR [Do Your Own Reading/Self-study]
2. Patient and Persistent effort
3. Literary updates are a #musthave
4. Prepare a roadmap
5. KYSW [Know Your Strengths and Weaknesses]
6. Community Building

5. ● Sharpen the basics of the discipline
● Analyse previous year question papers
● Revisit topics from your Bachelors and Masters syllabus
● Schedule your reading of each topic
How and Where to begin?

6. Topics for Paper 1:
● Teaching Aptitude
● Research Aptitude
● Reading Comprehension
● Communication
● Reasoning (including Maths)
● Logical Reasoning
● Data Interpretation
● ICT
● People & Environment
● Higher Education System: Governance, Polity and Administration

7. Syllabus for Paper 2 [English]

8. Question Paper Pattern:
Paper 1:
● Common for all subjects
● 10 topics [5 questions each]
● 50 Questions 100 marks
● No negative marking system
Paper 2:
● Paper based on the subject chosen by the
candidate
● 100 Questions [2 marks each]
● No negative marking system

9. Recommended Books for reading

10. Digital Resources:
1. MOOCs on NET/SET [e.g. TES’ NET English Complete Course on Udemy, Arpita Karwa’s
NET English course]
1. YouTube channels [e.g. Dr. Kalyani Vallath’s personal channel, UGC NET English Literature by
Vineet Pandey, Arpita Karwa’s personal channel]
1. Mobile Applications [e.g. Unacademy, Telegram]
1. WhatsApp Groups and Facebook/Instagram Pages

11. Why NET/SET?

12. References:
● Karwa, Arpita. “Home.” arpitakarwa.com: One-stop for UGC NET/JRF English Literature, arpitakarwa.com. Accessed 24
July 2023.
● Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda, Vadodara. “About Gujarat SET.” Gujarat State Eligibility Test (GSET) for
Assistant Professor, www.gujaratset.ac.in/01intro.php. Accessed 23 July 2023.
● National Testing Agency. “College/University Teaching and Fellowship Exam.” National Testing Agency,
nta.ac.in/collegeexam. Accessed 23 July 2023.
● Vallath, Kalyani. “NET ENGLISH COMPLETE COURSE.” Udemy, www.udemy.com/course/net-english-complete-
course/?kw=NET+English&src=sac. Accessed 24 July 2023.