Joint CSIR-UGC National Eligibility Test (NET)(CSIR-UGC NET)

About the exam

About CSIR-UGC NET

The CSIR-UGC NET exam is a single computer-based science paper that the National Testing Agency conducts for the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, and the result sorts qualifiers into three categories: a Junior Research Fellowship with Assistant Professor eligibility, Assistant Professor eligibility with PhD admission, or PhD admission alone. The June 2026 cycle has reached its result, with CSIR's category-wise cut-offs published in September and its fellowships taking effect in October 2026. The change on the horizon is in Life Sciences: a CSIR-HRDG notice records approval to fold that paper and the Department of Biotechnology's DBT-BET into one joint CSIR-UGC-DBT test, intended from the December 2026 cycle, and in mid-September 2026 no bulletin for that cycle had yet appeared.

NTA conducts the Joint CSIR-UGC NET on behalf of CSIR to decide whether Indian nationals are eligible for a Junior Research Fellowship (JRF), appointment as Assistant Professor, or admission to a PhD in Indian universities and colleges, as the Joint CSIR-UGC NET June 2026 Information Bulletin puts it. Only bonafide Indian citizens may sit the test.

Chapter 1 of the bulletin lays the three categories out as a grid of JRF, Assistant Professor and PhD eligibility:

A results committee decides how many candidates land in each category, and the bulletin warns that the number of fellowships in each subject is limited and may vary from one exam cycle to the next.

Under the CSIR-HRDG JRF-NET Fellowship Guidelines, in force from 1 March 2023, a JRF selected through the test is paid Rs 37,000 a month for the first two years, plus an annual contingent grant of Rs 20,000 reimbursed to the fellow. A fellow registered for a PhD can be upgraded after an expert-committee assessment to SRF (NET) at Rs 42,000 a month from the third year, and the JRF and SRF tenure together cannot exceed five years under the same CSIR fellowship guidelines.

Where that Rs 20,000 grant is paid depends on which page you read. The CSIR guidelines and the June 2026 bulletin both say it is reimbursed directly to the fellow, while NTA's About Joint CSIR-UGC page, which still names December 2025 as the cycle NTA was entrusted with, says the Rs 20,000 per fellow is provided to the university or institution.

CSIR-HRDG's notice introducing the Joint CSIR-UGC-DBT JRF-NET Examination, dated 13 January 2026, records that a proposal to merge CSIR-NET (Life Sciences) and DBT-BET (Biotechnology), syllabus included, into a single national eligibility test has been approved, and says the joint examination is intended to come into effect from the December 2026 cycle. It adds that the merger will have no impact on the total number of fellowships, that CSIR and DBT will keep providing their own with only the selection moving to the common exam, and that biotechnology qualifiers will be eligible for all three result categories, unlike under DBT-BET. The notice gives no registration or exam date for that cycle.

At a glance

CSIR-UGC NET highlights

Calendar

Important dates

The June 2026 cycle ran on the schedule below, and the Joint CSIR-UGC NET website's public notices carry no notice revising its registration or exam dates:

NTA's June 2026 FAQ says the test is generally held twice a year, in June and December, though the cycle named June 2026 sat its papers in July. For the December 2025 cycle, the Joint CSIR-UGC NET December 2025 Information Bulletin opened registration on 25 September 2025 and listed 18 December 2025 as the exam date. In mid-September 2026 the Joint CSIR-UGC NET website still showed June 2026 as its latest cycle and carried no December 2026 bulletin.

Who can apply

Eligibility criteria

The June 2026 bulletin admits candidates by the routes below, and it counts the master's-degree percentages without rounding off:

Holders of a foreign qualification are advised to obtain equivalence from UGC, and holders of an Indian postgraduate diploma to confirm its equivalence with a master's degree through the Association of Indian Universities, under the bulletin's eligibility chapter. No certificate is sent to NTA, which does not verify online registration details; the bulletin leaves the qualification and category certificates to the concerned institution, and says ineligibility detected by CSIR, UGC or NTA at any stage cancels the candidature.

For the JRF, the June 2026 bulletin capped age at 30 years on the first day of July 2026, the month the exam concluded. It allows up to 5 years' relaxation for OBC (non-creamy layer), SC, ST, PwD/PwBD and third-gender candidates and for women. Research experience in a subject related to the postgraduate degree earns relaxation equal to the time spent on that research, up to 5 years and with a certificate, provided the research was not done towards a degree, and armed-forces service earns relaxation up to 5 years depending on length of service. The bulletin then caps the combined relaxation on all these grounds at five years "under any circumstances". Neither Assistant Professor eligibility nor PhD admission has an upper age limit in the bulletin.

Step by step

Application process and fee

Applications are accepted only online at csirnet.nta.nic.in, in three steps that the June 2026 bulletin lays out: registration with the candidate's own email ID and mobile number, which cannot be changed later; the full form with scanned uploads; and payment. Photograph and signature go up as JPGs within 10 kb to 200 kb and 10 kb to 50 kb, while a result-awaited candidate's attestation form, signed by the head of the department or institute, and any category or PwD/PwBD certificate go up as PDFs within 50 kb to 300 kb. You pick one subject and four exam cities in the form.

The June 2026 fee came in three slabs:

Payment runs through the SBI or ICICI gateways by net banking, debit or credit card, or UPI, and the bulletin's payment annexure lists no service charge on UPI or debit cards at either gateway. The bulletin entertains no refund request once the fee is paid, although a duplicate payment is refunded after NTA reconciles fees. If a candidate submits more than one form, only the first is considered, and the bulletin separately treats holding more than one application number or score card as unfair means.

The one-time correction window notice for June 2026 did not allow changes to the mobile number, email address or postal address, allowed a change to only one of the candidate's, father's or mother's name, and let candidates edit their subject and city preferences. A category change that raised the fee had to be paid for, and the notice said excess payments would not be refunded.

Before the exam

Admit card and exam day

Holding an admit card is not proof of eligibility, which the June 2026 bulletin says is scrutinised again at later stages; the card is issued provisionally, only as a download from the NTA website. The step before it was a city slip: NTA's advance city intimation notice put online a slip giving the city in which each candidate's centre would be located, and said the admit card would be issued separately.

On exam day the bulletin's admit card chapter requires a printout of the admit card, one passport-size photograph matching the uploaded one for the attendance sheet, one original and valid government photo ID (PAN card, driving licence, voter ID, passport, Aadhaar card with photograph, Aadhaar enrolment number or ration card), and a PwD/PwBD certificate if you are claiming that relaxation. Entry closes 30 minutes before the exam starts, late entry is not allowed, and every candidate's biometric details are captured, with identity checks on arrival. Calculations happen only on the blank rough sheets supplied in the hall, which go back to the invigilator when the test ends, and you cannot bring your own paper.

On drinking water the bulletin and the FAQ give opposite instructions. The bulletin's prohibited-materials list includes water, loose or packed, and allows only diabetic candidates a transparent water bottle, while the June 2026 FAQ tells candidates to carry drinking water in a transparent bottle and a simple transparent pen. The same FAQ leaves no room on attendance: a candidate who cannot appear on the scheduled date gets no retest from NTA.

Candidates who use a scribe get compensatory time of at least 20 minutes for every hour of the exam, and candidates with benchmark disabilities who are eligible for a scribe may be allowed at least one extra hour on a three-hour paper whether or not they use one, under the bulletin's disability provisions.

Structure

Exam pattern

Every paper has a common Part A and subject-specific Parts B and C, and the June 2026 bulletin gives each subject its own question counts, attempt limits and penalties:

If you answer more questions in a part than the limit, only the first ones up to the limit are evaluated, under the bulletin's scheme of examination. Part A tests general aptitude, with emphasis on logical reasoning, graphical analysis, analytical and numerical ability, quantitative comparison, series formation and puzzles. Part B carries conventional subject questions, and Part C carries higher-order analytical questions that ask you to apply scientific concepts. The paper is bilingual, in Hindi and English, and the English version prevails if the two differ.

Part C of the Mathematical Sciences paper is scored on a different principle. The bulletin says each question there may have one or more correct options and earns credit only when all the correct options are identified, and CSIR-HRDG's Mathematical Sciences exam scheme adds that no partial credit is given and that Part C carries no negative marking.

For the merged Life Science and Biotechnology paper planned from December 2026, CSIR's merger notice promises adequate optional questions from both traditional Life Sciences and Biotechnology, but publishes no question count.

What to study

Syllabus

CSIR-HRDG publishes the syllabus, and the June 2026 bulletin states that NTA will not provide copies to individual candidates. The bulletin's list of subjects also names the specialisations grouped under each paper:

Physical Sciences splits its own syllabus in two: CSIR-HRDG's Physical Sciences exam scheme draws Part B from the core section of the syllabus and Part C from both the advanced and the core sections.

CSIR-HRDG's Life Science and Biotechnology page carries two syllabus files: one marked "Syllabus up to Exam cycle June 2026" and a separate revised syllabus. The revised Life Sciences and Biotechnology syllabus, titled for a UGC-CSIR-DBT NET, includes units on Bioinformatics and Computational Biology, Biochemical Engineering and Industrial Biotechnology, and Advances in Biotechnology, none of which appears in the unit list of the Life Sciences syllabus marked for cycles up to June 2026.

How to prepare

Preparation and books

The official preparation trail runs through question papers rather than textbooks, none of which the June 2026 bulletin names. CSIR-HRDG's model question paper page posts a common Part A paper and separate Part B and C papers for each subject, described as models for the single-paper multiple-choice test introduced from June 2011.

For previous years' papers, the CSIR fellowship guidelines point to csirhrdg.res.in for cycles up to June 2019 and to nta.ac.in from the December 2019 cycle onwards. The June 2026 bulletin states that a "Sample/mock test will be available on NTA website: www.nta.ac.in for hands on practice".

The bulletin's caution notice tells candidates not to be swayed by claims from any party, person or institute about helping them qualify, and asks them to report such claims to csirnet@nta.ac.in.

Where it is held

Exam centres

In the June 2026 form you had to choose four exam cities in order of preference from the state-wise list in Annexure-VIII of the June 2026 bulletin. The bulletin promises all efforts to honour those preferences in order, keeps the option of a different city in the nearby area for logistic and administrative reasons, and treats the allotted city as fixed once the correction window has closed. Reaching it is at the candidate's own cost, since no TA, DA or accommodation is admissible for this exam.

NTA's June 2026 FAQ limits the city choices to the state of the candidate's permanent and present address, and says the centre's name and address appear on the admit card.

After the exam

Answer key

Before the result, NTA shows each candidate the question paper and their recorded responses, then publishes a provisional answer key that can be challenged online at Rs 200 per question as a non-refundable processing fee, according to the June 2026 bulletin. The bulletin expects each display to stay open for about two to three days, and only paid challenges filed through the challenge link with justification are considered. NTA's decision on each challenge is final, the result is declared on the final keys, and representations about a key are not entertained once the result is out.

NTA's June 2026 answer key challenge page carries a publish date of 16 August 2026. The challenge notice for the cycle called the challenge a one-time facility with no second attempt after payment, and said the outcome of a challenge would not be communicated to the candidate who filed it.

For faulty questions found through challenges or key verification, NTA's June 2026 FAQ sets out three outcomes: where more than one option is correct, only candidates who marked one of the correct options get the marks; where all options are correct, everyone who attempted the question gets full marks; and where no option is correct or the question is wrong, everyone who attempted it gets full marks. The bulletin's result chapter keeps Mathematical Sciences Part C under its own all-correct-options rule.

Scores

Result and scorecard

Each score card carries marks alongside a total percentile score, and the June 2026 bulletin allows no re-evaluation or re-checking. Under NTA's weeding-out rule the June 2026 records are preserved for up to 90 days after the result, and the jurisdiction clause gives candidates 30 days from the declaration to raise any legal question.

For June 2026, the Joint CSIR-UGC NET website's public notices list a declaration of scores and a later declaration of result and rank. CSIR's result list gives 9 September 2026 as the date of declaration, while NTA's public notice on the result and rank announcing the upload is dated 10 September 2026.

Turnout for the cycle was reported in the NTA Press Release on the Joint CSIR-UGC NET June 2026 Examination:

CSIR-HRDG's June 2026 result list declares qualifiers by roll number in each group:

The result list places the two JRF-only groups under clause 2.1.1 of the bulletin, the eligibility clause that also holds the rule giving four-year-degree qualifiers the JRF but not Assistant Professor eligibility. The same list tells qualified candidates to download their certificates in their category directly from the NTA website, and says no separate intimation letter will be issued.

Scores you need

Cutoff

Parts A, B and C carry no cut-off of their own, and the merit list is drawn on cumulative marks, according to CSIR-HRDG's June 2026 cut-off document. Ranks go first to JRF qualifiers on the JRF merit list, who are then divided between CSIR and UGC in the ratio of fellowships the two share in each subject.

The minimum benchmark of 33% for General, EWS and OBC candidates and 25% for SC, ST and PwD candidates is worded differently in the two documents. The cut-off document applies it to Category-1, Category-2 and Category-3, while the June 2026 bulletin states it "for both fellowship and Assistant Professor" and says nothing of PhD-only admission. The cut-off document itself says the bulletin's criteria are treated as final in case of any discrepancy.

These were the minimum cut-off percentages for the JRF in June 2026:

The same document's table for Assistant Professor eligibility:

And its table for admission to PhD only:

For third-gender candidates, the June 2026 bulletin sets each subject's qualifying cut-off at the lowest of those for the SC, ST, PwD/PwBD, OBC (non-creamy layer) and General-EWS categories.

Getting a seat

Counselling and seat allotment

The June 2026 bulletin describes no counselling or seat allotment for this exam, and NTA's June 2026 FAQ confines NTA's role to registering candidates, conducting the exam, finalising answer keys and declaring results.

JRF qualifiers are admitted to a PhD through an interview under the UGC (Minimum Standards and Procedures for Award of Ph.D. Degree) Regulations, 2022. For Category-2 and Category-3 qualifiers, the university or higher education institution gives the NET marks 70% weightage and its own interview or viva voce 30%, and those marks stay valid for PhD admission for one year from the declaration of the result, according to the June 2026 bulletin. The bulletin prints that weighting without naming the body that set it, and CSIR's June 2026 result list adds that eligibility for Assistant Professor and for PhD admission is governed by UGC guidelines.

A CSIR fellowship is awarded by a formal letter, and the CSIR fellowship guidelines make the JRF-NET certificate tenable for two years from the effective date printed on it, so the fellowship must be taken up within that window. Candidates seeking the National Fellowships for OBC, SC or PwD/PwBD students must also apply for this test, but the bulletin leaves those results to the respective nodal agencies to compile and declare.

Where it is accepted

Participating institutes

Neither the June 2026 bulletin nor CSIR's fellowship guidelines publish a list of universities or institutes that accept the result for admission or appointment. The June 2026 bulletin describes where the fellowship can be held instead: universities, IITs, postgraduate colleges, government research establishments including CSIR's own, research and development units of recognised public or private sector industrial firms, and other recognised institutions, all in India.

The bulletin also lets universities and higher education institutions use Category-2 and Category-3 results in place of their own PhD entrance tests. The CSIR fellowship guidelines attach a list of CSIR laboratories and give preference to research topics relevant to their programmes.

Get help

Contact

For anything about the application form, the NTA helpdesk details on the Joint CSIR-UGC NET website give csirnet@nta.ac.in along with 011-40759000 and 011-69227700, and the same page lists the SBI and ICICI helplines for payment trouble. The June 2026 bulletin asks that email queries carry your name, application number, postal address and contact number, and says anonymous or vague queries will not be answered.

The two June 2026 documents give different helpline hours for admit card problems: the bulletin says 9:30 am to 5:30 pm, and the FAQ says 10 am to 5 pm.

Queries about fellowships and Assistant Professor eligibility go to the addresses in Annexure-XIV of the June 2026 bulletin:

CSIR-HRDG's exam unit lists examunit.hrdg@csir.res.in and certificate.hrdg@csir.res.in, and among its EPABX lines 011-25841492 and 011-25841582, on its exam unit contact page.

Source

Official links

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Disclaimer

Disclaimer

Exact notification/application/exam dates, answer-key/result release, cutoffs, fellowship amounts, and per-subject question distribution change every cycle. Anything per-cycle here is stated for the cycle it names and is taken from the conducting body's own notification; confirm it on the official website before acting on it. Expertie does not conduct any exam, process applications or charge fees.

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