UGC NET December Exam 2025: The National Testing Agency (NTA) will conduct the CSIR UGC NET December 2025 exam on December 18. This examination is for the students nationwide who are getting ready to compete for Junior Research Fellowship (JRF) and Assistant Professor qualifications. As the exam is approaching in 26 days, applicants are advised to go through the exam pattern to prepare for their exam.
UGC NET December 2025: Exam pattern
The National Testing Agency (NTA) will run the examination for three hours, with three sections: Part A, Part B, and Part C. The exam has a total of 200 marks and questions from several fields, including Life Sciences, Earth, Atmospheric, Ocean, and Planetary Sciences, Chemical Sciences, Mathematical Sciences, and Physical Sciences.
1. Part A (General Aptitude): This component is common to all applicants and comprises questions about reasoning, graphical analysis, and quantitative aptitude (basic mathematics). Aspirants should attempt any 15 out of 20 questions.
2. Part B (Subject-Based): This section includes multiple-choice questions (MCQs) taken straight from the syllabus of the science course candidates selected. It evaluates their intellectual understanding.
3. Part C (Higher-Level Analytical): This is the most crucial section and determines the aspirant's overall performance. It assesses their analytical capabilities, problem-solving talents, and their ability to apply scientific principles.
UGC NET December 2025: Negative marking
The CSIR NET exam pattern varies across subjects, with different rules for negative marking in each paper.
In Chemical Science, one-fourth of the marks are deducted for every incorrect response. For Earth Science, candidates lose 25% marks for wrong answers in Parts A and B, while Part C carries a higher penalty of 33% per incorrect attempt.
In Life Science, the negative marking is uniform across all sections, with 25% marks deducted for every wrong answer. The Mathematical Science paper applies 25% negative marking in Parts A and B, but Part C has no negative marking, allowing candidates to attempt analytical questions without risk.
Finally, for Physical Science, 25% marks are deducted in all three sections—Part A, Part B, and Part C—whenever a question is answered incorrectly.
