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How to Attempt GATE Exam: Check Preparation Tips and Tricks for the Exam Day

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How to attempt GATE exam is one of the questions that is generally asked by the students preparing for the exam. To score high marks in the exam students are advised to solve GATE question paper strategically. Time management, understanding of the type of questions, marking scheme, etc are some of the key factors to be considered while attempting GATE exam.

Based on the experience of GATE test-takers, some of the strategical tips that will definitely help you to attempt the paper with more accuracy are provided in the article. With the help of these tips, you can get an idea about the mistakes that should be avoided on exam day.

Understanding of Pattern

GATE Exam Pattern: Understanding of Pattern

Understanding GATE Exam Pattern will help you in getting clarity about the number of sections in the paper, type of questions, marking scheme, etc. Based on GATE Exam Pattern, the paper will have a total of 3 sections i.e. General Aptitude, Engineering Mathematics, and Core Discipline. The engineering mathematics section will not be the part of GATE Question Paper if a candidate has opted for disciplines like XL and XH.

Particulars Details
Examination Mode Computer Based Test (CBT)
Duration 3 Hours (180 Minutes)
Sectional Time Limit None
Total Marks 100
Total Number of questions 65
Number of Subjects (Papers) 29
Number of Sections* 2-3 (General Aptitude and Core Discipline or General Aptitude, Engineering Mathematics* and Core Discipline)
GATE Type of Questions
  • Multiple Choice Questions (MCQ);
  • Multiple Select Questions (MSQ);
  • Numerical Answer Type (NAT) Questions
Total Number of Questions 65 Questions
Total Marks 100 Marks
Marking Scheme 1 or 2 marks for each correct answer
GATE Negative Marking
  • For 1 mark MCQ, 1/3 mark will be deducted for a wrong answer;
  • For 2-mark MCQ, 2/3 mark will be deducted for a wrong answer;
  • No negative marking for MSQs and NATs

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Strategical Tips

How to Attempt GATE Exam: Strategical Tips

Based on the experience of GATE test takers, some of the strategical tips that will definitely help you to attempt the paper with more accuracy are mentioned below:

Tip 1: Attempting GATE Mock Tests

  • Students are suggested to attempt GATE Mock Tests as they are planning to apper for the actual exam. This will help you in analyzing the level of preparation and you can work on the weak areas.
  • Students are also advised to start with the sections in which they are good. For example, if your general aptitude section is well prepared then you should start your paper from that section.
  • In General Aptitude, there will be 10 questions and if you are able to answer 6-7 questions with 100% accuracy then you can score around 9-10 marks. This will boost your confidence and will set you in the right mood for upcoming sections.

Tip 2: Attempting Technical Sections

  • Engineering Mathematics section and the core subject section will be technical sections and require exact knowledge of the concept to solve the questions. Therefore, students who are good in their core subjects must start with that part of the paper.
  • However, if a candidate finds some lengthy questions or if a question is difficult to understand then don't attempt them and keep those for review.

Tip 3: Managing Time

  • Keep the track of time and try to reach the count of 45-50 questions at the end of 100 minutes.
  • Do not try to solve each and every question. This will waste your time. Keep those questions for review which you find time taking or includes lengthy calculations.

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Tips & Tricks for Exam Day

How to Attempt GATE Exam: Tips & Tricks for Exam Day

Some of the helpful tips and tricks that will help you while appearing for GATE exam are mentioned below:

Tip 1: Scan Your GATE Question Paper

  • Go through your GATE question paper for 5 minutes and try to get an idea about the question based on a direct formula. So that you won’t skip any direct questions.
  • Try to relate the questions with the questions that you had solved in the mock tests so that you can use the right methods to reach the answer.
  • Scanning the paper will also improve your decision-making.

Tip 2: Solve the Question Marked for Review

  • After completing the count of 65 questions, come back to the questions that you are holding for review.
  • Go through those questions and first pick the ones for which you are sure so that you won't waste time.

Tip 3: The Rank Changer Trick

  • Let us consider that the questions for which you were sure took 60 minutes and another 60 minutes were consumed by the questions held for review and you are left with 60 minutes then how you will be going to utilize these remaining minutes could affect your rank.
  • For example, you are left with some of the NAT type questions which carry 1 or 2 marks and no negative marking will be there for answering NAT questions, therefore whether your answer is approximate or you are not sure you should attempt that questions.

Other than that students are also advised to solve as many GATE previous year questions as they can. This will help you in undertaking the pattern of the paper, type of questions asked in the paper, difficulty level of the paper, and important topics. Hopefully, the GATE Preparation Tips mentioned above will help in scoring high marks in the exam.

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*The article might have information for the previous academic years, please refer the official website of the exam.

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