7/30/2019 GATE 2014 changes

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Date 26/04/2013

No GATE pass for job seekers

The number of candidates enrolling for the Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering (GATE) has jumped

from 7 lakh in 2012 to 11 lakh this year. But not many of these examinees are interested in seeking

admission to an M.Tech or an ME course. Now they are mostly eyeing a high GATE score to land a job

in public sector units (PSUs). To crack the whip on such candidates and defend the very purpose of the

test, the GATE committee is now likely to bring about some changes in the examination system.

"We fear that in 2014, more candidates will appear in GATE in order to find a job in PSUs. Majority of

these candidates will be those who are not interested in enrolling for the M.Tech course, the sole reason

for holding GATE. Hence, changes will be imminent in 2014," said a senior IIT - Kharagpur official, who

is also a part of the GATE committee. The number of examinees sky-rocketed after it was decided that all

PSUs will give campus recruitment a miss and shortlist candidates from their GATE scores. A committee,comprising nine members from seven IITs and IISC Bangalore, has been formed to delve into the

prevalent examination system and examine the methods to incorporate changes. "A proposal has been

made to evaluate the possibility of dividing GATE into prelims and main from 2014. Only after securing

a cut-off mark will a candidate be allowed to appear in the main examination. This will eliminate a huge

number of candidates," said a committee member.

The committee is also looking into the possibility of holding the examination on multiple days instead of

a single day. "Till now, online examinations were held on one day while written examinations were held

on another day. There were different subject papers. Some were held online while others were written

examinations," informed another source.

"GATE is primarily held for M.Tech programme aspirants and not job seekers. Hence, we are grappling

with the rising influx of candidates. There is inadequate infrastructure to hold the examination on the

same day for all students. Thus, the GATE restructuring committee shall look into the possibility of

improvising on the examination. They have also been entrusted with the job to modify the course model.

The first meeting of the committee is yet to be held," informed an IIT-KGP official.

As per the proposal, a screening examination shall consist of aptitude test and combination of

mathematics, chemistry and geology. Only after an examinee secures a fixed cut-off mark will he or she

be eligible to appear in the subject papers. "The date for GATE 2013 has already been fixed. Manpower

needs to be increased due to the influx in candidates. All changes, if any, will be from 2014 onwards,"

said Biswajit Maiti, convener of the GATE restructuring committee.

"In 2011, GATE had 6.12 lakh aspirants while in 2012 it had increased to 7.17 lakh. In 2013, the number

of examinees have exceeded 11 lakh. PSU job seekers are the only reason for this increase. Hence, a

restructuring is mandatory," said a GATE committee member

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