GATE 2027 Registration Extended Again: Now Open to 5 October

GATE 2027 registration, exam date, and what the score unlocks

GATE 2027 (Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering) is the single most important exam for Indian engineering graduates who want either a Master's degree from an IIT, NIT, or IIIT, or a direct-recruitment PSU job. IIT Madras is the organising institute for the 2027 cycle. Registration opened on 2 September 2026 and is still open: IIT Madras has extended the regular window, without a late fee, to 5 October 2026, with the late-fee window running to 12 October. The exam runs across six days: February 6, 7, 13, 14, 20 and 21, 2027. A valid GATE score stays valid for 3 years and is accepted by 30+ major Public Sector Undertakings including ONGC, BHEL, IOCL, GAIL, NTPC, and Power Grid.

Important dates for GATE 2027

Every date below is the one published on the official GATE 2027 site at gate2027.iitm.ac.in, except where the row says otherwise. IIT Madras carries its own disclaimer that all dates are liable to change.

Two rows are worth pausing on. The exam runs across six days rather than the four of some recent cycles, so the paper you sit is fixed by which day your paper falls on and not by choice. And the correction window is the only chance to change a submitted form: it opens on 14 October, more than a fortnight after the regular deadline closes, and shuts on 21 October. once the official notification is released.

IIT Madras has moved this deadline three times. The original notification set the regular close at 21 September 2026, then it went to 27 September, and it now stands at 5 October. The late-fee window moved with it, from 30 September to 5 October and then to 12 October. The revision history is visible on the official dates page at gate2027.iitm.ac.in, where each superseded date is shown alongside the current one.

Two things follow. If you read anywhere that GATE 2027 registration closed on 27 September, that page has not been updated: the regular window is open, and it is open without a late fee. And a deadline that has moved three times is not a deadline to plan against. The correction window on 14 to 21 October has not moved at any point, which makes it the more reliable fixed point in this schedule.

DigiLocker is mandatory this year, and it changes how GATE contacts you

Every Indian national applying for GATE 2027 has to register through a verified DigiLocker account. This is new for the 2027 cycle and it is not optional: IIT Madras routes the whole application through DigiLocker identity verification rather than the manual document upload of earlier years.

The part candidates miss sits in the second half of that rule. IIT Madras has said that all future communication about your GATE 2027 application goes to the DigiLocker account you applied with, and only to that account. If you register with a friend's DigiLocker, or one tied to a phone number you are about to change, or an account you cannot log back into, you lose the channel through which the admit card, the city allotment and every correction notice reach you.

Three things follow from that.

Verify your DigiLocker before you start the form rather than during it. Verification depends on Aadhaar and a working mobile number, and that is not a five-minute job if the number linked to your Aadhaar is out of date.

Use your own account, with a phone number you will still hold in March 2027. GATE runs from registration in September to results in March, which is six months of communication going to one place.

Keep the login. The correction window on 14 October and the city allotment on 4 January both need it.

How to apply for GATE 2027 step by step

Applications happen only online at gate.iitm.ac.in through the GOAPS (GATE Online Application Processing System) portal.

1. Visit gate.iitm.ac.in and click the GOAPS registration link.
2. Register with your name, date of birth, email, and mobile number. You receive an enrolment ID.
3. Log in with the enrolment ID and fill personal details, academic qualification, paper choice, and 3 preferred exam cities.
4. Upload photograph (200 KB max, JPEG), signature (150 KB max, JPEG), category certificate (if applicable), and PwD certificate (if applicable). Format specifics are on the portal.
5. Pay the application fee online via UPI, net banking, debit card, or credit card.
6. Download the submitted application PDF for your records. Print two copies before the exam day.

If you want to appear in two papers, both must be listed in the official allowed-combination list. Second paper choice is available at the time of application, and the fee doubles.

Eligibility for GATE 2027

You are eligible if you are in the final year of, or have already completed, any of the following:

• 4-year B.Tech, BE, B.Pharm, or equivalent
• 5-year integrated dual degree (BS + MS or B.Tech + M.Tech)
• MSc, MCA, MA in relevant disciplines (for corresponding GATE papers)
• 3-year B.Sc followed by 2-year M.Sc (must be in the final year of M.Sc)

There is no upper age limit and no cap on the number of attempts. You can appear every year until you clear or get a rank you are happy with.

Three quick worked examples

• Rohit, final-year B.Tech Computer Science: eligible for GATE 2027 CS paper. He can also target the DA (Data Science and AI) paper as a second choice.
• Priya, MSc Chemistry, cleared 2025: eligible. She can appear in the CY (Chemistry) paper. Her BSc marks do not affect eligibility.
• Rahul, 3rd-year integrated dual degree: not eligible for 2027. He must complete or reach the final year of his integrated programme.

GATE 2027 papers list

GATE 2027 offers 30 discipline-specific papers. The most popular ones by candidate count are:

Engineering streams

• CS: Computer Science and Information Technology
• EC: Electronics and Communication Engineering
• EE: Electrical Engineering
• ME: Mechanical Engineering
• CE: Civil Engineering
• CH: Chemical Engineering
• IN: Instrumentation Engineering
• BT: Biotechnology
• MT: Metallurgical Engineering
• AE: Aerospace Engineering
• AG: Agricultural Engineering
• MN: Mining Engineering
• PE: Petroleum Engineering
• PI: Production and Industrial Engineering
• TF: Textile Engineering and Fibre Science

Science and interdisciplinary

• DA: Data Science and Artificial Intelligence
• ST: Statistics
• MA: Mathematics
• PH: Physics
• CY: Chemistry
• XE: Engineering Sciences (multi-section)
• XL: Life Sciences (multi-section)
• ES: Environmental Science and Engineering
• GG: Geology and Geophysics
• EY: Ecology and Evolution

Humanities

• XH: Humanities and Social Sciences (multi-section)
• AR: Architecture and Planning

You can appear in one or two papers, subject to the allowed-combination list published every year.

GATE 2027 adds Robotics and Automation (RA) as a new test paper, which takes the count to 30. It is the first new paper since Data Science and Artificial Intelligence was introduced, and it matters for a specific group: candidates from mechatronics, control systems and automation backgrounds who previously had to squeeze themselves into Electrical, Electronics or Mechanical. If your degree sits across those boundaries, check the RA syllabus against your coursework before defaulting to the paper your branch name suggests.

GATE 2027 exam pattern and marking

Each paper is a 3-hour computer-based test with 65 questions and 100 total marks. The paper structure:

• General Aptitude (GA): 10 questions, 15 marks (compulsory across all papers)
• Core subject: 55 questions, 85 marks
• Question types: Multiple Choice Questions (MCQ), Multiple Select Questions (MSQ), Numerical Answer Type (NAT)

Marking scheme:

• MCQ: 1 or 2 marks correct, 1/3 or 2/3 negative for wrong answers.
• MSQ: 1 or 2 marks correct, no negative marking.
• NAT: 1 or 2 marks correct, no negative marking. You type the answer directly.

There is a mandatory virtual calculator on screen. Physical calculators are not allowed.

Preparation strategy for GATE 2027

GATE 2027 is in February 2027. The timeline below assumes a twelve-month run at it, which is what a candidate starting in early 2026 had. Compress each phase proportionally if you are starting later.

Months 1 to 4 (July to October 2026): concept building

• Complete standard textbooks for your subject syllabus (see book list below).
• Solve every solved example. Aim for 60 percent problem-solving accuracy at the end of this phase.
• Give one topic-wise quiz every week to check retention.

Months 5 to 8 (November 2026 to February 2027): problem-solving intensity

• Move to previous year GATE papers, 10 to 15 years back.
• Solve at least 5 previous year papers per week under timed conditions.
• Maintain an error notebook. Common mistakes will start repeating.
• Start attempting full-length mock tests, one every two weeks.

Wait, this timeline overlaps with the exam. If you started in July 2026, the compressed version is:

Months 1 to 6 (July to December 2026): concept + problem solving overlap

• Blend concept building with previous year practice. Do not wait for concepts to finish before starting practice.

Months 7 to 8 (January to February 2027): full mocks + revision

• Full-length mock test every alternate day.
• Aim for 55 to 65 marks in mocks. That range typically translates to 800+ score in the actual exam.
• Revise your error notebook thoroughly. Do not learn new topics in the last month.

For repeaters, the 6-month version is: months 1 to 3 for revision and error correction, months 4 to 6 for intensive mock tests and previous year papers.

Recommended books by subject

General Aptitude (all papers)

• R.S. Aggarwal Verbal and Non-Verbal Reasoning for baseline concepts.
• Made Easy GA workbook for GATE-specific practice.

Computer Science (CS paper)

• Cormen (CLRS) for algorithms, Silberschatz for DBMS, Tanenbaum for operating systems, and Made Easy handwritten notes for a quick revision layer.

Mechanical Engineering (ME paper)

• Made Easy notes cover 80 percent. Supplement with S.K. Mondal notes for thermodynamics.

Electrical Engineering (EE paper)

• Made Easy notes and RK Rajput textbook combination. Ace Academy notes are strong for power systems.

Civil Engineering (CE paper)

• Made Easy notes and B.C. Punmia textbook for structural analysis and geotechnical engineering.

Electronics and Communication (EC paper)

• Kanodia previous year solved book plus Ace Academy or Made Easy notes.

For all subjects, the single most important book is the previous year GATE papers with detailed solutions. Kanodia or Made Easy publishes the best-known compilations.

Marks, score and percentile are three different numbers

This is the part of GATE that confuses more candidates than the syllabus does, and getting it wrong leads people to target the wrong number.

Your marks are the raw total on the paper you sat. Your GATE score is a normalised figure derived from those marks, built from the qualifying cutoff and the average of the top performers, which is how IIT Madras makes a score from one paper comparable with a score from another and one year comparable with the next.

The practical consequence is that PSU cutoffs and M.Tech cutoffs are not the same kind of number and cannot be compared. A PSU notification asking for 80 marks and an IIT asking for a 750 score are describing different things. Coaching pages that publish a single "GATE cutoff" table without saying which of the three they mean are the main source of the confusion.

For a candidate, the useful rule is short. If you are targeting a PSU, track raw marks. If you are targeting an M.Tech seat, track the score. The percentile is for conversation.

PSU recruitment through GATE 2027

A valid GATE score is accepted by these PSUs for direct executive-level recruitment. Starting salaries typically fall in the ₹50,000 to ₹1,00,000 per month range depending on the PSU and posting.

This page does not publish a per-PSU cutoff table, and you should be wary of any that does. PSUs shortlist on raw marks out of 100, the figure moves every year with the difficulty of the paper and the number of posts, and the band worth planning against is the 75 to 85 marks that General category shortlists at the larger PSUs have recently needed.

PSU application windows open shortly after the GATE result, through roughly March to May 2027. Each PSU publishes its own advertisement and its own cutoff, and you apply to each separately using your GATE registration number and score.

What a PSU shortlist actually asks for

PSU recruitment through GATE runs on raw marks out of 100, not on the normalised score and not on percentile. Across recent cycles, General category shortlists at ONGC, NTPC, IOCL, BPCL, BHEL and HPCL have sat in the region of 75 to 85 marks, with reserved category cutoffs lower and the exact figure moving every year with the difficulty of the paper and the number of posts.

That band is worth holding on to, because it reframes the target. Qualifying in GATE needs far less than 75 marks. Converting GATE into a PSU job needs most of the paper right.

GAIL, NTPC, THDC and GRID India have already published recruitment notifications against GATE 2027 scores. More follow through 2027, and each PSU runs its own application separate from GATE itself: a GATE score does not enter you into PSU recruitment automatically. You apply to each PSU on its own portal, in its own window, and missing that window wastes the score.

Sitting two papers, and the rules that changed

A candidate may appear in one paper or two, and the two-paper option is only open to combinations IIT Madras has approved. The permitted combinations were revised for GATE 2027, so a pairing that worked in an earlier cycle is not automatically valid now.

Check the current combination table in the GATE 2027 information brochure before you pay for a second paper. The second paper carries its own fee and its own exam slot, and the combinations are built so that the two papers do not fall in the same session.

Two papers is not free breadth. It doubles the syllabus you carry into February for a marginal gain in options, and it makes sense mainly where the two papers genuinely overlap, such as Instrumentation with Electronics, rather than as insurance.

M.Tech admissions through GATE 2027

Two parallel counselling processes run after the GATE result.

COAP for IITs: The Common Offer Acceptance Portal is used by all IITs for M.Tech admissions. You register at coap.iitm.ac.in after the GATE result. Each IIT publishes offers based on your GATE score and interview. You accept or reject offers in rounds.

CCMT for NITs and IIITs: The Centralized Counselling for M.Tech is used by all NITs, IIITs, and select GFTIs. Registration happens at ccmt.admissions.nic.in. Seat allotment is based on GATE score, category, and choice-filling.

Both processes typically run May through July 2027.

GATE cutoff trends by branch

Approximate qualifying GATE 2025 cutoff scores by branch (out of 100 marks) for general category:

• Computer Science (CS): 26.28
• Electronics (EC): 25.4
• Electrical (EE): 25.2
• Mechanical (ME): 28.6
• Civil (CE): 28.3
• Chemical (CH): 25.0

Cutoffs vary by 2 to 4 points year over year. Note how low these are: qualifying in GATE is a far lower bar than using GATE for anything. The M.Tech admission cutoff at a good institute sits well above it, and PSU shortlists at the larger PSUs have recently needed 75 to 85 marks for General category, which is roughly three times the qualifying mark.

Application fee for GATE 2027

Fees are non-refundable. If you appear in two papers, the fee doubles for each category.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Choosing the wrong paper. Your paper choice must match your undergraduate discipline, otherwise the syllabus overlap is minimal and preparation becomes twice as hard.
• Skipping previous year papers. Every serious GATE aspirant solves at least 10 years of previous papers. Skipping this step is the single biggest reason for low ranks.
• Ignoring General Aptitude. 15 marks are up for grabs from GA, and it is the easiest section. Aspirants who skip GA lose 12 to 15 easy marks.
• Overusing coaching material and skipping textbooks. Standard textbooks build concepts. Coaching notes are best used as revision layers, not primary sources.
• Applying to PSUs late. PSU advertisements go up quickly after GATE results. Set alerts on the official career pages of ONGC, IOCL, BHEL, and PGCIL by early March 2027.

Frequently asked questions

When is GATE 2027 exam date? GATE 2027 runs across six days: 6, 7, 13, 14, 20 and 21 February 2027, as a computer based test with two sessions a day. Which day you sit is decided by your paper, not by choice. Your exam city is allotted on 4 January 2027 and the specific slot is printed on the admit card, which IIT Madras has not yet dated.

Is DigiLocker mandatory for GATE 2027 registration? Yes, for all Indian nationals. GATE 2027 registration runs through a verified DigiLocker account, which is new this cycle. IIT Madras has also said every future communication about your application goes only to the DigiLocker account you applied with, so use your own, on a mobile number you will still hold when results come out in March 2027.

What is the new paper in GATE 2027? Robotics and Automation, paper code RA. It takes GATE to 30 test papers. It is aimed at candidates from mechatronics, control systems and automation backgrounds who previously had to fit themselves into Electrical, Electronics or Mechanical, so it is worth comparing the RA syllabus against your coursework rather than defaulting to the paper your branch name suggests.

Is the GATE cutoff in marks or in score? It depends who is asking. PSUs shortlist on raw marks out of 100, and General category cutoffs at the larger PSUs have recently sat around 75 to 85. IITs, NITs and IIITs admit on the normalised GATE score, which runs 0 to 1000. They are different numbers and cannot be compared, which is why a single "GATE cutoff" table without that distinction is misleading.

Is GATE 2027 registration still open? Yes. IIT Madras extended the regular window, without a late fee, to 5 October 2026, and the late-fee window to 12 October. This deadline has moved three times: the original close was 21 September, then 27 September, now 5 October. Pages still showing 27 September as the final date are out of date. Registration runs through GOAPS on gate2027.iitm.ac.in and needs a verified DigiLocker account.

When is the GATE 2027 correction window? 14 to 21 October 2026. It opens more than a fortnight after the regular deadline of 27 September and it is the only chance to change a submitted application, so a form error you notice in November cannot be fixed.

Does a GATE score automatically apply me to PSUs? No. Each PSU runs its own recruitment against the GATE score, on its own portal and in its own window. GAIL, NTPC, THDC and GRID India have already notified against GATE 2027. A strong score with no PSU application attached to it converts into nothing.

How many times can I appear for GATE? There is no limit on the number of attempts. You can appear in GATE every year for as long as you meet the eligibility criteria. Each attempt is independent.

Is GATE 2027 syllabus different from GATE 2026? GATE syllabus changes are extremely rare, and any change is announced with the official notification. IIT Madras is expected to keep the 2026 syllabus with minor topic-level updates. Confirm from the official notification in July 2026.

Can I do M.Tech from IIT with just a GATE qualifying score? No. IIT M.Tech admissions typically require a GATE score in the top 20 percent of your paper's candidates, plus an interview or written test at the IIT. The qualifying cutoff is only the minimum to be considered.

What is the difference between qualifying score and admission cutoff? The qualifying score is the minimum GATE score needed to be considered "GATE qualified". The admission cutoff at IITs and PSUs is typically much higher. For example, CS qualifying score is around 26, but IIT M.Tech admission usually needs 55+ marks.

Which PSU pays the highest starting salary through GATE? As of the 2026 recruitment cycle, IOCL, HPCL, and ONGC offered the highest starting salaries, generally in the ₹75,000 to ₹1,00,000 per month range including basic pay, DA, and location allowances.

Can I appear in two GATE papers? Yes, but both must be in the official allowed-combination list published every year. Common combinations include CS with DA, and ME with XE. You pay the application fee for both papers.

Is a virtual calculator available in the GATE exam? Yes. A virtual scientific calculator is available on the exam screen for every paper. Physical calculators are not allowed inside the exam hall.

Official website

gate.iitm.ac.in. Always cross-check any date, syllabus, or eligibility detail you see elsewhere against this official portal.