GAT B 2026 Exam: Registration Date, Eligibility, Exam Pattern, Syllabus details

GAT-B was earlier known as JNU CEEB. The Graduate Aptitude Test-Biotechnology (GAT-B)/Biotechnology Eligibility Test (BET) is a National Level Entrance Examination for admission to the Department of Biotechnology supported Post Graduate Programme in Biotechnology and allied areas in participating Institutions (GAT-B) and for the award of DBT – Junior Research Fellowship (DBT-JRF) for pursuing research in frontier areas of Biotechnology (BET).

Based on the Biotechnology Eligibility Test (BET), two categories of merit lists are prepared (Category-I and Category-II). Category I candidates can avail of the fellowship [JRF] at any recognized university/institution across India, where the candidate enrols for a PhD.Programme. Category II candidates can be appointed in any DBT-sponsored project with a fellowship equivalent to NET/GATE qualification as per current DST guidelines and/or enrol in a PhD programme. 

The exam is conducted to offer admission to aspirants in Biotechnology programs offered by the JNU and other participating colleges. The courses are as follows-

• MTech Biotechnology/allied sciences.
• MSc Biotechnology. 
• MSc Agriculture Biotechnology. 
• M.V.Sc. Animal Biotechnology.

GAT-B and BET Admission and Exam Timeline

Registrations for GAT-B usually start in first week of February and exam takes place in third week of April. On the other hand, the BET application form filling start in fourth week of February and entrance test takes place in second week of May. 

Candidates can check eligibility of GAT-B and BET exam below -

GAT-B 2026 Eligibility Criteria

• Must have Indian nationality.
• Must have a bachelor's degree from a recognised university in any of the fields- biological/physical, veterinary and fishery sciences, agriculture, pharmacy, engineering or technology.
• Candidates with a four-year BSc (physician assistance course) or medicine or BDS can also apply.
• Minimum qualifying mark must be 60%.
• The maximum age to apply is 28 years. For reserved category, age limit is upto 5 years for male and 3 years for female candidates.

BET Eligibility Criteria 2026

• Candidates must have bachelor's (BE/BTech/MBBS) and master's (MSc/MTech/MVSc/MPharm/Integrated MSc/MTech) in any discipline of Life sciences or Biotechnology or any other allied areas of Biology.
• Final year applicants can also apply
• Minimum qualifying mark is 60% for general and 55% for reserved
• Maximum age to apply is 28 years. For reserved category, age limit is upto 5 years for male and 3 years for female candidates.

The National Testing Agency will release GAT-B 2026 information brochure along with registration form at dbt.nta.ac.in. Follow process below -

• GAT-B 2026/BET registration - Interested candidates must register online entering their personal, mobile number and email ID
• Filling application form - Once registration is complete, candidates must fill in their personal, educational, and communication details
• Uploading documents - After entering details, candidates must proceed to upload their photograph and signature
• Make fee payment - Lastly, navigate to the payment section and pay registration fees

The GAT-B 2026 application form fee is INR 1300/- (for General-UR/OBC-NCL/EWS category) and INR 650/- for (SC/ST/PwD) candidates

GAT-B Application Form 2026 Correction Window

NTA will open correction window after the registration process. Students can make the following changes during the correction facility -

Particulars that cannot be changed

• Mobile number
• Email address
• Address (permanent and present)

Candidates can change any one of the following fields -

• Candidate’s name
• Father’s name
• Mother’s name
• Photograph  - image upload
• Signature - image upload

Particulars that can be changed

• Class 10th/equivalent fields
• Graduation details
• Post-graduation details
• Date of birth
• Gender
• Category
• Sub-category/PwBD

Exam centres

Candidates are allowed to change examination cities within the same state. 

National Testing Agency releases GAT-B 2025 exam pattern along with the official notification. Applicants appearing in the exam must refer to exam pattern to prepare for exam. Students can check GAT-B and BET examination pattern below -

GAT-B Exam Pattern 2026

Graduate Aptitude Test-Biotechnology exam comprises of 2 sections, A and B

• Section "A" consists of 60 MCQs. Each correct answer carry one mark. For incorrect answer, 0.5 mark will be deducted
• Section "B" consists of 100 MCQs of 3 marks each. Students have to attempt only 60 questions out of 100. There is negative marking of 1 mark for incorrect responses

BET 2026 Exam Pattern

BET 2026 exam dates will be updated soon on official website. The time duration to complete question paper is three hours and is divided into two sections -

• Section "A" consists of 50 MCQs of 10+2 level in subjects. Each correct answer carries 1 mark, and there is a negative marking -1 for wrong answer
• Section "B" consists of 150 questions (MCQs) with questions based on biotechnology. Candidates have to attempt at least 50 questions. Each question is of 3 mark and there is negative marking of 1 mark for incorrect response

Candidates need to be fully aware of the GAT B and BET syllabus before filling out the GAT B application form. The syllabus PDF will be released along with information brochure. Applicants appearing in the exam must go through the GAT-B 2026 syllabus for their preparations. GAT-B syllabus comprises important topics and chapters asked in the exam. The examination was conducted in two shifts for 180 minutes. Candidates can check the brief syllabus of the GAT B exam here:

GAT B 2026 Syllabus:

GAT-B exam city intimation slip 2026 will be made available a few days before exam date. Through city intimation slip, students will be notified about the exam city before the release of admit card. Candidates can check their exam city for GAT-B/BET following process below -

• Visit official website of NTA GAT-B website 
• Click on candidate portal and login using application number, password, and date of birth
• Enter security pin and submit
• Allotted exam city for GAT-B exam will be displayed on screen

Once the GAT-B city intimation slip is released, students must check their photo, signature, QR code, and other details carefully. If there are any details missing, then can check their internet connectivity and download it again. Candidates must note that city intimation slip is not admit card. It is just advanced information to inform student about where their test city is located, so that they can make their travel arrangements accordingly.