Joint CSIR-UGC NET Exam June 2024: Application Forms, Important Dates, Eligibility Criteria, Exam Pattern, Exam Centres, Award Details

The Joint CSIR UGC NET is a test that determines the eligibility for Junior Research Fellowship, appointment as Assistant Professor, admission to Ph.D., or a combination of these opportunities in Indian universities, colleges, and R&D establishments.

CSIR and UGC offer Research Fellowships for research in various fields of Science and interdisciplinary areas. These fellowships are provided under the guidance of experienced faculty members and scientists working in University Departments, National Laboratories, and Institutions.

The Joint CSIR UGC NET Fellowships can be pursued in Universities, IITs, Post Graduate Colleges, Government Research Establishments, and recognized institutions. Only Indian citizens are eligible for this test, and the fellowships are tenable in India.

Here, you will get all the detailed information about Joint CSIR-UGC NET Exam June 2024 that you should know before applying for the exam.

Below, an official CSIR NET June, 2024 bulletin information is also given in pdf format. Download the pdf to know more about the CSIR NET June exam, 2024.

Important Dates and information for Joint CSIR-UGC NET June 2024

Joint CSIR- UGC NET June 2024 Eligibility Criteria

• General/Unreserved/General-EWS candidates who have achieved a minimum of 55% marks (without rounding off) in their Master’s Degree or equivalent examination from recognized universities/institutions are eligible to take this Test. For Other Backward Classes (OBC) belonging to Non-Creamy Layer/Scheduled Caste (SC)/Scheduled Tribe (ST)/Persons with Disability (PwD)/Third gender category candidates, a minimum of 50% marks (without rounding off) in their Master’s degree or equivalent examination is required to be eligible for this Test.
• Candidates who are currently pursuing their Master’s degree or equivalent course, or those who have appeared for their final year examination and are awaiting their results, or candidates whose qualifying examinations have been delayed, can also apply for this test. However, these candidates will be provisionally admitted and considered eligible for NET only after they have passed their Master’s Degree or equivalent examination with at least 55% marks (50% marks for OBC-NCL/SC/ST/PwD/Third gender category candidates). It is mandatory for these candidates to complete their Master’s degree or equivalent examination within two years from the date of the NET result, failing which they will be disqualified. However, candidates who qualify for ‘Admission to Ph.D. Only’ must complete their Master’s degree or equivalent examination within one year from the date of the NET result, failing which they will be disqualified.
• Candidates belonging to the Third gender category are eligible for the same relaxation in terms of fee, age, and Eligibility Criteria for NET as SC/ST/PwD categories. The subject-wise qualifying cut-offs for this category will be the lowest among those for SC/ST/PwD/OBC-NCL/General-EWS categories in the corresponding subject.
• Ph.D. degree holders whose Master’s level examination was completed by September 9, 1991 (regardless of the result declaration date) are eligible for a 5% relaxation in aggregate marks (from 55% to 50%) to appear in the NET.
• Candidates do not need to send any certificates or documents to NTA to prove their eligibility. However, candidates should ensure their own eligibility for the test. If any ineligibility is detected by CSIR/UGC/NTA at any stage, the candidate’s candidature will be canceled and they may face legal action. NTA does not verify the information provided by candidates during online registration, so the candidature is provisional and subject to meeting the eligibility criteria.
• Candidates with a post-graduate diploma/certificate from an Indian or foreign university should verify the equivalence of their diploma/degree/certificate with a Master’s degree from recognized Indian universities through the Association of Indian Universities (AIU), New Delhi (www.aiu.ac.in).
• Candidates who have completed a 4-year/8-semester bachelor’s degree program must have at least 75% marks overall or an equivalent grade. A 5% relaxation may be given to certain categories. Those who pass the NET with a 4-year degree can get a Junior Research Fellowship (JRF) and Ph.D. admission, but not eligible for Assistant Professor roles.
• Students in their final year of a 4-year program can apply for the test, but must meet UGC regulations within two years for JRF or one year for Ph.D. eligibility after passing the NET.
• Candidates with a 4-year degree can pursue a Ph.D. in any subject they choose.

Joint CSIR- UGC NET June 2024 Age Criteria

1. JRF applicants must be under 30 years old as of the 1st day of the month in which the examination concludes, which is June 2024. Candidates belonging to OBC-NCL/SC/ST/PwD/Third gender categories and women applicants are eligible for a relaxation of up to 5 years. Additionally, candidates with research experience can receive a maximum of 5 years of relaxation based on their research period in the relevant subject of their post-graduation degree, provided they present a certificate from a recognized authority. Those who have served in the armed forces can also receive up to 5 years of relaxation based on their service length. The total age relaxation cannot exceed 5 years in any case.
2. For Assistant Professor positions, there is no upper age limit for applying to the Joint CSIR UGC-NET.
3. Similarly, there is no upper age limit for applying to the Joint CSIR-UGC-NET for Admission to PhD.

Fee Structure for JOINT CSIR-UGC NET June, 2024

Fee Payable for JOINT CSIR-UGC NET June, 2024 (Debit/Credit Card/UPI or Internet Banking through any of the payment gateway of SBI/ICICI)

Note:

• An applicant can apply for payment through net-banking/debit/credit card/UPI.
• Service charges of the concerned Bank/ Payment Gateway Integrator, as applicable.
• Applicants are advised to read Payment instructions carefully before paying the application fee.

Important Points to know before applying for Joint CSIR-UGC NET June, 2024

• Candidates can apply for Joint CSIR-UGC NET June 2024 through “Online” mode only.
• Candidate must carefully read the Instructions (including how to fill up Application Form online) given in the Information Bulletin available on the NTA Website. Candidates not complying with the Instructions shall be summarily disqualified.
• Submission of Online Application Form should need to be done by accessing NTA website https://csirnet.nta.ac.in . Application Form in any other mode will not be accepted.
• Only one application is to be submitted by a candidate.
• Candidates must ensure that E-mail Address and Mobile Number provided in the Online Application Form are their own as all information/ communication will be sent by NTA through e-mail on the registered e-mail address or SMS on registered Mobile Number only.
• Instructions for filling Online Application Form:
  • Download Information Bulletin and read the same carefully regarding eligibility and procedure / documentation required for filling the Online Application Form.
  • Follow the steps given below to Apply Online:
    Step-1: Register for Online Form submission using unique Email ID and Mobile No.
    Step-2: Fill in the Online Application Form and note down the system generated Application No. Upload legible scanned images of: (i) a recent photograph (in jpg file, size 10Kb – 200Kb) either in colour or black & white with 80% face (without mask) visible including ears against white background; (ii) candidate’s signature (in jpg file size: 4kb – 30kb) (iii) Duly verified Result Awaited Attestation Form (in PDF format file size: 50KB to 500KB), (iv) Category Certificate, if applicable (SC/ ST/ OBC/ EWS etc.) (in PDF format file size: 50KB to 300KB) & (v) PwD Certificate, if applicable (in PDF format file size: 50KB to 300KB).
    Step-3: Pay prescribed fee through Net Banking / Debit Card / Credit Card and UPI, keep proof of fee paid for future reference.
  • Download, save and print copies of Confirmation Page after successful remittance of fee and keep copies safely for future reference.
  • PwD candidates are exempted from payment of fee.All the 3 Steps can be done together or at separate sittings.
• After the submission of Online Application Form (i.e., successful completion of all the Steps), Confirmation Page of the Application Form, should be downloaded and a printout of the same may be retained for future reference. The Confirmation Page of the online Application Form will be generated only after successful payment by the Candidate. In case the Confirmation Page is not generated after payment of the prescribed Fee, the candidate should approach the concerned Bank/ Payment Gateway integrator (at the helpline number and email given in Annexure-I of the Information Bulletin), for ensuring the successful payment. In spite of the above, if successful transaction is not reflected on the Portal, it means transaction is not complete and candidate may pay second time and ensure OK status. However, any duplicate payment received from the candidate by NTA in course of said transactions will be refunded (in the same payment mode through which the duplicate payment is received), after fee reconciliation by NTA.

• Information such as his/ her name, contact details / address, category, PwD status, educational qualification details, date of birth, choice of exam cities, etc. provided by the candidate in the online Application Form will be treated as final. Any request for change in such particulars after the closure of correction period will not be considered by NTA.
• NTA does not edit/modify/alter any information entered by the candidate under any circumstances. Any request for change in information will not be entertained. Therefore, candidates are advised to exercise utmost caution for filling up correct details in the Application Form. Request for corrections made by any candidates through Post/ Fax/WhatsApp/Email/by hand will not be entertained by NTA.
• Candidates must ensure that their email address and mobile number registered on their online Application Form are their own, as relevant/ important information/ communication will be sent by NTA through e-mail on the registered e-mail address and/or through SMS on registered mobile number only. NTA shall not be responsible for any non-communication/ mis-communication with a candidate in the email address or mobile number given by him/ her other than his/ her own.
• NTA disclaims any liability that may arise to a candidate(s) due to incorrect information provided by him/her in his/her online Application Form.
• Candidates are advised to visit the NTA Website and check their e-mails regularly for latest updates.
• Role of NTA is confined to registration of candidates and conduct of exam. Further, finalization of answer keys after inviting challenges, processing and declaration of results and preparation of the list of qualified candidates is being done by NTA in collaboration with CSIR. NTA has no role to play in the award of fellowships or other downstream processes.

The validity of the Assistant Professor qualifying certificate is permanent.

Joint CSIR-UGC NET Fellowship is given for a specific period and does not guarantee future employment by CSIR-UGC NET.

• Candidates who qualify under the ‘appointment as Assistant Professor and admission to Ph.D.’ category can be appointed as Assistant Professors and pursue a Ph.D., but they are not eligible for the JRF award.
• Candidates who qualify under the ‘admission to Ph.D. only’ category can only pursue a Ph.D. and are not eligible for the JRF award or appointment as Assistant Professor.

Eligibility will be determined as follows:

• The Ph.D. program admits JRF-qualified candidates through an interview, following the UGC Regulations of 2022.
• Candidates who have qualified under category-2 and category-3 of the Joint CSIR-UGC NET can use their scores as an entrance test for Ph.D. admission, instead of taking separate entrance tests conducted by universities/HEIs.
• For category-2 and category-3 candidates, 70% weightage will be given to their NET scores, while 30% weightage will be based on their performance in the interview/viva voce conducted by the respective University/HEI. The admission to Ph.D. will be determined by the combined merit of NET scores and interview/viva voce marks.
• The NET scores obtained by category-2 and category-3 candidates will be valid for one year from the date of declaration of the Joint CSIR-UGC NET result, for admission to Ph.D.
• The NET result will be declared in percentile, along with the candidate’s marks, which can be used for Ph.D. admission.
• The number of candidates qualifying for JRF-NET, Assistant Professor, and ‘admission to Ph.D. only’ will be determined by the results committee.

Details of Examinations

• Mode of Examinations: The Examinations will be conducted in Computer Based Test (CBT) mode.
• Pattern of Question Papers: The Test will consist of three parts. All the parts will consist of objective type, multiple choice questions. There will be no break between papers. The subject-wise scheme of examination is as per details below:

• Medium of Examination: The Paper will be in bilingual i.e. Hindi and English. Candidates are required to answer in the medium as per option exercised in the Application Form. In case of any ambiguity between Hindi and English version due to translation, English version would be treated as final.
• Syllabus of the Test: Syllabus & Scheme of Examination of the MCQ Paper can be download from our website or visit to CSIR HRDG website.

Junior Research Fellowship Stipend

The monthly stipend for a JRF selected through CSIR-National Eligibility Test (NET) is Rs. 37,000/- for the first two years. Additionally, a yearly contingent grant of Rs. 20,000/- is provided directly to the fellow. The terms and conditions of the CSIR, UGC, or Research Scheme will govern the Fellowship.

After completing two years as a JRF and being registered for Ph.D., the Fellowship will be upgraded to SRF (NET) with a stipend of Rs. 42,000/- per month for the 3rd and subsequent years. The upgrade will be based on the assessment of the Fellow’s research progress and achievements through an interview conducted by an Expert Committee. The Committee will consist of the Guide, Head of the Department, and an External Member who is an expert in the relevant field.

If the Committee does not recommend the upgrade or the fellow has not registered for Ph.D., the candidate will continue as a JRF with a stipend of Rs. 37,000/- per month for the 3rd year. The fellowship may also be terminated based on the recommendation of the Committee and the decision of CSIR. The progress of the JRF’s research work will be assessed by a three-member assessment committee at the end of the 3rd year for possible up-gradation.

Please note that the number of fellowships available for each subject is limited.