Do you want to be a research associate or assistant professor at the college and university? If yes, preparing for UGC NET is the most appropriate option for you. Before start preparing for the exam, you need to understand the basics of the exam.  

UGC NET exam is the entrance exam for the post of assistant professor and junior research fellowship (JRF) in colleges and universities. National Testing Agency conducts the University Grants Commission National Eligibility Test (UGC NET) twice a year in June and December. 

The exam is conducted for 82 different subjects including Political Science, Economics, Philosophy, Psychology, Sociology, History, Anthropology, Commerce, Education, Social Work, Defence & Strategic Studies, Home Science, Public Administration, Hindustani Music, Management, Maithili, Bengali, Hindi, Kannada, Malayalam, Oriya, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Tamil, Telugu, Urdu, Arabic, English, Linguistics, Chinese, Dogri, Nepali, Manipuri, Assamese, Gujarati, Marathi, French, Spanish, Russian, Persian, Rajasthani, German, Japanese, Adult Education, Physical Education, Arab Culture, Indian Culture, Labour Welfare, Law, Library and Information Science, Buddhist Studies, Comparative Study of Religions, Mass Communication & Journalism, Performing Art, Museology & Conservation, Archaeology, Criminology, Folk literature, Sanskrit, Geography, Pali, Kashmiri, Konkani, Computer Science, Prakrit, Yoga, Sindhi, Santali.

UGC NET is conducted in computer-based test mode. It includes two papers, Paper 1 and Paper 2. The duration to complete both papers is 3 hours. Paper 1 is for testing the reasoning ability, general awareness, comprehension, and research aptitude of the student, whereas Paper 2 is based on the specific subject selected by the student. 

Tips to prepare for UGC NET exam are – 

Check the exam pattern – To prepare for the UGC NET exam, first of all, check the exam pattern. Exam pattern gives you an idea about the paper, marking scheme, type of questions, etc. 

Know the syllabus – before start preparing for the NET exam, you need to know the syllabus of the exam. If you don’t know about the syllabus, then how you will start the preparation for the exam. The syllabus provides you an insight on which subject and topics need more focus and time to prepare for the exam. 

Arrangement of study material – When you start preparing, arrange all the study material beforehand required for the study. You can purchase the books online as well as offline. You can also take online notes to start preparing for the exam. 

Preparation of notes – While preparing, underline all the essential points with the colored pens, or prepare a separate notebook to note down all the essential points that will save your time at the time of revision. 

Solve previous year question papers – After studying the whole syllabus, solve old year question papers to know the question pattern, types of questions, weak or strong points, etc. 

Manage your time and syllabus – While preparing for the exam, try to manage your syllabus according to your time. Divide the whole syllabus into topics and manage your time according to the divided syllabus.  

Be self-confident – Self-confidence is the core to success. Always be confident while you are preparing for the exam. Don’t get demotivated during the preparation of the exam. Demotivation lowers your self-confidence and can distract you. It affects your preparation for the exam. 

All these are the preparation tips for the UGC NET exam. With all these tips, you can also try to do regular studies according to time- table, can join coaching class, time to time revision, etc.

I hope these tips will help you, and you will crack the UGC NET exam at the first attempt.