What are education competitive exams?
This bucket splits into two clear groups: teacher eligibility tests and teacher recruitment exams. CTET is the central eligibility test for teachers from class I to VIII, UGC NET and CSIR NET determine eligibility for Assistant Professor/JRF/PhD routes, NCET is for the 4-year Integrated Teacher Education Programme, and KVS/NVS, DSSSB, HTET, and REET cover teacher recruitment or state eligibility systems.
Major education exam families at a glance
| Exam family | Nature | Stages | Output / job | Salary | Scope |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CTET | Teacher eligibility test; objective CBT resources and archives on official site | Application → exam → key challenge / OMR / result | Eligibility for teacher appointments in classes I to VIII | No direct salary; eligibility only | National |
| UGC NET | Objective CBT | Apply → CBT → answer key → result / score card / certificate | Assistant Professor, JRF, PhD eligibility | No direct salary; eligibility only | National |
| CSIR NET | Objective CBT | Apply → CBT → answer key challenge → score card / certificate | JRF, Assistant Professor, PhD eligibility in science streams | No direct salary; eligibility only | National |
| NCET | Objective CBT admission test | Apply → city intimation → admit card → exam → answer key → score card → counselling | Admission to 4-Year ITEP | No direct salary; admission only | National |
| KVS/NVS recruitment | Objective + interview + skill/test as applicable | Tier-1 → Tier-2 → Interview / Skill Test | PRT, TGT, PGT, Principal, AO, Translator, etc. | Pay levels vary by post | National |
| DSSSB teaching recruitment | Online exam + e-dossier / skill / department verification depending on post | Online exam → e-dossier / interview / document flow | PGT, TGT, special education teacher, and other Delhi posts | Pay varies by post | Delhi / GNCTD |
| HTET | State TET; objective only | Level I / II / III | Teacher eligibility for PRT / TGT / PGT | No direct salary; eligibility only | State-level (Haryana) |
| REET | State TET; objective only | Level 1 / Level 2 | Teacher eligibility in Rajasthan | No direct salary; eligibility only | State-level (Rajasthan) |
CTET
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| What it is | CBSE’s Central Teacher Eligibility Test for classes I to VIII. The official CTET page says NCTE laid down the minimum qualifications and CTET is conducted by CBSE for this purpose. |
| Type | Teacher eligibility test; the official site provides current information bulletins, public notices, question papers, final answer keys, result links, and OMR-related documents. |
| Stages | Application → exam → key challenge / scanned OMR access → result / certificate. The documents page shows CTET Feb 2026 notices, answer-key challenge links, and OMR-related releases. |
| Output | Eligibility for teacher recruitment in schools for classes I to VIII. |
| Salary | No salary by itself; it is only an eligibility exam. |
CTET syllabus / topic map
| Area | What it covers |
|---|---|
| Official syllabus source | The current information bulletin is on the CTET portal, and the official site explicitly tells candidates to refer to the Information Bulletin for syllabus details. |
| Past papers / practice | The CTET site hosts question-paper pages and answer-key pages going back multiple cycles. |
UGC NET
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| What it is | NTA’s national eligibility test for Assistant Professor, JRF, and PhD routes. The official site says UGC-NET determines eligibility for Assistant Professor and JRF/Assistant Professor, and is conducted twice yearly. |
| Type | Objective CBT. |
| Stages | Application → CBT → provisional/final answer key → result / score card / certificate. The site’s answer-key and result pages show this flow. |
| Output | Eligibility for Assistant Professor, JRF, or PhD depending on the qualifying category. |
| Salary | No direct salary; the exam itself is eligibility-only. |
UGC NET syllabus / topic map
| Paper | Main topics |
|---|---|
| Paper I | Teaching aptitude, research aptitude, comprehension, communication, reasoning, data interpretation, higher-education system, and general awareness-style aptitude. |
| Paper II | Subject-specific syllabus. The UGC-NET 2025 result notice says the June 2025 exam was conducted for 85 subjects. |
Question style
UGC NET is a subject-and-aptitude test, not a pure memory test. The final qualification depends on aggregate performance in Paper I and Paper II.
CSIR NET
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| What it is | NTA’s Joint CSIR-UGC NET for science-stream fellowship and eligibility routes. The official site says it is a test for JRF, Assistant Professor, and PhD in science fields. |
| Type | Objective CBT. |
| Stages | Application → CBT → answer-key challenge → final key → score card / certificate. |
| Output | JRF / Assistant Professor / PhD eligibility in science disciplines. |
| Salary | No direct salary; eligibility only. |
CSIR NET syllabus / topic map
| Part | Main topics |
|---|---|
| Part A | General aptitude. The FAQ says the paper has Parts A, B, and C. |
| Part B | Subject-specific objective questions. |
| Part C | Higher-order analytical / application-based science questions. |
| Main subjects | Chemical Sciences, Mathematical Sciences, Physical Sciences, Earth Sciences, and Life Sciences. |
NCET
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| What it is | NTA’s National Common Entrance Test for admission to the 4-Year Integrated Teacher Education Programme (ITEP). |
| Type | Objective CBT. |
| Stages | Application → city slip → admit card → exam → answer-key challenge → score card → counselling / admission. |
| Output | Admission to ITEP in participating institutions. |
| Salary | No direct salary; admission test only. |
NCET syllabus / topic map
| Area | Main topics |
|---|---|
| General aptitude | General knowledge, current affairs, mental ability, numerical ability, quantitative reasoning, logical and analytical reasoning, environmental literacy. |
| Teaching aptitude | Education-related aptitude for teacher training. |
| Medium / languages | The NCET 2025 bulletin says question papers were available in 13 languages. |
KVS / NVS recruitment
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| What it is | CBSE conducts direct recruitment for teaching and non-teaching posts in KVS and NVS. The official notification says candidates should use only CBSE, KVS, and NVS websites for authentic information. |
| Type | Two-tier examination followed by interview for many senior posts; some posts also have skill tests. The notice says Tier-1 is a screening test and Tier-2/interview/skill-test follow as applicable. |
| Number of stages | Tier-1 → Tier-2 → Interview / Skill Test → document verification / final allotment. |
| Output | PRT, TGT, PGT, Principal, Vice-Principal, Assistant Commissioner, Librarian, AO, Finance Officer, Assistant Engineer, Junior Translator, and more. |
| Salary | Varies by post. The 2025 notification shows PGT at Level 8 (₹47,600–₹1,51,100), TGT at Level 7 (₹44,900–₹1,42,400), PRT / PRT-Music at Level 6 (₹35,400–₹1,12,400), and other administrative posts at Levels 2, 4, 6, or 7 depending on role. |
| Scope | KVS and NVS are national school systems; selected candidates may be posted anywhere in India. |
KVS/NVS syllabus / topic map
| Post group | Topic style |
|---|---|
| PGT | Postgraduate-level subject knowledge plus pedagogy, with teacher ability tested in the exam structure. The notification says Tier-1 knowledge for PGT/Principal/VP is at postgraduate level. |
| TGT | Graduate-level subject knowledge; the notice says Tier-1 knowledge for TGT is at graduate level. |
| PRT | Senior-secondary level for Tier-1; PRT roles require CTET Paper I qualification in the notice. |
| Non-teaching | Separate skill/computer/translation/stenography requirements where relevant. |
KVS/NVS question style
Tier-1 is a 3-mark objective screening test with negative marking of 1/3rd per wrong answer. The notice says shortlist to Tier-2 is in a 1:10 ratio, and combined Tier-1 may be used for some posts, with post-wise merit lists prepared afterward.
DSSSB teaching recruitment
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| What it is | Delhi Subordinate Services Selection Board recruitment for Delhi government departments, including teacher posts. The official recruitment portal includes syllabi, answer keys, marks lists, question banks, and result notices. |
| Type | Mostly online objective examinations, with e-dossier / scrutiny / post-specific follow-up depending on the post. Recent teacher result notices show online written exams and e-dossier shortlisting. |
| Number of stages | Online exam → e-dossier / document scrutiny / post-specific follow-up. |
| Output | PGT, TGT, special education teacher, and many other GNCTD posts. |
| Salary | Varies by post and department. The 2025 DSSSB vacancy notice shows examples across Pay Levels 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8, while teacher posts such as PGT appear in the teacher vacancy set. |
| Scope | Delhi / GNCTD. |
DSSSB syllabus / topic map
| Area | Main topics |
|---|---|
| Section A / Combined exam | The board’s official portal hosts Section A indicative syllabus, Section B indicative syllabus, and combined-exam syllabus pages. |
| Teacher posts | Post-specific subject knowledge, pedagogy, and educational qualification-based selection rules are used in teacher vacancies and result notices. |
HTET
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| What it is | Haryana Teacher Eligibility Test conducted by the Board of School Education Haryana. The official bulletin lays out Levels I, II, and III and says the test uses multiple-choice questions with no negative marking. |
| Type | Objective only. |
| Stages | Single-paper eligibility test by level. |
| Output | Eligibility for PRT, TGT, and PGT appointments in Haryana. |
| Salary | No direct salary; eligibility only. |
HTET level-wise syllabus
| Level | For | Main topics |
|---|---|---|
| Level I | Classes I–V / PRT | Child Development & Pedagogy; Languages (Hindi/English); General Studies with Haryana GK; Mathematics; Environmental Studies. |
| Level II | Classes VI–VIII / TGT | Child Development & Pedagogy; Languages; General Studies; subject-specific opted subject. |
| Level III | PGT | Child Development & Pedagogy; Languages; General Studies; subject-specific opted subject. |
HTET score system
| Detail | Value |
|---|---|
| Questions | 150 per level |
| Marks | 150 |
| Marking | 1 mark each, no negative marking |
| Qualifying marks | 60% general; 55% for Haryana SC / differently abled; 60% for SC / differently abled from other states. |
REET
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| What it is | Rajasthan Eligibility Examination for Teachers. The official REET portal shows Level-1 and Level-2 question booklets, final answer keys, scaling formula, results, and certificates. |
| Type | Objective only. |
| Stages | Application → exam → final answer key / scaling → result / certificate. |
| Output | Eligibility for teacher recruitment in Rajasthan. |
| Salary | No direct salary; eligibility only. |
REET topic map
| Level | Main topics |
|---|---|
| Level 1 | Primary-teacher eligibility. The official REET portal shows Level-1 question booklets and answer keys. |
| Level 2 | Upper-primary eligibility. The official portal shows Level-2 question booklets and answer keys. |
Official websites and update sources
| Purpose | Best source |
|---|---|
| CTET updates, question papers, answer keys, OMR, certificates | CTET official site and documents page. |
| UGC NET updates, answer keys, certificates, score cards | UGC NET official portal. |
| CSIR NET updates, answer keys, score cards, certificates | CSIR NET official portal. |
| NCET updates, city intimation, scorecard, counselling | NCET portal under NTA. |
| KVS/NVS recruitment notices, answer keys, results | CBSE recruitment page and the detailed notification PDF. |
| DSSSB teacher and other recruitments | DSSSB recruitment portal, answer keys, question bank, result notices. |
| HTET notices, syllabus, answer keys, old papers | BSEH / HTET official portal and bulletin PDF. |
| REET updates, question booklets, answer keys | REET official portal. |
Previous papers, solutions, and practice websites
| Type | Sites |
|---|---|
| Official real papers / answer keys | CTET documents and question-paper archive pages; UGC NET answer-key and score-card pages; CSIR NET archive and final-key pages; REET official question-booklet/answer-key pages; BSEH HTET bulletin and answer-key archive; CBSE KVS/NVS recruitment page with question papers and answer keys; DSSSB question-bank and answer-key sections. |
| Practice tests with solutions and explanations | MEKJ-Govt: Game-based learning with tests and solutions, learn and earn by solving tests |
| Practice / test series | Testbook hosts UGC NET subject-wise mock and previous-year-paper series with chapter tests, unit tests, and full tests. |
Reusable subject overlap across education exams
| Common topic block | Reusable across |
|---|---|
| Child Development & Pedagogy | CTET, HTET, REET, KVS/NVS, DSSSB teacher posts, NCET |
| Teaching aptitude / research aptitude | UGC NET, NCET, KVS/NVS, DSSSB |
| English / Hindi / languages | CTET, HTET, REET, KVS/NVS, DSSSB, UGC NET |
| General knowledge / current affairs | CTET, UGC NET, NCET, HTET, REET, DSSSB |
| Subject-specific school teaching | KVS/NVS, DSSSB, HTET Level II/III, REET Level 2 |
| Higher subject knowledge | UGC NET, CSIR NET |