CUET PG Exam Pattern 2026: Marking Scheme, Negative Marking, Exam Duration

The Common University Entrance Test (CUET) Postgraduation (PG) exam pattern 2026 is published on the official website, cuet.nta.nic.in by the National Testing Agency (NTA). It varies for courses like MA, M.Sc, MBA, MCA, LLM, and others. Aspirants preparing for the CUET PG exam 2026 need to be familiar with the exam pattern for their desired course of admission.

The CUET PG 2026 will be conducted in Computer-Based Test (CBT) mode as per the schedule announced by the NTA in selected cities spread across the country. As per the CUET PG exam pattern, the paper comprises 75 questions. The duration of the CUET PG exam is 105 minutes. As per the latest exam pattern for the CUET PG exam, there would be no General Test with each paper. However, candidates can choose a General subject as a paper.

LATEST UPDATES

The notification for CUET PG 2026 is likely to out in January 2026 on the official website.

Last Updated 13th October 2025

In the CUET PG exam 2026, each question carries four marks, but there is a negative marking as well. For every incorrect response, one mark will be deducted. The examination is conducted online and has a duration of 105 minutes. The language medium of the paper is English & Hindi, except for the Language & Sahitya papers.

Also Read: CUET PG Syllabus 2026

CUET PG Exam Pattern 2026

The National Testing Agency is responsible for conducting the CUET PG exam 2026, which serves as a gateway to postgraduate programmes. Students aspiring to appear for the CUET PG exam 2026 should acquaint themselves with the examination pattern.  Interested candidates can check the CUET PG exam pattern highlights in the table below:

Candidates must practise CUET PG previous question papers, which will give them an understanding of the question types asked in the examination. Moreover, it is advisable to understand the CUET PG syllabus thoroughly before commencing exam preparation.

CUET PG Exam Pattern 2026: Latest Revisions

Last year, NTA brought a few revisions to the CUET PG exam pattern, which are as follows: 

Reduced Exam Duration: The duration has been shortened from 105 minutes to 90 minutes while maintaining a total of 75 multiple-choice questions (MCQs). ​

Revised Question Paper Structure: The General Paper (Part A) has been redesigned to focus on skill-based and profession-oriented questions, aligning with undergraduate knowledge pertinent to specific fields. ​

Bilingual Medium: The exam will be conducted in both English and Hindi across all streams, including Science, Humanities, Acharya, Languages, MTech, and higher studies. ​

Negative Marking: The marking scheme awards four marks for each correct answer and deducts one mark for each incorrect response

CUET PG Exam Pattern 2026: Subject-wise Code List

The National Testing Agency has assigned different codes to different subjects. Candidates preparing for the CUET PG exam 2026 can check the subject codes in the table below.

CUET PG Exam Pattern 2026

The CUET PG 2026 exam will be conducted in March 2026, and the exam will follow the CUET PG 2026 exam pattern. The duration of the examination will be 90 minutes, as per the CUET PG Information Bulletin 2026. Each CUET PG question paper will comprise 75 questions. 

• The type of questions is MCQ.
• The total number of questions is 75.
• The duration of the exam is 90 minutes.
• The maximum marks are 300.
• The marking scheme is such that 4 marks will be awarded for each correct response and 1 mark will be deducted for each incorrect response.
• Depending solely on the degree of competency, students may choose up to four different paper codes.

To answer a question, applicants need to choose one option as the most appropriate option. Candidates must note that no marks will be given for questions unanswered, unattempted, or marked for review. 

CUET PG Marking Scheme

The CUET PG marking scheme is tabulated below to check for candidates preparing for the examination:

While every effort will be made to ensure that each question has one unique answer, in case it is found that a question has more than one option, it will be dealt with in the following manner:

(i) If more than one option is found to be correct, then four marks will be awarded to only those who have marked any of the correct options.
(ii) If none of the options is found correct, or a Question is found to be wrong, or a Question is dropped, then all candidates who have appeared will be given four marks (+4) irrespective of the fact whether the question has been attempted or not attempted by the candidate.

CUET PG 2026: Medium of Question Papers

The medium of the question paper for CUET PG 2026 will be in English and Hindi (Bilingual) except for languages, M. Tech/Higher Sciences, and Acharya papers (excluding Hindu Studies, Buddhist Studies, and Indian Knowledge System).

i) Papers for M. Tech/Higher Sciences will only be in English.
ii) Papers for Humanities, Sciences, and Common Subjects will be bilingual (English and Hindi).

Candidates must note that for the correctness of the questions in all question papers, the English version will be taken as final, except for language papers.