New GATE, winning strategies

The syllabus for the 2016 exam has been revised. Here is how you can plan your preparations for the exam.

GATE — the Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering — is considered one of the toughest all-India examinations that checks students’ knowledge of undergraduate subjects related to the stream of engineering and science. It is a computer-based standardised test, organised by the Indian Institute of Science and seven Indian Institutes of Technology. The GATE score is vital for the aspirants as it helps them get admission into postgraduate courses in various streams of engineering and technology. The GATE score is also a prerequisite for applying to most of the major public sector undertakings.

The pattern

The exam is of three hour's duration and consists of 65 questions. It is for a maximum of 100 marks, and the questions comprise both multiple choice questions and numerical answer-type questions. Currently, GATE is held for 23 streams. Some of them are Mechanical, Electronics and Communication, Electrical, Computer Science and IT, Civil and Instrumentation.

New syllabus

The syllabus of GATE 2016 has been revised and many topics have been added in some of the subjects. In the stream of Mechanical Engineering, topics have been added to five subjects. The subjects include Strength of Materials, Theory of Machines, Machine Design, Heat Transfer and Thermodynamics.

The topics that are added to these subjects include Rosettes, testing of materials with universal testing machine, testing of hardness and impact strength, dynamic analysis of linkages, cams, governors, balancing of reciprocating and rotating masses and gyroscope, design of springs, Heisler’s charts, air and gas compressor, thermodynamics relation, thermodynamics properties and Table.

In the field of Electrical Engineering, two topics namely drives and servo and stepper motors have been removed from two subjects — power electronics and electrical machine, respectively. In the subject, Measurements, Potentio Metric Recorder, serial and parallel communication, has been removed.

In the stream, Electronics and Communication engineering, the topic interpolation of discrete time signals and digital filter design technique is added to the subject Signal System. In Analog Electronics, voltage reference circuits has been added and analog CMOS circuit has been removed. Such changes have also been made in other subjects, such as Digital Circuit, EDC, EMT, Communications and Mathematics.

In Computer Science and Information Technology, changes have been made to four subjects, namely, DSA, TOC, SEWT and Mathematics.

For Civil engineering, the syllabus of subjects like Engineering Mechanics, Construction Material and Management, Transportation and Surveying has been changed.

In the stream of Instrumentation Engineering, the syllabus of two subjects, AOBI and Transducer have been changed. In the subject, Measurements, RMS Meters, voltage and current scaling has been added.

In a nutshell, GATE 2016 will check the basic knowledge of students, hence the questions are expected to be more conceptual. Also, the questions may be more twisted and research-oriented this time. Students can use online calculators for solving the questions in the exam, which will make it easy for them to complete the paper on time.

Eligibility

In order to appear for the GATE exam, it’s crucial for aspirants to meet the eligibility criteria. Aspirants should have a bachelor’s degree in engineering or a related field. Final-year students can also appear for the exam. Students who have completed their master’s in any such field or those who are final-year students can also sit for GATE.

In order to nail this competitive exam, it is important that students follow these preparation tips.

Prepare thoroughly: The first and the foremost tip for achieving good marks in GATE is to start preparing for it from the early years of college. This will enable students to prepare at a slow and steady pace and not rush and succumb to last minute-distractions.

Make a timetable: Since GATE scores are important for admission in postgraduate programmes of the best colleges in the country, aspirants need to be meticulous about how they prepare for it. Having a proper timetable at hand will guide them on how to move forward, which subject to study first and so on.

Revision is a must: Revising the entire syllabus at least two to three times before the final exam is the best way to score well in GATE. Revision clears each and every concept and helps students gain a better understanding of the subject. Once the students are confident about the basics, it becomes easier to take the exam.

Follow the GATE 2016 pattern: Since the syllabus has been changed, students are recommended not to neglect any subject just because they don’t like it or because of paucity of time. They should be thorough with the basics and can take help from their friends for clearing the doubts. They should also get used to online calculators and practise sample papers from GATE 2008, GATE 2002 and GATE 1996 as these were also organised by IISc.

The writer is the founder of The GATE Academy.