The full CUET UG syllabus and exam pattern: three sections, 33 languages, 23 domain subjects and the General Test, with every paper at 50 questions in 60 minutes and +5, -1 marking for 250 marks.
The CUET UG syllabus is organised into three sections, Languages, Domain Subjects and the General Test, and the exam pattern is uniform: every single paper has 50 questions to be answered in 60 minutes, marked +5 for a correct answer, -1 for a wrong answer and 0 for an unattempted question, so each paper carries 250 marks. CUET UG (Common University Entrance Test, Undergraduate) is a computer-based test (CBT) conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA) for admission to undergraduate programmes at central universities such as Delhi University, Banaras Hindu University, JNU, Jamia Millia Islamia and Allahabad University, plus many state, private and deemed universities.
The exam is modular: a candidate builds their own paper set from one or more Languages, up to 5 Domain Subjects and the General Test, for a maximum of about 5 test papers. This guide breaks down the CUET exam pattern, the CUET UG marking scheme, the three sections, the CUET General Test syllabus and the CUET domain subjects, so you can plan your paper combination with confidence.
The CUET UG exam pattern is one of the simplest to remember because it is identical for every paper. Whether you sit a language, a domain subject or the General Test, the paper has 50 multiple-choice questions worth 250 marks, to be solved in 60 minutes, and from the 2025 revision all 50 questions are compulsory (the earlier option to attempt 40 of 50 has been removed). The exam is a CBT, and the domain subjects and the General Test are bilingual, set in English and Hindi, while language papers are in the chosen language.
| Feature | Detail (every paper) |
|---|---|
| Mode | Computer-based test (CBT) |
| Questions per paper | 50 (all compulsory) |
| Duration per paper | 60 minutes |
| Marks per paper | 250 |
| Marking | +5 correct, -1 wrong, 0 unattempted |
| Papers you can take | 1 to 3 Languages + up to 5 Domain Subjects + General Test (max about 5) |
Because each paper is a self-contained 60-minute sitting, your total marks depend on how many papers your combination has, and your exam-day pacing is always planned one paper at a time.
The CUET UG marking scheme is +5 for every correct answer, -1 for every wrong answer and 0 for an unattempted question, applied uniformly across all papers. Since each paper has 50 questions and each correct answer earns 5 marks, a single paper is worth 250 marks (50 times 5). There is no sectional lockout inside a paper: you get the full 60 minutes to move freely across its 50 questions.
| Response | Marks awarded |
|---|---|
| Correct answer | +5 |
| Wrong answer | -1 |
| Unattempted or marked for review | 0 |
| Maximum per paper (50 correct) | 250 |
The -1 penalty means accuracy matters more than raw attempts. A pure blind guess is a bad bet, but if you can eliminate two options, the +5 upside usually outweighs the -1 risk, so a considered attempt is worth it.
CUET UG has three sections: Section IA and IB cover Languages, Section II covers Domain Subjects, and Section III is the General Test. Across Sections IA and IB there are 33 languages in total (13 in Section IA and 20 in Section IB), of which you pick 1 to 3. Section II offers 23 domain subjects, of which you may take up to 5. Section III, the General Test, is mandatory for most programmes.
| Section | What it covers | Choices | Per paper |
|---|---|---|---|
| Section IA + IB | Languages (13 in IA + 20 in IB = 33 total, including English and Hindi) | Pick 1 to 3 | 50 Q / 60 min / +5 / -1 |
| Section II | Domain Subjects (23 available, at class-12 level) | Pick up to 5 | 50 Q / 60 min / +5 / -1 |
| Section III | General Test (mandatory for most programmes) | 1 | 50 Q / 60 min / +5 / -1 |
Each language paper tests reading comprehension, vocabulary and grammar in the chosen language, with unseen passages followed by comprehension questions. English and Hindi are the most commonly chosen, so pick the one you handle best.
The CUET General Test syllabus is a single 50-question paper that mixes five areas: General Knowledge and Current Affairs, General Mental Ability, Numerical Ability, Quantitative Reasoning (simple application of basic arithmetic, algebra, geometry, mensuration and statistics at about class-8 level) and Logical and Analytical Reasoning. It runs for 60 minutes and, like every CUET paper, is marked +5, -1, 0 for 250 marks.
The General Test is mandatory for most programmes and broad, so it often decides your edge. In our CUET question bank, the General Test paper is a single 50-question mock weighted to the NTA blueprint, so you rehearse it exactly as it appears in the real exam.
Section II offers 23 domain subjects, and you may take up to 5, so you choose the ones your target courses require. The domain subjects are mapped to the class-12 NCERT syllabus, so your standard board textbooks are the core resource and you do not need advanced material beyond them. A commerce aspirant typically takes Accountancy, Business Studies and Economics, while a humanities aspirant takes subjects like History, Political Science, Geography and Psychology.
On Quiz4Exam, our CUET question bank covers the universal core (the General Test, English and Hindi), the Commerce domain subjects (Accountancy, Business Studies, Economics) and the Humanities domain subjects (History, Political Science, Geography, Psychology). Each 50-question paper is weighted to the NTA blueprint, so commerce and humanities aspirants can prepare their full combination in one place. For the deeper study routine behind these papers, see our CUET UG preparation strategy.
Plan your CUET paper combination around the programmes you actually want, not the maximum number of papers you can take, because every extra paper is another 60-minute sitting and another syllabus to master. Read the eligibility for your target courses on each university's admission page, then pick exactly the language, domain subjects and General Test those programmes require.
Practising with the exact CUET pattern and marking trains the judgement of when to attempt and when to skip, which is where the marks are won. Start with our CUET UG mock tests to see where you stand on each paper, and read the full CUET UG strategy guide to turn the syllabus into a study plan.
On cycle timing: CUET UG 2026 concluded (exam 11 to 31 May 2026, result declared 23 June 2026), and CUET UG 2027 is expected around May 2027 on the usual annual pattern. These 2027 dates are tentative until the official NTA notification, so confirm the schedule and your paper choices on cuet.nta.nic.in before you register.
Ready to test yourself? Take one full CUET paper in 60 minutes with the +5 and -1 marking on, then let analysed, steady practice on Quiz4Exam turn the syllabus into a calm, confident exam-day performance.
Always confirm the latest exam dates, combination rules and pattern on the official portals.
The CUET UG syllabus is split into three sections: Languages (33 available across Sections IA and IB), Domain Subjects (23 available, mapped to the class-12 NCERT syllabus) and the General Test (GK and current affairs, mental ability, numerical ability and reasoning). A candidate builds a combination of 1 to 3 languages, up to 5 domain subjects and the General Test.
The CUET UG marking scheme awards +5 for a correct answer, -1 for a wrong answer and 0 for an unattempted question, applied uniformly across every paper. Since each paper has 50 questions and each correct answer earns 5 marks, a single paper carries a maximum of 250 marks. The negative marking means accuracy matters more than the number of attempts.
Every CUET UG paper has 50 questions to be answered in 60 minutes, and from the 2025 revision all 50 are compulsory. This is uniform whether the paper is a language, a domain subject or the General Test. Your total number of questions depends on your combination, since a candidate takes 1 to 3 languages, up to 5 domain subjects and the General Test.
Yes, CUET UG has negative marking. A wrong answer deducts 1 mark, while a correct answer adds 5 marks and an unattempted question scores 0. Because of this, a blind guess can lower your score, so it is best to attempt only questions you know or can narrow down by eliminating options, and to leave pure guesses blank.
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The CUET General Test is a single 50-question paper, mandatory for most programmes, covering General Knowledge and Current Affairs, General Mental Ability, Numerical Ability, Quantitative Reasoning at about class-8 level and Logical and Analytical Reasoning. It runs for 60 minutes and, like every CUET paper, is marked +5, -1, 0 for a maximum of 250 marks.
