CSIR Examination Pattern

Paper I :

An objective-type test of duration 2 hours and 15 minutes, in 2 sections, A and B. All the questions are compulsory with the cut-off mark in Paper I deciding whether Paper II is to be evaluated or not. Negative marks are assigned to wrong answers in this paper where a maximum of 200 marks can be scored.

Section A - In 30 general questions, the candidate's knowledge on general information pertaining to Science, aptitude for Scientific Research, Quantitative Reasoning and Computer Science are tested.
Section B - Focusses on the candidate's chosen subject. There are 70 objective-type questions, each carrying a maximum of 2 marks.

Paper II:

A paper of duration 2 hours and 30 minutes, it consists of descriptive-type questions for a maximum of 200 marks. Candidates are expected to answer 10 to 15 questions.

Use of calculators / logarithm tables (other than those provided in the answer books) is not permitted.

Paper	Marks	Timings	Duration
I	200	10.00AM-12.15PM	2-1/4 hrs
II	200	2.00PM-4.30PM	2-1/2 hrs

Negative marking will be made for wrong answers in Paper I. Paper II will be evaluated only in case of those candidates who will be able to secure a minimum of such aggregate marks in Paper I as may be fixed by the CSIR. Candidates are required to appear in both the papers. A candidate who does not appear in Paper I will not be permitted to appear in Paper II. The questions in all these papers will appear both in Hindi and English.