GATE CH Syllabus, Exam Pattern, Eligibility, Important Dates

The paper is a single three-hour, 65-question sitting. Wrong answers cost you only on MCQs. An MSQ is marked right only when every correct option is chosen and nothing else. NAT answers are keyed in, with no options to pick from. You get a virtual calculator on screen; physical calculators aren't allowed.

Second paper

Candidates with CH as their main paper can also take ES, PE or XE.

From the official CH syllabus for 2027. The brochure says most syllabi were revised this year.

General Aptitude

The 15-mark aptitude section is common to every GATE paper: English usage and reading, arithmetic and data interpretation, logical reasoning and spatial puzzles.

Anyone in the third or a later year of an undergraduate degree, or holding a completed government-approved degree in engineering, technology, architecture, science, commerce, arts or humanities, can register. Master's students in science or computer applications qualify from their first year. Professional society members (AMIE, IIChE and similar) qualify after Section A, provided the qualification is recognised as equivalent to a B.E.

No age limit applies, and GATE itself doesn't care whether your degree is in chemical engineering. Institutes and employers that use the score set their own branch rules.

The form was filled online on GOAPS. A verified DigiLocker account was recommended for Indian applicants, and the portal captured a live photo at registration. Corrections to category, paper and city choice are open on GOAPS until 21 October 2026, at ₹500 per paper for most changes.

Postgraduate study. IITs and IISc admit M.Tech students through COAP and NITs through CCMT, both using GATE scores. Students admitted with a valid score at government-funded institutes receive ₹12,400 a month.

Recruitment. PSUs on the GATE site's list include IOCL, GAIL, ONGC, EIL, NTPC, BHEL and NALCO. Read each year's advertisement; not every company recruits from CH every year.

The exam is held in over 300 cities across India. Applicants chose three cities from one GATE zone; the zone is fixed by your first choice. IIT Madras can allot a city outside your choices if needed. City slips come out on 4 January 2027.

Dates for GATE 2027 as published by IIT Madras (subject to change):

Sessions run 9:30 AM to 12:30 PM and 2:30 PM to 5:30 PM. The CH date and session haven't been announced.

Admit cards will be downloadable from GOAPS on a date still to be announced. Bring it with the original ID used in your form. Seats open 40 minutes before the start, and nobody can log in later than 15 minutes after it.

The result is due on 19 March 2027 on GOAPS, after a provisional key and a paid challenge window. CH is a one-session paper, so your actual marks go straight into the GATE Score out of 1000. Scorecards are free for an initial period, then ₹500 each until 31 December 2027. The score stays valid for three years.

The 2026 CH cut-off sat at the floor. GATE sets the General qualifying mark at mean plus one standard deviation, held between 25 and 40, so a low-scoring paper ends up at exactly 25. OBC-NCL/EWS get nine-tenths of that and SC/ST/PwD two-thirds. These marks only make you qualified; admission and PSU cut-offs are higher.

• Mass transfer, heat transfer and reaction engineering are the core. Most numericals come from these three.
• Process calculations look easy but cost marks through careless balances. Practise recycle and purge problems until they're routine.
• Chemical technology is mostly flowsheets and raw materials. A few evenings of reading covers it.
• The 2027 maths section adds principal component analysis next to linear regression. Don't skip it.
• Attempt every NAT and MSQ, since only MCQs carry a penalty.
• Time yourself on the CH papers from 2024 to 2026 on the GATE download page, using only the virtual calculator.

• GATE 2027 website (IIT Madras)
• GATE 2027 CH syllabus (PDF)
• GATE 2027 brochure (PDF)
• Schedule
• Past papers and keys, including CH 2026
• 2026 qualifying marks (IIT Guwahati)

Which institute is running GATE 2027?

IIT Madras.

What was the CH qualifying mark in 2026?

25 for General, 22.5 for OBC-NCL/EWS and 16.6 for SC/ST/PwD.

Can I write CH along with another paper?

Yes: ES, PE or XE.

Is there a penalty for wrong answers?

Only on MCQs: a third of a mark on 1-mark questions and two-thirds on 2-mark ones.

When will the result come out?

19 March 2027.

Is AI part of the CH syllabus now?

Only a little. The 2027 maths section lists linear regression and principal component analysis under fundamentals of AI/ML.