NRA CET - Graduates Syllabus, Exam Pattern, Eligibility

This is the design in the Cabinet decision of 19 August 2020. None of it has been put into practice.

The CET only shortlists. Final selection was to happen in separate specialised Tiers (II, III and so on) run by each recruitment agency. Some departments said they might skip any second-level test and recruit on CET scores, physical tests and medicals.

The curriculum was to be common across agencies, backed by a standard question bank.

No question count, duration, marking scheme or negative marking rule has ever been notified. Anyone quoting one is not quoting the Government.

No CET syllabus has been published for any of the three levels. The Cabinet promised a common curriculum and a standard question bank; neither has been issued.

The SSC, RRB and IBPS exams the CET was to screen for all test reasoning, quantitative aptitude, English and general awareness, with computer knowledge at some levels. That's an inference from the scope, not a syllabus. They also differ in section weights, timing, negative marking and qualifying rules, so there is nothing common to prepare from yet.

Use the syllabus in the SSC CGL notice on ssc.gov.in, the RRB centralised employment notice for graduate non-technical posts, or the IBPS PO and SO notification on ibps.in.

This is the graduate CET, for candidates with a bachelor's degree. The NRA was to run separate CETs for 12th pass and 10th pass candidates.

Posts it was to screen for

• Group 'B' Gazetted and Non-Gazetted posts exempted from consultation with the UPSC
• Group 'C' posts in the Government
• Equivalent posts where no such classification exists

In practice, the non-technical posts now recruited by the SSC, the RRBs and IBPS.

Attempts, age and score

No limit on attempts, subject to the upper age limit. SC, ST, OBC and other categories were to get the usual age relaxation. A score would be valid for three years from the result, and your best valid score would count.

What hasn't been notified

No CET age limits, fee, reservation table or eligibility conditions exist, because no CET has been notified. Your eligibility today is whatever the SSC CGL notice, the RRB notice or the IBPS notification says for the exam you're actually sitting. Each sets its own age limits, degree requirement and relaxations.

The two-stage design

1. The CET, run only by the NRA, to shortlist candidates.
2. Separate specialised Tiers (II, III and so on), run by each recruitment agency, for final selection.

In the Government's words, CET scores would let candidates approach various recruitment agencies for the next level tests. The CET appoints nobody.

Candidates were to register once on a common portal, pay a single fee and choose centres, with the eventual aim of booking their own test slot. The SSC, RRBs and IBPS would use the scores first. Other Central agencies might follow, and scores could be shared with State Governments, Union Territories, PSUs and the private sector on an MoU or cost-sharing basis.

None of this is running

As at 10 September 2026 there's no CET and no common portal. For graduate posts the process that applies is SSC CGL's own tiers, the RRBs' own stages for graduate non-technical posts, or IBPS's prelims, mains and interview. Each is in that agency's notification.

The CET carries no post and no pay. It's a screening test. Pay is whatever the post you're eventually recruited to pays: an SSC CGL post, a graduate non-technical Railway post, or a PO or SO post in a public sector bank. Each agency's notification gives the pay level, and it varies by post and place of posting.

Fee and cost

Candidates were to pay a single fee on a common registration instead of a fee to each agency. No fee has been notified.

The Cabinet sanctioned ₹1,517.57 crore over three years to set up the NRA and build exam infrastructure in the 117 Aspirational Districts. It projected a saving of about ₹600 crore a year to the recruiting agencies once the CET launched.

There is nothing to apply for. No CET has been notified, so there's no window, no portal and no fee. Any site taking CET registrations or money is not the Government.

What was planned

• Common registration on one portal and a single fee.
• A choice of centres, allotted on availability, eventually with candidates booking their own slot.
• A 24x7 helpline, a grievance portal, and mock tests, including for rural youth.

Where to apply today

SSC CGL on ssc.gov.in, graduate non-technical Railway posts through the RRBs (links on indianrailways.gov.in), and IBPS PO and SO on ibps.in. Each has its own registration, fee and window.

A real CET notification would come from the Department of Personnel and Training (dopt.gov.in) and the Press Information Bureau (pib.gov.in). Check there before believing a headline.

The three agencies the CET was to serve

The NRA is a multi-agency body with representatives of the Ministry of Railways, the Ministry of Finance and Department of Financial Services, and the SSC, RRB and IBPS. It sits under the Department of Personnel and Training.

All three agencies still run their own first-level exams. The SSC's calendar as at 10 September 2026 lists, under its own name, CGL 2026, CHSL 2026, MTS 2026, Stenographer Grade 'C' and 'D' 2026, Junior Engineer 2026, Selection Posts 2026, Combined Hindi Translators 2026 and Sub-Inspector in Delhi Police and CAPF 2026.

No CET has been held, so no centre has ever been used.

The plan was at least one test centre in every district, with part of the ₹1,517.57 crore outlay set aside for exam infrastructure in the 117 Aspirational Districts. The Cabinet's reasons: rural candidates pick only some exams because of cost; women from rural areas struggle to travel to distant centres and sometimes need someone to accompany them; and every exam adds travel, boarding and lodging to the fee. On average 2.5 crore to 3 crore candidates sit each of these exams.

Today you sit at the centres allotted under the SSC CGL, RRB or IBPS notice. Each publishes its own list of cities and its own rules on changing centre.

The dates that matter to you are in the SSC's annual exam calendar on ssc.gov.in, the RRBs' centralised employment notices, and IBPS's annual calendar on ibps.in. A genuine CET date would come through the DoPT and PIB, not a coaching-site headline.

No CET admit card has ever been issued, because no CET has been held. Anything claiming to be one is fake.

Your admit card comes from whoever runs the exam you're actually sitting: the SSC for CGL, the relevant RRB, or IBPS, on its own website a week or two before the exam. If in doubt about anything CET-related, check dopt.gov.in and pib.gov.in.

No CET result has ever been declared.

As designed, a score would be valid for three years from the result, with no limit on attempts and your best valid score counting. It would let you approach recruitment agencies for their next level test, not select you for anything. Faster results and a shorter recruitment cycle were among the promised benefits.

For now, results come from the agency that ran your exam. The SSC publishes CGL tier-wise results, answer keys and cut-offs on ssc.gov.in; the RRBs and IBPS publish theirs on their own sites.

There is no CET cut-off. No CET has been held, so none has ever been declared. Any "CET cut-off" or "expected cut-off" you see is made up.

The cut-offs that matter at graduate level are the SSC's tier-wise CGL cut-offs, by category and post, on ssc.gov.in under Results, usually a few months after each tier, and the equivalent RRB and IBPS figures.

Prepare for the exam that exists

No CET has been held. At graduate level, the exams to prepare for are SSC CGL, the RRB Non-Technical Popular Categories exams for graduate posts, and IBPS PO and Specialist Officer, each on its own published syllabus and pattern.

Don't wait for the CET

It was promised for 2021, then early 2022, then the end of 2022. It still hasn't happened, and the SSC's 2026 calendar lists the very exams it was meant to replace. Preparing to a guessed "CET syllabus" wastes time.

Use the overlap

CGL tier-1, the RRB graduate exams and the IBPS PO prelims all test reasoning, quantitative aptitude, English and general awareness. Serious CGL tier-1 preparation gets you most of the way to the other two, so prepare once and apply widely.

They still differ in section weights, timing, sectional cut-offs and negative marking. Practise each one's own past papers under its own rules, not a generic mock. There are no CET papers or mocks.

A simple plan

1. Pick your targets: for a graduate, usually SSC CGL, RRB graduate non-technical posts, and IBPS PO or SO.
2. Work from each agency's current notification and syllabus.
3. Check dopt.gov.in and pib.gov.in now and then for a genuine CET notice, and change nothing until one appears.
4. Never pay anyone for "CET registration". It doesn't exist.

No CET papers, answer keys, mock tests or sample papers exist, because no CET has been held. Any "CET model paper" is a guess.

The only official CET documents are the Cabinet decision of 19 August 2020 and the PIB factsheet on the NRA. For real papers, the SSC publishes CGL question papers and answer keys on ssc.gov.in after each tier.

• Cabinet approves setting up of National Recruitment Agency, PIB, 19 August 2020. The full CET design.
• National Recruitment Agency factsheet, PIB, with a link to its e-booklet.
• Department of Personnel and Training, which oversees the NRA: dopt.gov.in. Its Parliament Questions section carries the current status on the record.
• Press Information Bureau: pib.gov.in

Agencies to follow instead

• Staff Selection Commission, annual calendar and every notice: ssc.gov.in
• Railway Recruitment Boards, via indianrailways.gov.in and the regional RRB sites
• IBPS: ibps.in

Has the CET ever been conducted?

No. As at 10 September 2026, no CET has been held at any level. The Cabinet approved it on 19 August 2020 and the NRA was registered on 12 December 2020, but no exam has followed.

So what should I prepare for?

SSC CGL, the RRB graduate non-technical posts, and IBPS PO and SO. All three are live and publish their own syllabus and pattern.

Is the CET cancelled?

No. It's still approved policy, with ₹1,517.57 crore sanctioned. It just hasn't been held.

What was it supposed to replace?

The tier-1 exams of the SSC, the RRBs and IBPS for non-technical Group 'B' and 'C' posts.

Would a CET score get me a job?

No. It only shortlists. Each agency was to select through its own Tier II and Tier III.

How many CETs are there meant to be?

Three: graduate, 12th pass and 10th pass.

How long would a score last?

Three years from the result, with unlimited attempts within the age limit and your best score counting.

Is there a CET syllabus, pattern or cut-off?

None has been published. Only the mode is settled: a computer-based online test.

Where would it be held?

At least one centre in every district, with new infrastructure in the 117 Aspirational Districts.

Can I register now?

No. There's no registration, fee or portal. Anyone charging for one is not the Government.

Who runs the NRA?

A multi-agency body with the Ministry of Railways, the Ministry of Finance and Department of Financial Services, and the SSC, RRB and IBPS, under the Department of Personnel and Training.

Where will I hear if a CET is notified?

On dopt.gov.in and pib.gov.in, and from the SSC, RRBs and IBPS.