The NET and SET exams serve the same purpose of conducting exams to recruit candidates for posts of Junior Research Fellow or Assistant Professor in colleges and universities. University Grant Commission (UGC) conducts two types of entrance exams: NET and SET.
NET is conducted at the national level, and SET is at the state level.Â
In this article, let’s understand some major differences between both the NET and SET exams. Read in detail about the University Grant Commission on the linked page.
Why SET was conceptualised?
The authorities or conducting body felt that an eligibility test at the national level might not be sufficient to represent the regional subjects. Also, there was a rising demand for letting the candidates appear for the Test in their own mother tongue. Thus the decision was taken, and state governments and union territories were provided with the option of conducting their own Test for eligibility for Lectureship at the state level. This was the entire process of conceptualisation of the SET, i.e., the State Eligibility Test for Lectureship Eligibility. SET is conducted both in English and the vernacular language.
Category-wise Difference between NET & SET Exam
The detailed category-wise difference between the NET and SET exams is given below.
Conducting Body & Purpose
NET stands for National Eligibility Test, whereas SET stands for State Eligibility Test or State Level Eligibility test.
NET is conducted twice a year in June and December but SET is conducted only once a year.
NET is conducted for lectureship posts in any university or college in the country. SET is conducted state-wise.Â
The different states conducting the SET exam are:
- Himachal Pradesh State Eligibility Test or HP SET
- Assam State Eligibility Test or Assam SET
- West Bengal State Eligibility Test or WB SET
- Maharashtra State Eligibility Test or MH SET
- Uttarakhand State Eligibility Test or USET
- Madhya Pradesh State Level Eligibility Test or MP SET
- Karnataka State Eligibility Test or KSET
- Kerala State Eligibility Test or Kerala SET
- Gujarat State Eligibility Test or GSET
- Jammu and Kashmir State Eligibility Test or J&K SET
- Andhra Pradesh State Eligibility Test or AP SET
- Tamil Nadu State Eligibility Test or TN SET
Eligibility Criteria
NETÂ
- Candidates who have obtained a minimum of 55% marks (General category) and 50% (SC/ST/PwD) in a Master’s Degree or equivalent examination from universities/institutions recognised by UGC in the list of subjects at the Post-graduation level are eligible for this Test.
- Candidates who are currently in their Master’s degree course or equivalent course or candidates who have appeared for their Master’s degree (final year) examination and whose result is still awaited may also apply for this Test.
- The upper Age Limit is 30 years (For JRF).
- Relaxation of up to 5 years for sc/st/obc-ncl/women/armed forces personnel’s /pwd/ transgender/ researchers, 3 years for L.L.M degree holder.
- No upper age limit is set for applying for Assistant Professor.
- Aspirants who qualify NET exam would be eligible to be appointed to the post of Junior Research Fellow/Assistant Professor anywhere throughout the country.
SET
- General/Unreserved/General-EWS candidates who have secured atleast 55% marks in a Master’s Degree or equivalent examination from universities/institutions recognised by UGC are eligible for this test.Â
- For the scheduled Caste (SC), Scheduled Tribe (ST), Person with Disability (PWD) Category, and the Other Backward Classes (OBC) belonging to the non-creamy layer to have a score of atleast 50% marks in Master’s degree or equivalent examination are eligible to appear in the Test.
- There is no age limit.Â
- A candidate can avail of any number of chances.
- Aspirants who appeared for SET examinations scheduled in or after June 2002 shall be eligible for appointment to the post of lecturer only in the universities/colleges belonging to the state from where they have passed the SET examination.
Exam Pattern & Syllabus
NETÂ
- The Test will consist of two papers. Both papers will consist of objective-type, multiple-choice questions.Â
- There will be no break between papers.
- Paper 1 tests the aptitude, reasoning ability, reading comprehension, divergent thinking and general awareness of the candidate.
- Paper 2 assesses the domain knowledge.
- All the questions are compulsory.
- The medium of the Question Paper shall be in English & Hindi only.
- There is no negative marking for incorrect answers.
SET
- The test will be held on a day in two separate sessions.Â
- Paper – I shall be of the general subject intended to assess the teaching/research aptitude of the candidate.Â
- It will primarily be designed to test the reasoning ability, comprehension, divergent thinking and general awareness of the candidate.Â
- Paper – II shall consist of 100 objective-type questions based on the subject and assess the domain knowledge.Â
- Each question will carry 2 marks.
- There is no negative marking.
- The medium of the exam will be regional for language-specific subjects and English for other subjects.
Syllabus
The UGC NET syllabus comprises 83 subjects in total.
SET exams are conducted in various streams and comprise several subjects. Each SET exam has its own syllabus. The SET majorly follows the UGC NET syllabus at present.Â
Exam FeesÂ
NETÂ
The exam fees for the UGC NET application is as follows:
- General/Unreserved – Rs. 1100/-Â
- Gen-EWS*/ OBC-NCL** – Rs. 550/-Â
- Scheduled Caste (SC) / Scheduled Tribes (ST) / Person with Disability (PwD)Â – Rs. 275/-
SET
The exam fees for the UGC SLET application is as follows:
- General Rs. 1200/-Â
- OBC (Non-creamy layer) Rs. 1050/-Â
- General (EWS) Rs. 1050/-Â
- SC/ST Rs. 1000/-Â
- PWD Rs. 800/-
Exam Centres
The NET exam is conducted throughout the country twice every year across various cities and exam centres. The SET exam is conducted once a year, and the cities are specific to the state conducting the exam. There will be state-wise specific exam centres for the SET exam.
These are the major differences between the NET and SET exams.Â
Related links:
| UGC NET Exam Pattern | UGC NET application form | UGC NET Admit Card |
| UGC Net eligibility criteria | UGC NET Certificate |
