CUET Exam Pattern 2023 [UG] Marking Scheme, Paper Pattern & Marks Weightage

Reader’s Digest: NTA has introduced changes to the last year's exam pattern; it is crucial to know about these changes before you start your preparations. We recommend you plan your preparation backwards, i.e. by choosing the course and college you wish to study and then understanding the CUET exam pattern. Why are we saying so? Read this blog to find the answer to this.

What do you need to know before initiating the preparation for any entrance exam in general? It is undoubtedly the question paper design, and the sections are included.

CUET Exam Pattern will give you insights into the sections, subjects, duration, number of questions and exam marking scheme. Don’t get confused while comprehending it since it varies as per the college and the course you chose! 

Did you know that NTA has officially released the exam dates and introduced new changes to the exam pattern? Continue reading to learn about the new CUET exam pattern 2023 updates.

Download Free Study Material for CUET Exam 2023 by SuperGrads

Let’s gather some generic information about the CUET 2023 Exam Pattern:

• This exam is divided into 3 sections– Language Paper (1A and 1B), Domain Paper & General Test.
• Language Paper (1A and 1B): You will be asked questions based on 13 Indian languages in Section 1A and 20 Languages in Section 1B (Mix bag of regional Indian languages and Foreign languages). 40 questions are to be attempted out of 50 in each language.
• NTA will test your knowledge of the subjects studied in your Class XI and Class XII in the Domain-specific Test of CUET. There are 27 such subjects included in this section. Pick and choose from the list as per your stream. 35/40 questions to be attempted out of 45/50. 
• The General Test is a replica of the most heard Aptitude Test but with a level simpler to the ones you have seen or heard in IPMAT, NPAT or JEE Main B.Arch. 50 Questions to be attempted out of 60.

CUET 2023 Important Update: From the above subjects / languages, the candidate can choose maximum of 10 subjects from all three Section.
Examination will be conducted on multiple days in three shifts, depending on the number of candidates and subject choices.

CUET Revised Exam Pattern Highlights

The table below will provide helpful information about how NTA will design the CUET Question Paper.

4 Details That You Must Know About CUET Exam Pattern 2023

CUET 2023 will be conducted in three slots per day. Details related to the slots will be disclosed later by NTA. 

Last year, the morning shift had 3 slots distributed for Language, Domain and General Tests. While in the afternoon, had only the language and domain paper.

All the tests will be Computer-based. But the tweak is that you don’t have to appear for all languages or all domain tests to qualify for admission to your desired college.

1. All applicants must mandatorily appear for the 3 sections. An applicant can take a maximum of 10 subjects/ exams. 
2. What combinations can you create to finalise your 10 exams? You can probably write 3 language papers, 6 domain papers and 1 general test, or you can write 3
3.  language tests, 6 domain tests and 1 general test.
4. Keeping in mind the diversity of students (in terms of streams and boards), NTA has decided to provide choices in all question papers. However, the total number of questions to be attempted by any candidate remains the same for all.
5. For choosing the languages, domain test, or general test, it is a mandate to refer to the requirements of your intended university. Your choices MUST match the requirements of the University.

CUET 2023 Exam Timings & Duration (Expected)

This exam will be conducted on multiple days depending on the date allocated to you in your CUET Admit Card. There are 3 slots in a day for this exam.

Last year, there were 2 slots a day, and the details are as follows.

The morning shift had tests for all the 3 sections of this exam, and the afternoon shift had 2 sections.

•  The total exam duration in slot 1 (morning shift) was 3 hours and 15 minutes.
• The total duration for slot 2 (afternoon shift) was 3 hours 45 minutes.

Note: The exam timings are considering that the applicants shall appear for all the exams for the associated section in those slots.

The official website also describes the syllabus and CUET exam pattern in Hindi. 

CUET 2022 Exam Structure for Morning Shift

The morning shift starts at 9 am in the morning on exam day. The conclusion time for the exam will depend on the subjects you choose and will be mentioned on the admit card.

• Any candidate can appear for 1 language test in the morning shift which shall last for 45 minutes.
• A maximum of 2 domain subjects can be taken in the morning slot for which the time limit shall be 90 minutes (45 minutes per subject).
• The general test is also a part of the morning shift and will last for 60 minutes.

Assuming that you appear for all the tests in the morning slot, here’s CUET's exam timing and structure.

Last year's marking scheme is as follows: 

** Note that NTA is yet to announce the slots, marks, and duration of the exam for the academic year 2023.

CUET 2022 Exam Structure for Afternoon Shift

The afternoon shift is a lengthier slot between the two. It starts at 3:00 pm and will end after 3 hours 45 minutes on the condition that you appear for the exams in this shift.

• In this slot, you will be appearing in either 1 language or 2 languages (as per your choice). This slot shall include your chosen Section 1A or 1B language paper.
• The second exam in this slot is the domain-specific test which shall have questions based on a maximum of 4 subjects this time.

Here’s a clear view of the CUET entrance exam pattern and structure for the Afternoon Slot:

CUET exam pattern total marks distribution is listed above. 

The details listed above are from the previous year. 

CUET Exam Pattern 2023 for Language Test (Section 1A and 1B)

As per the CUET Syllabus, the Language test is for assessing your proficiency/ skills in the Language opted, and the question paper in respect of the same will be available to you in the medium opted by you. The Question Paper of the Language Test will not be bi-lingual. 

• There are 13 languages in Section 1A and 20 languages in Section 1B to choose from.
• Your proficiency will be tested through Reading Comprehension based on different types of passages–Factual, Literary and Narrative, [Literary Aptitude and Vocabulary] MCQ Based Questions. 
• For whichever language paper you choose, you have to attempt 40 questions in each of the 50 questions given in the paper.
• The duration of each language paper is expected to be 45 minutes, meaning if you choose to appear for 3 language papers, then the maximum duration of the exam shall be 2 hours 25 minutes. However, NTA has not confirmed the duration of exam as of yet.

CUET 2023 Exam Pattern for Domain Test (Section II)

There are 27 domain subjects to choose from; however, you can appear for 5 or 6 domain subjects in the CUET Exam.

The number of domain subjects varies as per your choice of language test. These subjects will have questions based on the syllabus given by NTA in MCQ format.

• You must be well aware of the course and university you are applying to make the choice of your domain subjects.
• Attempt 35/40 Questions to be attempted out of 45/50.
• The exam duration will increase with the increasing number of domain subjects.

CUET Exam Pattern 2023 for General Test (Section III)

This is an optional exam depending on the university and course requirements that you choose. 

Questions based on General Knowledge, Current Affairs, General Mental Ability, Numerical Ability, Quantitative Reasoning (Simple application of basic mathematical concepts arithmetic/algebra geometry/mensuration /stat taught till Grade 8), and Logical and Analytical Reasoning are asked in this section.

• 50 questions out of the 60 displayed questions have to be answered for this section.
• The total duration to attempt the questions in this section can be 60 minutes.
• The questions will be in MCQ format in English, and the language is chosen in Section I.
• The total mark that you can score in this section is 300.

Note: It is better to prepare a guided CUET Preparation Strategy for this section to make the most out of the scores obtained here.

CUET Total Marks 

We see so many of you posting this query, “CUET kitne marks ka hota hai?”. Just to clarify, the total marks for this exam will vary depending on the number of language papers & domain subjects given. So, it will be different for every college and every student.

Assuming that you are attempting the maximum number of tests (9 tests) in the exam, here is a representation of the marks allocated for each section/ subject chosen.

CUET Exam Pattern 2023 Marking Scheme

For Multiple Choice Questions: To answer a question, you must choose one option corresponding to the correct answer or the most appropriate answer.

However, if any anomaly or discrepancy is found after the process of challenges of the key verification, it shall be addressed in the following manner: 

• Correct answer or the most appropriate answer: Five marks (+5).
• Any incorrect option marked will be given minus one mark (-1).
• Unanswered/Marked for Review will be given no mark (0).
• If more than one option is found to be correct, then Five marks (+5) will be awarded to only those who have marked any of the correct options.
• If all options are found to be correct, then Five marks (+5) will be awarded to all those who have attempted the question.
• If none of the options is found correct or a question is found to be wrong, or a question is dropped, then all candidates who have attempted the dropped question will be given five marks(+5) marks.

CUET UG Exam Pattern (Course-wise)

CUET UG exam pattern is as follows: 

Conclusion

No matter the course or the university, the shortcut to success in this exam is thoroughly preparing your domain subjects during the boards to reduce the burden of preparing for CUET.

For the language, it is suggested to read the newspaper since it will build the foundation for GK in the GT and strengthen Section I too!

The other subjects in the General Test would require memorising important formulae practised during class 8. To recall and revise all such topics and solve questions on the same, follow us on YouTube. Attempt our exclusive NTA CUET Mock Test Series to analyse your scores and know where you stand with your preparations.