The GATE 2025 February 16th, Shift 2 will from 2:30 pm – 5:30 pm for CE2,  ST, XE, XL, MN has ended.  Shift 1 from 9: 30 am – 12:30 pm for the CE1, GG,CH, PH, BT is also concluded.  GATE 2025  Shift 1 & 2 are reported to be moderate to difficult.

GATE 2025 Question Paper PDF with Solutions

GATE 2025 16th Feb Shift – Wise Question Papers and Solution PDF

The difficulty levels for GATE 2025 February 16th, Shift 1-

• CE1- (Moderate to Difficult) The general Aptitude section was easy. There were 23 Msq's and 8 Mcq’s. The weightage of core subjects like - Structural Analysis, Soil Mechanics, Fluid Mechanics, and Transportation Engineering was more. The subject wise pattern had some changes. Survey Questions were easy.
• GG –(Moderate to Difficult) Questions were mostly from a balanced mix of theory and practical aspects related to Geology, Geophysics, and Earth Science concepts.

• CH – (Moderate)The general Aptitude section was easy while focus was more on topics like Chemical Reaction Engineering, Heat and Mass Transfer, Process Dynamics, and Fluid Mechanics, with moderate difficulty.

• PH-(Moderate) Questions were a balanced mix of classical mechanics, electromagnetism, thermodynamics, and quantum mechanics . GA was easy.

• BT( Moderate to Difficult)- Questions were focused on Bioprocess Engineering, Cell Biology, Biochemistry, and Microbiology. The paper had some complex topics making it more challenging.

The difficulty level for GATE 2025 February 16th, Shift 2-

• CE2 - (Moderate to Difficult) The general Aptitude section was straightforward. The questions were mostly from Structural Engineering, Fluid Mechanics, and Geotechnical Engineering, with a mix of theoretical and numerical problems. CE2 was tougher than CE1.
• ST –(Moderate ) Questions were conceptual with focus on applied statistics, including Probability Theory, Statistical Inference, and Regression Analysis.. The paper had a higher difficulty level, with challenging technical and numerical questions.
• XE – (Moderate)The general Aptitude section was easy and a mix of questions across subjects like Thermodynamics, Fluid Mechanics, and Strength of Materials.
• XL-(Moderate) Questions were from topics like Microbiology, Biochemistry, and Genetics will be covered with a focus on conceptual understanding and practical applications.
• MN-( Moderate to Difficult) - Questions were moderate and from topics like Mining Methods, Rock Mechanics, and Mine Design.

Candidates can go through Gate Exam Analysis to get familiar with the difficulty level and subject-wise allocation of marks.

You Can Also Check:

• GATE 2025 Question Paper
• GATE Cutoff 2025

Is there any Negative Marking in GATE 2025?

In the GATE 2025 exam there are Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs), Multiple Select Questions (MSQs), and Numerical Answer Type (NAT) questions. Each type of question has its own method of scoring.

•  MCQs-  For a 1-mark question, 1/3 mark is deducted, and for a 2-mark question, 2/3 mark is deducted. 

• MSQs and NAT – Questions, which do not have multiple-choice options, there is no negative marking. This means that even if the answer is incorrect, no marks will be deducted. 

Will GATE 2025 be Tough?

The GATE 2025 exam is expected to follow trends observed in previous years, but with a few significant shifts. Here’s a detailed comparison to give you insights into how the exam has evolved:

1. Increasing Number of Applicants:

The number of applicants for GATE has been steadily increasing. For GATE 2025, over 10 lakh students have registered. In GATE 2024, the number of applicants was around 9.5 lakh, while GATE 2023 had approximately 8.5 lakh students. This indicates a 5% to 7% increase year on year in terms of registrations.

1. Wider Scope of GATE Subjects:

GATE 2025 will feature 30 subjects, a significant increase from the 23 subjects offered in 2015.

3.Past Year Comparison:

In GATE 2024, the introduction of interdisciplinary subjects like XH (Humanities) and EY (Environmental Science) marked a pivotal shift towards attracting a wider variety of students.

Non-Engineering Students:

As more non-engineering students are opting for GATE, it is likely to increase the competition level and raise the bar for all candidates.

4.Past Year Difficulty Levels:

While the difficulty level has generally remained moderate to tough over the years, GATE 2025 may push this further, especially in interdisciplinary subjects that require diverse knowledge bases. GATE 2023 and GATE 2024 have been more conceptual with application-based questions. GATE 2025 is expected to continue this trend with a slight increase in problem-solving complexity.