Difference Between COAP and CCMT: Which option is better for GATE?

Difference between COAP & CCMT: As an aspiring exam taker of GATE exam, you must find it confusing to choose between COAP & CCMT. Where both of these counselling are of the same exam, however they are distinctively different from each other. Through COAP counselling, the GATE qualifiers can get admission to the IITs. On the other hand, after the CCMT counselling, one will be granted admission to the top NITs, IITs, and GFTIs. Throughout this article, we will be discussing details about the difference between COAP & CCMT, their counselling process and the subsequent admission process post the seat allotment.
After you qualify GATE 2025 exam, you will be eligible to apply for admission to one of the participating institutes through the counselling process. Each institute will have its own approach to carry out the GATE COAP & CCMT counselling process. Read this article to understand details about the difference between COAP & CCMT.

GATE Counselling 2025: CCMT vs COAP Eligibility Criteria

The table below explains about the GATE 2025 counselling for both CCMT & COAP:-

Also check: CCMT 2025 Eligibility Criteria

GATE 2025 Counselling Dates for COAP and CCMT

Being an aspiring contender for GATE counselling, you must be well versed with the whole schedule. The authority is yet to announce the official dates related to the COAP & CCMT counselling. Until the dates are announced, you can find the tentative schedule below:-

GATE COAP Counselling Dates 2025

GATE CCMT Counseling Dates 2025

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CCMT vs COAP Counselling Process

As discussed above, the counselling processes of CCMT & COAP are very similar yet different from each other. Where through CCMT, you can get admitted to the top NITs, IITs, and GFTIs, whereas COAP will help you get admission to the top IITs. Through the points below, we will be discussing about the difference between the COAP & CCMT counselling processes:-

COAP GATE Counseling 2025

To participate in GATE COAP 2025 counselling, you need to register online on the official website of the respective authority. The below points explain about the salient features of the counselling process that can help you secure admission to various M.Tech courses at IITs:-

• GATE COAP is the common platform where all the participating IITs upload offer letters in a common time window.
• COAP allows institutes to offer admission based on GATE results and accept applications.
• If you register on COAP’s website, you will have access to the admission/ job offers from all the participating institutes/ PSUs where you have applied for M.Tech admissions/ jobs.
• COAP is not an application portal, but rather an online counselling platform. For this reason, you should apply independently to your desired institutes for admission via GATE counselling.

CCMT GATE Counselling

If you are looking forward to applying for admission to M.Tech, M.Arch, or M.Plan programs at NITs, IIITs, GFTIs, IIEST Shibpur, and CFTIs through GATE 2025 counselling, then you can go ahead with CCMT.

• Along with online registration on the CCMT website, you must fill out your course/college preferences during registration
• You will be assigned a seat based on your rank, choices filled, and the availability of seats.
• After a seat has been allocated, you will be required to confirm your seat by submitting a seat acceptance fee. You must also report to the reporting centre for document verification and then report to your allotted college and pay the admission fee.

Also check: List of Documents Required for CCMT 2025 Counselling

CCMT vs COAP Admission Process

Along with the counselling process, there is a huge difference between the COAP & CCMT admission process, and as an aspiring student of the GATE exam, you are expected to know all about the admission process. Let us dive into the detailed description of the CCMT vs COAP admission process below:-

GATE COAP: Admission Acceptance Process 2025

If you have a valid GATE scorecard and wish to take part in the GATE counselling process, then you must have the knowledge of the entire process and how it is done after the registration for the counselling is over. You will be able to register for the GATE 2025 counselling via the COAP portal by following the steps mentioned below:-

• Log in to the COAP portal at iitk.ac.in/coap2025.
• Visit the institute-wise allotment information section, where you can find the seat allocation option
• All candidates will have the option of selecting one of three choices
• Accept and Freeze: This is the option if you do not wish to improve his or her preferences and is prepared to accept one of the offers. These candidates will not be considered for further rounds of COAP counselling.
• Retain and Wait: This option has to be selected if partial acceptance is shown and you want to consider upgrading to additional preferences in subsequent counselling rounds. You will not be considered for additional offers rejected in the current round. In case a better preference is offered to you, then the existing 'Retain and Wait' offer will be released.
• Reject and Wait: This option has to be used if you don’t wish to accept any of the offers provided during the current round. You will still be evaluated for higher preferences in subsequent rounds of counselling.
• Finally, click on the submit button and complete the further admission process

GATE CCMT: Admission Acceptance Process 2025

You must know about the complete GATE counselling process to get admission to the top NITs, IIITs and other institutes, as well as the entire admission acceptance process by which the GATE CCMT counselling is carried out. For admission into NITS, IIITs, and GFTIs, you must first register at the CCMT portal. It will be followed by three GATE counselling rounds for seat allotment in various institutes:-

Pre-Allotment Process

• Start by registering on the official portal of CCMT.
• The registration fee for OC/OB candidates is INR 2200, while SC/ST/PwD students will have to pay INR 1700.
• Make sure to fill out the form with the correct information.

Seat Allotment

• You will be allotted seats during the admission process based on your GATE 2025 scores.
• After the seat allocation is done, you will be required to pay the seat acceptance fee, which will be INR 20,000/-.
• Then, you will have to report to a reporting centre to complete the document verification process.

Getting Admitted To ‘Allotted Institute’

• After the document verification is done, you need to pay a fee of INR 10,000 to reserve your seats provisionally.
• The remaining amount has to be paid at the relevant allocated institute while reporting at the institute

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We hope this article was helpful in clearing out the differences between COAP and CCMT.