GATE 2025 Humanities & Social Sciences: Exam Date (Feb 15), Syllabus, Question Papers, Pattern, Cutoff

The GATE 2025 Humanities & Social Sciences exam date is 15 February 2025. The GATE 2025 XH syllabus includes a compulsory section on Reasoning & Comprehension and 6 optional sections. You can choose one of the optional sections for the GATE 2025 XH exam.

GATE 2025 Humanities & Social Sciences: Humanities and Social Sciences is one of the fairly low-opted GATE papers among the students. In 2024, around 16,555 students registered for the GATE 2025 Humanities & Social Sciences exam. However, considering the last 3 years' registering trends GATE Humanities and Social Science is becoming popular among students slowly. If you are opting for GATE Humanities and Social Science as your first paper, you can choose Statistics as your second paper. Humanities and Social Sciences is one of the 30 subjects in the GATE 2025 exam. The GATE 2025 Humanities & Social Sciences exam date has been announced and the exam will be held on 15 February 2025.

The GATE 2025 Humanities & Social Sciences syllabus has been uploaded on the official GATE 2025 website; the syllabus is divided into six different humanities subjects while the Reasoning and Comprehension section is made compulsory for all the students. If you are appearing for the GATE XH paper, you must study hard as very few students were able to score the GATE cutoff marks in the last 3 years. In 2024, only 22.66% of students were able to pass the GATE XH exam. In this article, we will discuss the GATE 2025 Humanities & Social Sciences exam in detail and share all the important information related to the GATE 2025 Humanities & Social Sciences exam pattern, syllabus, and question paper. 

Also Check - GATE 2025 Paper Codes

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GATE 2025 Humanities & Social Sciences Exam Date

IIT Roorkee has released the tentative schedule for the upcoming GATE 2025 exam. The national-level GATE exam 2025 is set to be conducted on February 1, 2, 15, and 16, 2025, for all 30 papers. The subject-wise specific dates for exams including the GATE 2025 Humanities & Social Sciences exam date have been announced. The following table explains the tentative GATE 2025 exam date in detail: 

Event

Date

GATE 2025 Exam Date for All Papers

February 1, 2, 15 & 16, 2025 

GATE 2025 Humanities & Social Sciences Exam Date

February 15, 2025

Also Check - GATE 2025 Exam Dates (Out): Application Form, Admit Card, Result Date

List of Two Paper Combinations for GATE 2025 Humanities & Social Sciences

If you are opting GATE 2025 Humanities and Social Science paper, you can choose the following paper as the second paper. You must note that an additional GATE 2025 application fee will be applicable for the second combination subject. 

  • Statistics

Total Number of Candidates Appeared for GATE Humanities & Social Sciences: Past Trends

There has been an increase in the number of students registering for the GATE Humanities and Social Sciences paper in the last 3 years. In 2024, 16,555 students registered for the GATE XH paper. In GATE XH 2023 paper 14,195 students registered. However, there has been a gap in the total number of students registering and several students appearing for the exam. Not all registered students showed up for the GATE XH paper in the last 3 years. 

Take a look at the past trends showing the total number of students appearing for GATE Humanities & Social Sciences:

GATE Paper Code

Year

Total No. of Students Registered

Total No. of Students Appeared

XH

2024

16,555

11,673

2023

14,195

10,022

2022

14,068

8,641

GATE Humanities & Social Sciences Qualifying Trends Over the Years

Considering the GATE XH qualifying trends of last year only a handful of students were able to pass the exam. Although several students appeared for the GATE XH paper around 2100 to 2600 students could score the GATE cutoff marks. The GATE qualifying percentage in 2024 was 22.66%, in 2023 was 23.54%, and in 2022 was 24.93%. 

Take a look at the GATE Humanities & Social Sciences qualifying trends here:

GATE Paper Code

Year

Total No. of Students Appeared

Total No. of Students Qualified

Qualifying %

XH

2024

11673

2646

22.66%

2023

10022

2360

23.54%

2022

8641

2155

24.93%

GATE 2025 Humanities & Social Sciences (XH) Syllabus

You can download the GATE 2025 Humanities & Social Sciences syllabus pdf from the official website, gate2025.iitr.ac.in. The official pdf includes a section-wise syllabus for all the Humanities & Social Sciences papers. However, you need to know that only the Reasoning and Comprehension section is compulsory for all students. They can then choose one optional section for the exam out of the remaining six sections. The complete section-wise XH GATE 2025 syllabus is explained in the table below: 

Subject

Topic

Reasoning and Comprehension (XH-B1)

(Compulsory for all XH students) 

Reading Comprehension

Expression

Analytical Reasoning

Logical Reasoning

Economics (XH-C1)

Microeconomics

Macroeconomics

Statistics, Econometrics, and Mathematical Economics

International Economics

Public Economics

Development Economics

Indian Economy

English (XH-C2)

Multi-genre literatures in English

Anglophone and English translation, literature from India and extending to some degree, the Indian subcontinent.

Literary criticism and theory

History of English literature and English literary studies

Research approaches and methodologies

Linguistics (XH-C3)

Language and Linguistics

Levels of Grammar and Grammatical Analysis

Historical Linguistics

Sociolinguistics

Areal Typology, Universals, Cross-linguistic Features

Methods of Analysis

Applied Linguistics

Philosophy (XH-C4)

Classical Indian Philosophy

Contemporary Indian Philosophy

Classical and Modern Western Philosophy

Contemporary Western Philosophy

Psychology (XH-C5)

Research Methods and Statistics

Psychometrics

Biological and Evolutionary Basis of Behaviour

Perception, Learning, Memory, and Forgetting

Cognition: Thinking, Intelligence and Language

Personality: Theories of Personality

Motivation, Emotion and Stress and Coping

Social Psychology

Development Across the Life Span

Applications of Psychology

Sociology (XH-C6)

Sociological Theory

Research Methodology and Methods

Sociological Concepts

Agrarian Sociology and Rural Transformation

Family, Marriage and Kinship; Theoretical Approaches

Indian Society/Sociology of India

Social Movements

GATE 2025 Humanities & Social Sciences Syllabus PDF Download

You can download the complete GATE 2025 Humanities & Social Sciences syllabus PDF file from the official IIT Roorkee website. They can also click on the link below to download the complete GATE 2025 XH syllabus. 

GATE 2025 Humanities & Social Sciences Exam Pattern

The GATE 2025 Humanities & Social Sciences exam pattern is easy to understand and helps students choose the right optional sections and prepare for the exam. Similar to other GATE exams, the Humanities & Social Sciences paper also features three sections, however, unlike other exams, Engineering Mathematics is not a compulsory subject here. The GATE 2025 Humanities & Social Sciences exam will have Reasoning & Comprehension as the compulsory section, along with General Aptitude. However, you will be allowed to choose only one out of six optional sections. The exam will be held in online mode (computer-based test) for 3 hours and will feature a total of 65 questions. Let’s have a look at the GATE 2025 exam pattern  for Humanities & Social Sciences: 

Particulars

Details

Mode of exam

Online

Duration

3 hours

(PwD students with benchmark disability are eligible for a total compensatory time of one hour)

Medium

English

Scheme of questions to test ability

  • Recall

  • Comprehension

  • Application

  • Analysis & Synthesis

Type of questions

  • Multiple Choice Questions (MCQ)

  • Multiple Select Questions (MSQ) and/or

  • Numerical Answer Type (NAT) Questions

GATE 2025 Humanities & Social Sciences Marks Distribution

The GATE 2025 Humanities & Social Sciences question paper will have a total of 65 questions and 100 marks. The question paper will be divided into three sections which will include General Aptitude, Reasoning and Comprehension, and Optional Section from the Humanities and Social Sciences syllabus. The following table explains the marks distribution for the GATE 2025 Humanities & Social Sciences exam: 

Subject

Marks Allotted

General Aptitude

15 Marks

Reasoning and Comprehension

25 Marks

Optional Subject

60 Marks

Total

100 Marks

GATE 2025 Humanities & Social Sciences Marking Scheme

The GATE 2025 Humanities & Social Sciences exam will have three types of questions MCQs, MSQs, and NATs. The questions will carry 1 or 2 marks, while there will be negative markings for some questions, some questions may award partial marks. The official GATE 2025 website explains the complete Humanities & Social Sciences marking scheme in detail, let’s have a look at it with the following: 

ParticularsDetails

Marking Scheme

  • Questions carry 1 mark and 2 marks

  • There is no partial marking for MSQs

Negative Marking

  • For a wrong answer chosen in an MCQ, there will be a negative marking.

  • For a 1-mark MCQ, a 1/3 mark will be deducted for a wrong answer.

  • Likewise, for a 2-mark MCQ, a 2/3 mark will be deducted for a wrong answer.

  • There is no negative marking for wrong answer(s) to MSQ or NAT questions.

Also Check - GATE 2025: Dates (Out), Syllabus, Pattern, Question Papers, Preparation Tips

GATE 2025 Humanities & Social Sciences Question Papers

GATE previous year question papers are a great way to start exam preparations. The IIT Roorkee website features previous years’ exam papers in chronological order that you can download and get a much clearer idea about the GATE 2025 Humanities & Social Sciences question paper. They can also click on the links below to download the past few years’ GATE Humanities & Social Sciences question papers: 

GATE 2025 Humanities & Social Sciences Expected Cutoff

GATE 2025 Humanities & Social Sciences cutoff will be released after the announcement of the GATE result 2025. The cutoff scores are the minimum marks required by you to pass the examinations. The GATE cutoff 2025 will depend on several factors such as the number of students appearing for the exam, difficulty level of the exam, and number of seats available in various participating institutions. In the following list, we have analyzed the past few years’ GATE cutoff scores and determined an expected cutoff score for the GATE 2025 Humanities & Social Sciences exam. 

GATE Humanities & Social Sciences Paper

GATE Exam Year

Category

General

OBC-NCL/EWS

SC/ST/PwD

Economy (XH-C1)

GATE 2025 XH-C1 Expected Cutoff

36.5-48

33-43

25-31

2024

37

33.3

24.6 

2023

47.3

42.5

31.5

English (XH-C2)

GATE 2025 XH-C2 Expected Cutoff

47.5-53

43-47.5

31.5-35.5

2024

48

43.2

32

2023

52.4

47.1

34.9

Linguistics (XH-C3)

GATE 2025 XH-C3 Expected Cutoff

46-50

41-45

30-33.5

2024

49.7

44.7

33.1 

2023

46.4

41.7 

30.9

Philosophy (XH-C4)

GATE 2025 XH-C4 Expected Cutoff

37.5-40

34-35.5

25-26.5

2024

39.3

35.3

26.1 

2023

38

34.2

25.3

Psychology (XH-C5)

GATE 2025 XH-C5 Expected Cutoff

52-55

47-45

34-37

2024

52.7

47.4 

35.1 

2023

54.9

49.4

36.6

Sociology (XH-C6)

GATE 2025 XH-C6 Expected Cutoff

35-50

32-45

24-34

2024

36

32.4

24

2023 

50

45

33.3

List of IITs Offering Humanities & Social Sciences through GATE 2025

Almost all IITs offer postgraduate courses in Humanities & Social Sciences. However, the following list includes the best IITs for Humanities & Social Sciences through GATE 2025: 

List of NITs Offering Humanities & Social Sciences through GATE 2025

Several NITs are offering M.A. courses in Humanities & Social Sciences through the GATE 2025 exam. The following are some of the best NITs offering Humanities & Social Sciences through GATE 2025: 

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We hope this article on GATE 2025 Humanities & Social Sciences was informative to all students sitting for the exam. For the latest updates, stay tuned to CollegeDekho!

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FAQs

What are the maximum marks in the GATE 2025 Humanities & Social Sciences exam?

The GATE 2025 Humanities & Social Sciences exam will consist of a total of 65 questions and 100 marks.

Who provides the GATE 2025 Humanities & Social Sciences syllabus?

The GATE 2025 Humanities & Social Sciences syllabus is uploaded to the GATE 2025 website, gate2025.iitr.ac.in.

What topics should I prepare from the GATE 2025 Humanities & Social Sciences syllabus for Sociology?

Sociological Theory, Sociological Concepts, Indian Society/Sociology of India, and  Social Movements are important Sociology topics.

How many sections are there in the GATE 2025 Humanities & Social Sciences question paper?

The GATE 2025 Humanities & Social Sciences syllabus is divided into three sections including Reasoning and Comprehension, General Aptitude, and core Humanities subjects. The syllabus provides six core humanities subjects namely Economics, English, Linguistics, Philosophy, Psychology, and Sociology.

When is the GATE 2025 Humanities & Social Sciences exam date?

The GATE 2025 Humanities and Social Science exam will be conducted on 15 February 2025.

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