CUET-PG Economics
One 90-minute test from NTA that feeds MA and MSc Economics admissions at DSE, IGIDR, JNU, UoH, BASE, AUD and other participating universities.
Last checked 30 September 2026. Covers: 2026 cycle (bulletin published) and 2027 cycle (not yet announced).
Official read on the organiser's or institute's own page. Reported found on third-party sites and still to be checked. Expected not announced yet.
Key facts
| Conducted by | National Testing Agency (NTA) |
|---|---|
| Paper code for Economics | COQP10 OfficialCUET (PG) 2026 bulletin (PDF) |
| Mode | Computer-based test OfficialCUET (PG) 2026 bulletin (PDF) |
| Duration | 90 minutes OfficialCUET (PG) 2026 bulletin (PDF) |
| Questions | 75, each with one correct option OfficialCUET (PG) 2026 bulletin (PDF) |
| Marks | 300 (4 marks per question) OfficialCUET (PG) 2026 bulletin (PDF) |
| Marking | +4 for a correct answer, −1 for a wrong one, 0 for a question left blank or marked for review OfficialCUET (PG) 2026 bulletin (PDF) |
| Papers per candidate | Up to four question paper codes OfficialCUET (PG) 2026 bulletin (PDF) |
| Fee, 2026 cycle (General) | ₹1,400 for up to two papers, ₹700 for each extra paper. EWS and OBC-NCL: ₹1,200 and ₹600. SC, ST and third gender: ₹1,100 and ₹600. PwD: ₹1,000 and ₹600. Bank and GST charges are extra. OfficialCUET (PG) 2026 bulletin (PDF) |
Dates
| Event | Date |
|---|---|
| 2026 cycle: registration | 14 December 2025 to 14 January 2026 OfficialCUET (PG) 2026 bulletin (PDF) |
| 2026 cycle: correction window | 18 to 20 January 2026 OfficialCUET (PG) 2026 bulletin (PDF) |
| 2026 cycle: exam | March 2026 OfficialCUET (PG) 2026 bulletin (PDF) |
| 2027 cycle: notification and registration | Expected from December 2026 NTA has not published the 2027 bulletin. This follows the December opening of the last two cycles. |
| 2027 cycle: exam window | 1 to 25 March 2027, with buffer days at the end of the month Reported from NTA's announced schedule. Check NTA's page for the final dates. |
All exams side by side: exam dates table.
Pattern and marking
The Economics paper has 75 questions in 90 minutes, which is 72 seconds a question. Every question is worth 4 marks, so the paper is out of 300.
A wrong answer costs 1 mark. With four options, a blind guess returns 0.25 marks on average (a quarter chance of +4, three quarters of −1). The penalty is light, so a guess after you have removed one or two options is worth taking.
NTA's bulletin says what happens when a question is faulty. If more than one option is correct, everyone who marked any of the correct options gets the 4 marks. If no option is correct, or the question is dropped, every candidate who appeared gets the 4 marks, whether or not they attempted it.
NTA does not set a national cutoff. It issues a score, and each university builds its own merit list from it. The list of participating universities is dynamic and changes between cycles, so the test's reach in any year depends on what the universities themselves announce.
Who accepts it
- Admission through CUET-PG and the university's common seat allocation system (CSAS-PG).
- MSc Economics through CUET-PG only, 50 seats in the 2026 prospectus.ReportedIGIDR admission 2026
- MA Economics through CUET-PG, at the School of Social Sciences and the School of International Studies.ReportedJNU MA Economics, EduSure
- MA Economics through CUET-PG 2026, 75 seats.
- MSc Economics and MSc Financial Economics on the COQP10 score, plus a separate application on base.ac.in. This is from the 2025-26 notice.OfficialBASE PG admission 2025-26
- Accepts a CUET-PG score as an alternative to its own entrance test, then a statement of purpose and interview.ReportedAPU MA Economics 2026, EduSure
- MA Economics through CUET-PG.ReportedAUD MA Economics, Collegedunia
Full list with seats: colleges accepting CUET-PG Economics.
What score to aim for
There is no single safe score for CUET-PG, because each university ranks its own applicants. The figures that exist show how wide the spread is. Banaras Hindu University's round 4 allotment for 2025 listed MA Economics cutoffs of roughly 125 to 134 out of 300 for the General category. Reported figures for DSE's 2026-27 first round put the minimum at 253 out of 300 for Unreserved candidates in one seat category. The two sit about 120 marks apart.
Plan on the college, not the exam. Take the last round's closing score at your target college from its own allocation list, and add a margin for a harder paper. The table shows what a few attempt patterns score under +4 and −1.
| Right | Wrong | Blank | Score out of 300 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 45 | 10 | 20 | 170 |
| 55 | 10 | 10 | 210 |
| 60 | 10 | 5 | 230 |
| 65 | 5 | 5 | 255 |
| 70 | 5 | 0 | 275 |
Questions
Is there a negative mark in CUET-PG?
Yes. A correct answer earns 4 marks and a wrong one loses 1. Unanswered questions carry no penalty.
How many papers can I pick?
Up to four question paper codes. The fee covers two papers, and each extra paper costs ₹700 for the General category in the 2026 cycle.
Does CUET-PG have one national cutoff?
No. NTA releases scores. Each participating university publishes its own merit list and closing score.
Has the 2027 registration opened?
Not yet. NTA has not published the 2027 bulletin. Registration is expected from December 2026.
Sources
Attempt a CUET-PG Economics paper
Sit a real previous-year paper under the exam's timing and negative marking, then see where the marks went.
Attempt a CUET-PG Economics paper