GATE 2020 Life Sciences (XL) Syllabus: The XL paper is of a general nature. The paper consists of 3 parts. First part of the XL paper is General Aptitude and the second part is Section P – Chemistry which is compulsory for the candidates. The third part of the XL paper comprises of Sections Q to U and candidates have to choose any two of them. Candidates can see the syllabus for Life Science from this page.
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Apart from the General Aptitude section, there are 6 sections in the syllabus of Life Sciences. Out of these 6 sections, one section i.e., Section P – Chemistry is compulsory for the candidates.
The remaining 5 sections are Biochemistry (XL-Q), Botany (XL-R), Microbiology (XL-S), Zoology (XL-T), and Food Technology (XL-U). Out of these 5 sections, candidates are supposed to choose any two sections. The syllabus for all the 6 sections of Life Sciences paper is given below.
GATE 2020 Syllabus for Zoology (XL_T)
GATE 2020 General Aptitude Syllabus
The General Aptitude section is common in all the 25 subjects of GATE 2020. The syllabus of this section also remains the same in all the papers. Candidates can check the syllabus for the General Aptitude section below. The section is divided into Verbal Ability & Numerical Ability. There are a total of 10 questions in this section, out of which 5 questions will carry 1-mark each and 5 questions will carry 2-marks each.
Verbal Ability
- English grammar
- Sentence completion,
- Instructions
- Verbal analogies
- Word groups
- Critical reasoning
- Verbal deduction
Numerical Ability
- Numerical computation
- Numerical reasoning
- Numerical estimation
- Data interpretation
GATE 2020 Life Sciences Exam Pattern
Before you begin with their GATE 2020 preparation, make sure that you go through the exam pattern of the examination. Also, take a look at the marking scheme of the examination as both are important in your preparation. The knowledge about the exam related information will help them in preparing well for the examination. We have given the exam pattern as well as the marking scheme of GATE 2020 below. Let’s have a look at it.
| Section | Distribution of Marks | Total Marks | Types of questions |
| GA | 5 questions of 1-mark each 5 questions of 2-marks each | 15 marks | MCQs |
| Section P – Chemistry (compulsory) | 5 questions of 1-mark each 10 questions of 2-marks each | 25 marks | MCQs and NATs |
| *Sections Q to U(Any two) | 10 questions of 1-mark each 10 questions of 2-marks each | 30 marks | MCQs and NATs |
* distribution of marks, total marks, and types of questions of each of the optional sections of the XL papers (Sections Q through U).
Exam Mode: The exam will be conducted online and it will be a Computer-Based Test.
Duration: 3 hours
Types of questions: MCQs and NAT
Total questions: 65 questions
Total marks: 100 marks
Negative Marking: For MCQs only
Marking scheme
| Type of question | Negative marking for wrong answers. | Marking for correct answer |
| MCQs | ⅓ for 1 mark questions⅔ for 2 marks questions | 1 or 2 marks |
| NATs | No negative marking | 1 or 2 marks |
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In XL Q – U we choose any two papers or all the papers