KSET 2026: Karnataka State Eligibility Test (KSET) 2026

Karnataka State Eligibility Test

Karnataka State Eligibility Test (KSET) 2026

KSET 2026
[Karnataka State Eligibility Test 2026]
conducted by the Karnataka Examinations Authority (KEA), Karnataka
To certify candidates as eligible for Assistant Professor and Lecturer, 2026

KARNATAKA STATE ELIGIBILITY TEST (KSET)-2026
FOR ASSISTANT PROFESSOR

Government of Karnataka has directed Karnataka Examinations Authority (KEA) to conduct Karnataka State Eligibility Test-2026 (KSET-2026) for the post of Assistant Professors. Accordingly KEA has invited online applications from the eligible candidates for the KSET-2026 examination provisionally scheduled on 11/10/2026 (Sunday). The provisional time table for KSET-2026 examination is as follows.

1	Submission of online application commences from	10/08/2026
2	Last date for submission of online application	05/09/2026
3	Last date for payment of the fees	06/09/2026
4	Date of Hall ticket release	01/10/2026
5	Date of Examination	11/10/2026

CANDIDATES CAN APPLY FOR KSET-2026 IN "ONLINE" MODE ONLY. THE APPLICATION IN ANY OTHER MODE WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED. SUBMISSION OF ONLINE APPLICATION FORM MAY BE DONE BY ACCESSING KEA WEBSITE OF KEA: https://cetonline.karnataka.gov.in/kea .

CANDIDATES ARE REQUESTED TO GO THROUGH THE NOTIFICATION CAREFULLY BEFORE FILLING THEIR ONLINE APPLICATION.

The details of KSET 2026 Test Centers for 37 subjects are furnished in page number 7 & page number 8 .
Candidates who qualify the KSET - 2026 are governed by the recruitment rules and regulations stipulated for the post of Assistant Professors by the concerned Universities / Colleges / Institutions (Government / Aided / Private) in the state of Karnataka.
Candidates belonging to Schedule Caste (SC-A/SC-B/SC-C), Schedule Tribe (ST), Persons with Disability (PWD), OBCs [Cat- I, IIA, IIB, IIIA & IIIB] should be as per the backward classes listed in Government of Karnataka web site: https://bcwd.karnataka.gov.in .

Conditions of Eligibility

Candidates who have secured at least 55% of marks (without rounding off) for General category and 50% for Schedule Caste (SC-A/SC-B/SC-C), Scheduled Tribe (ST), OBCs i.e., Cat-I, IIA, IIB, IIIA and IIIB, Persons with Disability (PWD), Transgender, in Master's Degree or equivalent examination from universities / institutions recognized by UGC New Delhi, in the subjects opted for KSET.
Candidates who are pursuing their Master's Degree (Final or Second year) or equivalent course or candidates who have appeared for their Master's Degree (Final Year) examination and whose result is still awaited or candidates whose qualifying examinations have been delayed may also apply for this Examination. However, such candidates will be admitted provisionally and for those who clear the KSET, eligibility certificate will be issued only on production of proof for having passed the Master's degree or equivalent examination securing at least 55% marks (50% in case of SC-A, SC-B, SC-C, ST, OBC i.e., Cat- I, IIA, IIB, IIIA, IIIB, Transgender and PwD candidates) within two years from the date of KSET result, failing which they will be treated as disqualified.
Candidates shall appear for KSET in their relevant subject of their post-graduation only. Incase the candidate did not find the subject of his/her post-graduation in the list of KSET subjects, the candidate may appear for UGC-NET/UGC-CSIR NET which is held twice a year.
The Ph.D. degree holders whose Master's level examination had been completed by 19th September, 1991 (irrespective of date of declaration of result), shall be eligible for a relaxation of 5% in aggregate marks (i.e. from 55% to 50%) for appearing in KSET.
Candidates other than general category are required to mention their reservation status in the online application form. The category certificates issued by the competent authorities on or before the last date for submission of online application form. For SC-A, SC-B, SC-C, ST, CAT-I, IIA, IIB, IIIA and IIIB, it is mandatory to enter the existing valid RD number while filling the application. KEA won't accept the certificates if the candidates submit the same at a later stage. "Married candidates must declare the total family income and submit valid Caste and Income Certificates issued by the competent authority. Married women candidates must submit the Caste and Income Certificates issued in the name of their husband obtained from the competent authority, along with the required documents."
"Candidates with disabilities must mention the Unique Disability ID (UDID) number of the Disability Certificate issued by the District Medical Board, certifying that they have a disability of not less than 40%, in the prescribed format as specified in Government Order No. 115 2005."
Candidates claiming reservation under the Transgender category must obtain a Transgender Identity Certificate issued by the concerned District Magistrate, as provided under Section 6(1) of the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019. The certificate number must be entered in the application."

In case Candidate's ineligibility is detected due to invalid certificate by the KSET authority at any stage, their candidature will be cancelled without prior notice and they shall be liable for legal action.
Candidates from other states are not eligible for reservation. Hence, in the Masters Degree examination, if they have scored the required minimum 55% or above, fixed for 'GENERAL' category as per the qualifying criteria, then only are eligible to register for KSET through KEA. Please note that SC-A/SC-B/SC-C/ST/OBC/Transgender/PwD eligibility criteria are applicable to Karnataka SC-A/SC-B/SC-C/ST/OBC/Transgender/PwD candidates only.
Candidates should note that their candidature is provisional. The mere fact that admission to the examination will not imply that the KEA has finally accepted his/her candidature. Candidates may note that candidature will be deemed final only upon fulfilling the eligibility conditions.
Candidate who have become eligible in Previous KSET exam are not eligible to apply again in the same subject. If any candidate found to be eligible in previous KSET exams and reappearing on the same subject in current KSET, his/her candidature will be cancelled and the previous eligibility will also be withdrawn through de-notification.
Candidates with two year post-graduate diploma/certificate awarded by Indian University/Institution or foreign degree/diploma/certificate awarded by the foreign University/Institute should in their own interest, ascertain the equivalence of their diploma/degree/certificate with Master's degree of recognized Indian Universities from Association of Indian Universities (AIU), New Delhi (www.aiu.ac.in ).

Age Limit:
There is no upper age limit to apply for KSET-2026 exam.

Exemption:
KSET-2026 shall remain the minimum eligibility condition for recruitment and appointment of Assistant Professors in Universities / Colleges / Institutions of Higher education (Government/Aided/Private) in Karnataka State.

NET/SET/SLET shall remain the minimum eligibility condition for recruitment and appointment of Assistant Professors in Universities/Colleges/Institutions. In this regard, exemption from NET/SET/SLET will be governed by the UGC regulations and amendments notified in the Gazette of India from time to time.
The candidates who have passed the UGC-NET/CSIR JRF examination prior to 1989 are also exempted from KSET examination.
For SET candidates: The candidates who have cleared the States Eligibility Test (SET) accredited by UGC for eligibility for Assistant Professor held prior to 1st June, 2002, are exempted from appearing in KSET, being eligible to apply for Assistant Professor anywhere in India. For SET held from 1st June, 2002 onwards, the qualified candidates are eligible to apply for the post of Assistant Professor only in the Universities/Colleges situated in the state from where they have cleared their SET.

Examination Fee and Mode of Payment

Examination Fees:

Category	Fees (in Rs.)
General, Cat-IIA, IIB, IIIA, IIIB & Other State Candidates	750/-
Cat-I, SC-A, SC-B, SC-C, ST, PWD & Transgender Candidates	500/-

Mode of payment:
The payment has to be made through online mode only as prescribed by KEA.

Note:

Fee submitted by any other mode like Money Order/Demand Draft/IPO/Post office challan/etc., will NOT be accepted.
Fee once paid will NOT be refunded under any circumstances.

Scheme and Date of Test

The Examination will be consisting of two papers. Both the papers will consist of only objective type Multiple-Choice Questions (MCQs offline OMR based). The test will be conducted/held on 11/10/2026, in one session as mentioned below:

Date	Paper	Max. Marks	Number of Questions	Duration
11/10/2026	I	100	50 Compulsory questions	3 Hours (10:00 A.M. to 01:00 P.M.)
11/10/2026	II	200	100 Compulsory questions	3 Hours (10:00 A.M. to 01:00 P.M.)

NOTE: The candidates are not allowed to leave the examination center before 01:00 P.M.

Paper-I: Shall consist of 50 objective type compulsory questions each carrying 2 marks. The questions which will be of general nature, intended to assess the teaching/research aptitude of the candidate. It will primarily be designed to test reasoning ability, comprehension, divergent thinking and general awareness of the candidate.

Paper II: Shall consist of 100 objective type compulsory questions each carrying 2 marks which will be based on the subject selected by the candidate.

The candidate will have to mark the responses for questions of Paper-I and Paper-II on the Optical Marks Reader (OMR) Sheet provided along with the test booklet.

How to Apply

Candidates seeking to appear for KSET- 2026 examination must apply online by visiting KEA website https://cetonline.karnataka.gov.in/kea

To avoid any kind of inconvenience or last-minute rush or unforeseen difficulties, candidates are advised to submit Online Application Form without waiting for the last date. KEA will not be responsible for network problems or any problem of this nature in submission of online application during the last day.
Candidates should register (sign up for registration) giving required details. Candidates then proceed to enter their candidature details, educational and KSET-2026 exam details. While mentioning the educational qualification candidates should mention their PG course as Passed or appearing as the case may be.
Since the candidate's name, father's name, and mother's name will be printed on the KSET certificate exactly as they appear in the SSLC/10th Standard Marks card, the names in application must be filled in accordance with the SSLC/10th Standard marks card. Requests made for name correction will not be considered at later stages.

Note:

Candidates should take the final print of the application forms of KSET-2026 and preserve with them. Further, they should produce the same whenever it is required.
All Scanned copies must be in JPEG format only. The online application system will not allow to upload files smaller/larger than the mentioned sizes.
- The payment for KSET examination has to be made through online mode only.
- The admission ticket must be downloaded from the KEA website. KEA will not issue a hard copy of the admission ticket. Candidates must bring a valid photo ID and the admission ticket and report to the examination centre at least two hours before the commencement of the examination.

KSET-2026 Syllabus