GATE COMPUTER SCIENCE SYLLABUS
Section 1: Engineering Mathematics
Discrete Mathematics: Propositional and first order logic. Sets, relations, functions,
partial orders and lattices. Monoids, Groups. Graphs: connectivity, matching, colouring.
Combinatorics: counting, recurrence relations, generating functions.
Linear Algebra: Matrices, determinants, system of linear equations, eigenvalues and
eigenvectors, LU decomposition.
Calculus: Limits, continuity and differentiability, Maxima and minima, Mean value
theorem, Integration.
Probability and Statistics: Random variables, Uniform, normal, exponential, Poisson and
binomial distributions. Mean, median, mode and standard deviation. Conditional
probability and Bayes theorem.
Section 2: Digital Logic
Boolean algebra. Combinational and sequential circuits. Minimization. Number
representations and computer arithmetic (fixed and floating point).
Section 3: Computer Organization and Architecture
Machine instructions and addressing modes. ALU, data‐path and control unit. Instruction
pipelining, pipeline hazards. Memory hierarchy: cache, main memory and secondary
storage; I/O interface (interrupt and DMA mode).
Section 4: Programming and Data Structures
Programming in C. Recursion. Arrays, stacks, queues, linked lists, trees, binary search
trees, binary heaps, graphs.
Section 5: Algorithms
Searching, sorting, hashing. Asymptotic worst case time and space complexity. Algorithm
design techniques: greedy, dynamic programming and divide‐and‐conquer. Graph
traversals, minimum spanning trees, shortest paths.
Section 6: Theory of Computation
Regular expressions and finite automata. Context-free grammars and push-down automata.
Regular and context-free languages, pumping lemma. Turing machines and undecidability.
Section 7: Compiler Design
Lexical analysis, parsing, syntax-directed translation. Runtime environments. Intermediate
code generation. Local optimisation, Data flow analyses: constant propagation, liveness
analysis, common sub expression elimination.
Section 8: Operating System
System calls, processes, threads, inter‐process communication, concurrency and
synchronization. Deadlock. CPU and I/O scheduling. Memory management and virtual
memory. File systems.
Section 9: Databases
ER‐model. Relational model: relational algebra, tuple calculus, SQL. Integrity constraints,
normal forms. File organization, indexing (e.g., B and B+ trees). Transactions and
concurrency control.
Section 10: Computer Networks
Concept of layering: OSI and TCP/IP Protocol Stacks; Basics of packet, circuit and virtual
circuit switching; Data link layer: framing, error detection, Medium Access Control,
Ethernet bridging;
Routing protocols: shortest path, flooding, distance vector and link state routing;
Fragmentation and IP addressing, IPv4, CIDR notation, Basics of IP support protocols
(ARP, DHCP, ICMP), Network Address Translation (NAT); Transport layer: flow control
and congestion control, UDP, TCP, sockets; Application layer protocols: DNS, SMTP,
HTTP, FTP, Email.
Section 11: General Aptitude
Quantitative Aptitude: Data interpretation: data graphs (bar graphs, pie charts, and other
graphs representing the data), 2- and 3-dimensional plots, maps, and tables Numerical
computation and estimation: ratios, percentages, powers, exponents, and logarithms,
permutations, and combinations, and series Mensuration and geometry Elementary
statistics and probability.
Analytical Aptitude: Logic: deduction and induction, Analogy, Numerical relations, and
reasoning
Verbal Aptitude: Basic English grammar: tenses, articles, adjectives, prepositions,
conjunctions, verb-noun agreement, and other parts of speech Basic vocabulary: words,
idioms, and phrases in context Reading and comprehension Narrative sequencing
Spatial Aptitude:
Transformation of shapes: translation, rotation, scaling, mirroring, assembling, and
grouping Paper folding, cutting, and patterns in 2 and 3 dimensions.
General Aptitude (GA) - 15 Marks
Computer Science and Information Technology (CS/IT) - 85 Marks
GATE 2025 Exam Pattern
Marking Scheme: There are a total of 65 questions in the paper, out of them 10 questions
are from Section A, i.e. from General Aptitude and the other 55 questions are from Section
B or of core disciplined.
Questions are of three types:
1 and 2 mark questions along with 1/3 and
2/3 negative marking for wrong answers
MCQ (Multiple Choice Questions) respectively.
1 and 2 mark questions with no negative
marking for the wrong answers and no
MSQ (Multiple Select Questions) partial marking.
1 and 2 mark questions with no negative
NAT (Numerical Ability Type) marking.
The General Aptitude section has 10 questions out of which 5 questions are of 1 mark and
the other 5 are of two marks making a total of 15 marks. All these questions can be a
combination of MCQ, MSQ and NAT.
