Checked 3 October 2026. IISc and CCMT figures are the institutes' own published reports for 2026-27; IIT pages describe the current cycle. Admissions for 2027-28 open after the GATE 2027 result on 19 March 2027 and every institute may change its rules and cut-offs.
GATE Biotechnology gets you a score. What the score is worth depends on the door you knock on, and each door publishes something different: IISc publishes the GATE score at which it calls applicants to interview, the NIT counselling publishes the highest and lowest score it allotted in every round, and the IITs publish eligibility and minimum scores but not final cut-offs. This guide collects what the official pages say for Biotechnology, labels each number for what it is, and leaves out every table of "expected" cut-offs that has no official source behind it.
Where other pages get this wrong
The IISc cut-off is a call-for-interview line, and IISc Biological Sciences does not run on GATE.
Commonly published instead: Admission tables that list "IISc Bangalore (Bioengineering / Biological Sciences)" at a GATE score of 750 to 820 and call it the admission cut-off.
IISc's own cut-off report for M.Tech says the GATE score listed is used to decide who is called for an interview or test. For Bioengineering the 2026 call-for-interview cut-off for a General BT candidate is 750, and selection is then 70% GATE score plus 30% interview. IISc's Biological Sciences programme in the Integrated PhD is entered through JAM, not GATE.
IISc and CCMT figures are the institutes' published reports; the score-to-rank figure is from the official GATE 2026 report.
The doors, in one table
| Route | GATE BT accepted? | Selection | Seats as published |
|---|---|---|---|
| IISc M.Tech: Bioengineering | Yes, among 18 papers | 70% GATE score, 30% interview | 11 (2026-27) |
| IISc M.Tech: Computational and Data Science | Yes, among 14 papers | 70% GATE score, 30% written test and interview | 24 (2026-27) |
| IISc M.Tech: Sustainable Technologies | Yes, among 9 papers | 100% GATE score | 11 (2026-27) |
| IIT Madras M.Tech Bioprocess Engineering | Yes (BT or CH for bio and chemical engineers; BT, CH or XL for other branches) | No selection weights, minimum score or past cut-off on the department pages we read | 15 a year |
| IIT Delhi Biochemical Engineering and Biotechnology M.S.(Research) | Yes: Life Sciences, Biotechnology or Chemical Engineering score | Shortlisting criteria published; the later stage is not described in the document we read | Not stated |
| NITs through CCMT | Per programme eligibility matrix | Merit by GATE score; counselling rounds | Per seat matrix |
IISc, IIT Madras and IIT Delhi are quoted from their own pages as checked on 3 October 2026. The IISc seat figures are from its 2026-27 intake matrix: Bioengineering has 11 seats, split 4 General, 3 OBC, 2 SC, 1 ST and 1 EWS, with supernumerary seats for women added if their number falls below 25%. We could not reach the COAP portal or the Bombay, Kanpur and Kharagpur biotechnology departments' pages, so those institutes are not covered here.
IISc: the published call-for-interview cut-offs for GATE BT
| Cycle | Bioengineering: General | OBC | EWS | SC | ST |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-27 | 750 | 670 | 620 | 400 | 350 |
| 2025-26 | 750 | 650 | 600 | 400 | 300 |
| 2024-25 | 600 | 500 | 500 | 300 | 300 |
| 2023-24 | 460 | 440 | 440 | 300 | 300 |
Each cell is the GATE score (out of 1000) in the BT row of that year's IISc cut-off report for M.Tech Bioengineering. The report states that an applicant above the cut-off who has not received a call letter can write to the admission office; it is a shortlisting line, so the score that finally secures a seat is not published. Column orders differ from year to year in IISc's reports; we mapped each from its own header.
IISc cut-off reports, GATE score out of 1000. These are call-for-interview lines.
The Bioengineering line rose by 290 points in three cycles; the Computational and Data Science line, where BT sits beside AE, CE, CS and DA papers, stayed between 650 and 750. In 2026-27 BT and AG shared the highest General cut-off, 750, of the 17 papers listed for Bioengineering (CS was 700, most engineering papers 600). Computational and Data Science 2026-27 BT cut-offs were 690 General, 600 OBC and EWS, 400 SC and ST.
Other IISc facts from the admissions page
- Applicants need a valid GATE scorecard as on 1 August 2026 (for the 2026-27 cycle); offers go through the Common Offer Acceptance Portal (COAP).
- Eligible papers for Bioengineering: AE, AG, BM, BT, CE, CH, CS, DA, EC, EE, ES, IN, ME, MT, PE, PI, TF, XE. For Computational and Data Science: AE, BT, CE, CH, CS, DA, EC, EE, IN, MA, ME, MT, PH, ST. For Sustainable Technologies: AR, BT, CE, CH, CY, ES, ME, XE, XL.
- You can apply to at most three M.Tech or M.Des disciplines.
- The regular PhD programme exempts 4-year degree holders from a Centrally Funded Technical Institute with a CGPA of 8.0 or more from GATE; the Integrated PhD does not.
Source: IISc M.Tech/M.Des admissions page and PhD pages, checked 3 October 2026.
IIT Madras and IIT Delhi: what the department pages say
IIT Madras, Department of Biotechnology
- M.Tech Bioprocess Engineering (intake 15 a year): a B.E. or B.Tech in Biotechnology, Chemical, Industrial Biotechnology, Biochemical or Biological Engineering with a GATE score in Biotechnology (BT) or Chemical Engineering (CH); or any other engineering branch with a GATE score in BT, CH or Life Sciences (XL).
- MS (Research) and PhD: selection is by interview or a screening test, in one of three streams (Biological Engineering, Biological Sciences, Computational Biology). A valid GATE score is needed for the regular categories of the MS, and for a PhD an applicant with a Master's in Science must have qualified in GATE or another national fellowship examination (CSIR-JRF, UGC-JRF, DBT-JRF and similar).
The department page lists no minimum score or past cut-off.
IIT Delhi, Department of Biochemical Engineering and Biotechnology: M.S.(Research) shortlisting, Sem I 2025-26
- A GATE score of at least 550 (General and GEN-EWS), 400 (OBC-NCL) or 300 (SC, ST and PD) in Life Sciences, Biotechnology or Chemical Engineering, plus at least 75% (7.5 CGPA) in the B.Tech or 70% in the M.Sc. (SC/ST/PD: 70% B.Tech, 65% M.Sc.).
- GATE is waived for some students from Centrally Funded Technical Institutes who have a CGPA of 8.0 or more.
These are the Sem I 2025-26 shortlisting minimums for the research programme, not an M.Tech cut-off. For Sem I 2026-27 the department posted a newer criteria file with an addendum dated 6 May 2026 that lowers the General and GEN-EWS GATE cut-off from 550 to 525; we did not read the other categories in that file, so the 400 and 300 figures above are the 2025-26 ones. The department publishes no M.Tech cut-off we could find.
NITs through CCMT: what was actually allotted in 2026
The NIT counselling publishes, for every round, the highest and lowest GATE score among candidates who were allotted a seat in each programme and category. This is the closest thing to an official cut-off that exists for NITs. Two cautions: the scores belong to candidates from any eligible GATE paper, not only BT, and CCMT 2026 accepted scores from GATE 2024, 2025 or 2026.
| Institute and programme | Round 1 (highest to lowest allotted) | Lowest allotted in any round |
|---|---|---|
| NIT Warangal, Biotechnology | 722 to 657 | 503 |
| NIT Rourkela, Biotechnology | 662 to 562 | 451 |
| NIT Karnataka Surathkal, Industrial Biotechnology | 652 to 545 | 487 |
| MNNIT Allahabad, Biotechnology | 623 to 519 | 465 |
| MNNIT Allahabad, Bioprocess Engineering | 562 to 479 | 390 |
| NIT Durgapur, Biotechnology | 545 to 507 | 428 |
| MANIT Bhopal, Biotechnology | 560 to 503 | 404 |
| NIT Jalandhar, Biotechnology | 531 to 474 | 404 |
| NIT Agartala, Biotechnology and Biochemical Engineering | 506 to 475 | 381 |
| NIT Andhra Pradesh, Biotechnology | 506 to 484 | 386 |
CCMT 2026 maximum and minimum GATE score report, OPEN category, lowest of the minimum scores across Round 1 to 3, Special Rounds 1 and 2 and the National Spot Round. Our reading of an official table.
The rows above are OPEN category only; every institute has separate rows for EWS, OBC-NCL, SC, ST and PwD. Seats are filled in rounds: the highest scorers are allotted in Round 1, and later rounds allot lower scores as seats fall vacant, which is why the last column is the lowest score allotted in any round.
CCMT 2026 rules that matter to a BT candidate
- A valid GATE score from 2024, 2025 or 2026, and at least 6.5 CGPA or 60% in the qualifying degree (6.0 or 55% for SC, ST and PwD).
- Merit is the GATE score; eligibility is checked per programme against an eligibility matrix of degree disciplines and GATE papers.
- Fees (2026): registration Rs 3,500 (General, GEN-EWS, OBC) or Rs 3,000 (SC, ST, PwD); seat acceptance fee Rs 30,000 or Rs 10,000, adjusted against the institute fee.
Sources: CCMT 2026 Information Brochure and its Cancellation and Refund Policy.
Score, rank and the three-year rule
GATE converts your marks to a score out of 1000 with a formula that depends on that year's field: General qualifying mark becomes 350 and the mean of the top 0.1% or top ten candidates becomes 900. Admission bodies use the score, and the same marks can be worth very different scores in different years.
The formula, from the GATE 2027 Information Brochure
- GATE Score = 350 + 550 × (M − Mq) / (Mt − Mq), with 350 and 900 as the scores of Mq and Mt.
- M is your marks (raw for a single-session paper, normalised for a multi-session paper); Mq is the General qualifying mark; Mt is the average of the top 0.1% or top ten candidates, whichever is more.
- The score is valid for three years from the result date. For a 2027 attempt, a 2026 scorecard is still usable alongside it.
BT has been a single-session paper in 2025 and 2026, so these years need no normalisation.
GATE BT score and rank calculator
Enter your expected marks out of 100 (after negative marking). The calculator applies the official GATE score formula using the real qualifying mark and topper average of the year you pick, and estimates a rank from that year's official mark distribution.
Estimates only. Your real score depends on the 2027 field, which is not known until the result on 19 March 2027. Qualifying marks by category are the official figures for that year. Rank is interpolated between official mark bands and is approximate.
The same numbers as tables, for readers without scripts:
| Marks | Score on 2026 field | Score on 2025 field | Score on 2024 field | Score on 2023 field |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20 | 269 | 194 | 68 | 169 |
| 25 | 339 | 291 | 143 | 247 |
| 30 | 409 | 389 | 217 | 325 |
| 35 | 479 | 487 | 292 | 403 |
| 40 | 549 | 585 | 366 | 481 |
| 45 | 620 | 682 | 441 | 560 |
| 50 | 690 | 780 | 515 | 638 |
| 55 | 760 | 878 | 590 | 716 |
| 60 | 830 | 976 | 664 | 794 |
| 65 | 900 | 1000 | 739 | 873 |
Computed with the official formula and each year's official Mq and Mt, capped at 1000 (the reports show 1000 as the highest score) with no floor, so very low marks give negative scores. As a check, the formula reproduces the official 2026 OBC-NCL/EWS qualifying score of 314 and the SC/ST/PwD score of 229, and the 2025 values of 295 and 166.
Marks to rank, by year
| 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | 2026 | Marks (or more) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 19 | 0 | 3 | 70 |
| 24 | 122 | 2 | 21 | 60 |
| 152 | 731 | 54 | 122 | 50 |
| 696 | 2,620 | 405 | 561 | 40 |
| 2,646 | 6,181 | 2,347 | 2,005 | 30 |
| 6,627 | 10,937 | 8,390 | 6,239 | 20 |
Each cell is the number of candidates who scored at least that many marks, added up from the official 10-mark distribution in each report. Scoring exactly that mark, your rank would have been about that number or better. This is our arithmetic on official data, not a table GATE publishes.
Official score to rank, qualified candidates
| GATE score | 2026 ranks | 2025 ranks | 2024 ranks | 2023 ranks |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 900 to 1000 | 1-8 | 1-6 | 1-8 | 1-5 |
| 800 to 900 | 9-28 | 8-39 | 9-19 | 6-20 |
| 700 to 800 | 30-89 | 42-115 | 20-67 | 23-73 |
| 600 to 700 | 97-327 | 124-309 | 73-287 | 79-216 |
| 500 to 600 | 343-832 | 323-861 | 306-804 | 229-583 |
| 400 to 500 | 859-2,097 | 912-1,997 | 861-1,952 | 600-1,442 |
| 300 to 400 | 2,189-4,699 | 2,116-4,202 | 2,025-3,847 | 1,502-3,084 |
| 200 to 300 | 4,893-7,915 | 4,392-7,839 | 3,964-6,485 | 3,180-5,597 |
| 100 to 200 | none | 8,124-9,208 | 6,654-7,892 | 5,736-6,206 |
From the "Starting and Ending Ranks for Qualified Candidates" table of each official report (ranks count everyone who appeared, which is why they run past the number who qualified). A score of 600 to 700 meant ranks 97 to 327 in 2026 and 79 to 216 in 2023, so the same score band covers a wider rank range now.
Marks-to-score swings are large. On the 2024 field, 40 marks gave a score of 366 and put you near rank 2,600; on the 2026 field the same 40 marks gave 549 and about rank 560. Plan with scores, and use the latest year to translate them to marks.
Where does your score put you?
| Published threshold (GATE BT score out of 1000) | General | GEN-EWS | OBC-NCL | SC | ST |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IISc M.Tech Bioengineering call cut-off, 2026-27 | 750 | 620 | 670 | 400 | 350 |
| IISc M.Tech Computational and Data Science call cut-off, 2026-27 | 690 | 600 | 600 | 400 | 400 |
| IIT Delhi DBEB M.S.(Research) minimum score, Sem I 2025-26 (2026-27 General and GEN-EWS: 525) | 550 | 550 | 400 | 300 | 300 |
Which published thresholds does your GATE score clear?
Enter a GATE BT score out of 1000 and your category. The tool compares it with the thresholds in the table above. A threshold is a published minimum or a call-for-interview cut-off, not a seat.
Thresholds are from IISc's 2026 cut-off report and IIT Delhi's M.S.(R) shortlisting criteria. Clearing one means you may be called or shortlisted; selection is then by the institute's own process.
NIT scores are not in this tool because CCMT publishes them by round and by category, not as a single threshold; use the table above for the OPEN rows.
What no official source tells you
Gaps we left empty on purpose
- Final IIT and IISc admission cut-offs. IISc publishes who gets a call, not who gets a seat. IIT admission runs through each department; the pages we could read publish eligibility, not a closing score. Tables of "expected IIT cut-offs" have no official basis, and we do not reproduce them.
- Placements and salaries. None of the pages above publishes a placement table. We found no official figure for GATE BT in particular.
- PSU jobs. We found no recruitment notice that names GATE BT among its papers, so we do not claim one. A GATE score is not a PSU job guarantee; the GATE site says so itself.
- COAP. IISc states that its M.Tech offers go through the Common Offer Acceptance Portal. We could not load a current COAP page, so we do not describe its rounds.
For the older, "expected" version of this topic, see GATE Biotechnology expected cutoff, IIT/IISc admission scores and placements; for the qualifying side, GATE BT qualifying marks by year and category. If you are weighing GATE BT against Life Sciences, GATE XL vs GATE BT vs CSIR NET is the comparison.
Practise it, don't just read it
On the 2026 field a score of 550 was worth about 40 marks and a score of 650 about 47, so the gap is roughly seven marks, three or four 2-mark questions. Topic quizzes show where those marks are within reach.
The ProSyllabus GATE BT library has nine topic quizzes of ten questions each: Michaelis Menten Enzyme Kinetics Fundamentals, Mendelian Inheritance Patterns Fundamentals, Monod Microbial Growth Model Fundamentals, Oxygen Transfer in Bioreactors Advanced Challenge, Metabolic Flux Balance Analysis Advanced Challenge, and the Molecular Tools, Analytical Tools, Computational Tools and Recombinant DNA Technology practice quizzes. Note that oxygen transfer (kLa) sits under the Transport Processes heading of the 2026 syllabus, which the 2027 syllabus no longer lists; the other eight map onto topics that are still named.
Frequently asked questions
What GATE BT score does IISc need for M.Tech Bioengineering?
IISc's 2026-27 cut-off report lists 750 for General, 670 for OBC, 620 for EWS, 400 for SC and 350 for ST in the BT row. It is the score used to call applicants for an interview; selection is 70% GATE score and 30% interview.
What GATE score is needed for an NIT M.Tech in Biotechnology?
The 2026 NIT counselling allotted OPEN-category candidates in Biotechnology programmes at scores from about 380 to 720 depending on the institute and round. NIT Warangal's lowest allotted score was 503 in any round and NIT Agartala's 381. These scores belong to candidates from any eligible GATE paper.
Does IISc Biological Sciences take GATE BT?
No, not for the Integrated PhD: IISc's page says that programme is entered through JAM (Biotechnology, Chemistry, Mathematics or Physics). GATE BT is accepted for several M.Tech programmes.
Which GATE papers can a biotechnology graduate use for IIT Madras M.Tech Bioprocess Engineering?
A B.E. or B.Tech in Biotechnology, Chemical, Industrial Biotechnology, Biochemical or Biological Engineering needs a GATE score in BT or CH; any other engineering branch can use BT, CH or XL, according to the Department of Biotechnology.
How long is a GATE score valid for admission?
Three years from the date of the result, according to the GATE 2027 information brochure. The 2026 NIT counselling accepted scores from 2024, 2025 and 2026.
More in this series
- GATE Biotechnology qualifying marks by year and category, 2023–2026
- GATE Biotechnology topic-wise weightage, counted from the 2022–2026 papers
- GATE Biotechnology previous year papers 2021–2026 with official answer keys
- GATE BT 2027 syllabus changes and a week-by-week preparation plan
- GATE Biotechnology expected cutoff, IIT/IISc admission scores and placements (older guide)
- GATE 2026 Biotechnology paper analysis (older guide)
- GATE Biotechnology complete guide (older guide)
- GATE BT notice board: official updates
- GATE XL vs GATE BT vs CSIR NET Life Sciences: which to write
- GATE XL marks vs score vs rank calculator
Sources
- official — GATE 2027 Information Brochure, revised 27 Sep 2026
- official — IISc M.Tech and M.Des admissions 2026-27 (eligible papers, selection, COAP)
- official — IISc M.Tech/M.Des approved intake 2026-27
- official — IISc cut-off report M.Tech/M.Des 2026
- official — IISc cut-off report M.Tech/M.Des 2025
- official — IISc cut-off report M.Tech/M.Des 2024
- official — IISc cut-off report M.Tech/M.Des 2023
- official — IISc Integrated PhD admissions (JAM routes; CFTI GATE exemption note)
- official — IIT Madras Department of Biotechnology: admission
- official — IIT Madras M.Tech Bioprocess Engineering programme details
- official — IIT Delhi Biochemical Engineering and Biotechnology: M.S.(R) shortlisting criteria Sem I 2025-26
- official — IIT Delhi Biochemical Engineering and Biotechnology: M.S.(R) shortlisting criteria Sem I 2026-27, with addendum of 6 May 2026 (General and EWS GATE cut-off 550 to 525)
- official — CCMT 2026 Information Brochure
- official — CCMT 2026 Cancellation and Refund Policy (fees)
- official — CCMT 2026 maximum and minimum GATE score report
- official — GATE 2026 Statistical and Performance Report (IIT Guwahati)
- official — GATE 2025 Statistical and Performance Report (IIT Roorkee)
- official — GATE 2024 Statistical and Performance Report (IISc, archived copy)
- official — GATE 2023 Statistical Report (IIT Kanpur, archived copy)
- official — GATE 2027 important dates
official = a document published by the conducting body. reported = a news or coaching site we could not check against an original. Where sources disagree this page says so rather than picking one.
