Which zones have live GDCE cycles in September 2026, the 25 per cent direct recruitment quota that funds them, and the pattern the Railway Board clarified in March 2026

Alerts and Updates for Railway GDCE (General Departmental Competitive Examination)

Articles related to Railway GDCE (General Departmental Competitive Examination) on page 1 

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    <h2>Updates as of September 22, 2026</h2>
    <div class="netherlands-nt2-programme-ii-updates-222026-card">
        <p>Registration is open for all three November 2026 Programme II sittings. Schrijven II on Tuesday 10 November opened on 7 September and closes 20 October; Lezen II on Tuesday 24 November and Spreken II on Wednesday 25 November both opened on 21 September, with closing dates of 3 and 4 November respectively.</p>
        <a class="netherlands-nt2-programme-ii-updates-222026-cite" href="https://www.staatsexamensnt2.nl/aanmelden/examenrooster/examenrooster-programma-ii">Staatsexamens Nt2 exam schedule</a>
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    <div class="netherlands-nt2-programme-ii-updates-222026-card">
        <p>The October window has effectively shut. Closing dates for Spreken II on 6 October and Luisteren II on 7 October passed on 15 and 16 September, Lezen II on 12 October closed on 21 September, and Schrijven II on 13 October carries a closing date of 22 September, which is today.</p>
        <a class="netherlands-nt2-programme-ii-updates-222026-cite" href="https://www.staatsexamensnt2.nl/aanmelden/examenrooster/examenrooster-programma-ii">Staatsexamens Nt2 exam schedule</a>
    </div>

    <div class="netherlands-nt2-programme-ii-updates-222026-card">
        <p>Staatsexamens Nt2 announced on 18 August 2026 that the December 2026 schedule is now published on its website, and on 15 September 2026 added extra Programme I sittings at B1 on 22 October for Lezen I and 10 November for Luisteren I. No comparable extra Programme II sittings were announced alongside them.</p>
        <a class="netherlands-nt2-programme-ii-updates-222026-cite" href="https://www.staatsexamensnt2.nl/">Staatsexamens Nt2 news</a>
    </div>

    <div class="netherlands-nt2-programme-ii-updates-222026-card">
        <p>Booking runs through Mijn DUO with a personal DigiD, and DUO states that registration opens roughly eight weeks before the exam date. Candidates without DigiD have a separate route, and several parts can be booked in one session rather than one at a time.</p>
        <a class="netherlands-nt2-programme-ii-updates-222026-cite" href="https://duo.nl/particulier/staatsexamen-nt2/aanmelden.jsp">DUO registration page</a>
    </div>

    <div class="netherlands-nt2-programme-ii-updates-222026-card">
        <p>DUO accepts iDEAL at the moment of booking, an invoice by email or post, or payment out of an existing DUO loan. It warns that paying from outside the Netherlands often costs more and that the money can take a few weeks to arrive, which matters when a closing date is near.</p>
        <a class="netherlands-nt2-programme-ii-updates-222026-cite" href="https://www.duo.nl/particulier/staatsexamen-nt2/examengeld.jsp">DUO examengeld</a>
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    <div class="netherlands-nt2-programme-ii-updates-222026-card">
        <p>Staatsexamens Nt2 warns that demand is high enough that some sittings fill before their official closing date, so the published uiterlijke aanmelddatum is a ceiling rather than a promise of a seat. It also advises checking the schedule page regularly because the roster changes.</p>
        <a class="netherlands-nt2-programme-ii-updates-222026-cite" href="https://www.staatsexamensnt2.nl/aanmelden/examenrooster/examenrooster-programma-ii">Staatsexamens Nt2 exam schedule</a>
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Programme II is the B2 route, described by Staatsexamens Nt2 as being for people who want to study or work at hbo or university level; Programme I is the B1 route aimed at mbo 3 and mbo 4. The four parts are never sat on one day, so a full diploma attempt spans several weeks of the roster.

<p><strong>Source:</strong> <a href="https://www.duo.nl/particulier/staatsexamen-nt2/examengeld.jsp">DUO examengeld</a> &middot; <a href="https://www.inburgeren.nl/examen-doen/inhoud-taalexamens-a2-b1-b2.jsp">Inburgeren exam content</a> &middot; <a href="https://www.staatsexamensnt2.nl/over-het-staatsexamen-nt2/wat-is-het-staatsexamen-nt2">What the NT2 exam is</a></p>

Every date above is taken from the published Programme II roster, which lists the sitting date, the date booking opens and the uiterlijke aanmelddatum in separate columns. Staatsexamens Nt2 states the roster can change, so confirm in Mijn DUO before making travel plans.

<p><strong>Source:</strong> <a href="https://www.staatsexamensnt2.nl/aanmelden/examenrooster/examenrooster-programma-ii">Programma II examenrooster</a> &middot; <a href="https://duo.nl/particulier/staatsexamen-nt2/aanmelden.jsp">DUO registration</a></p>

The mistake that costs Indian candidates the most is treating Programme II as a single exam with a single date. It is four separately booked sittings, each with its own opening date and its own closing date, spread across different weeks. Candidates who wait until they feel ready for all four typically find that the parts they wanted have already closed, because the closing date sits roughly three weeks before the sitting. The second mistake follows from the first: assuming a seat exists because the closing date has not passed. Staatsexamens Nt2 says some sittings fill before it.

Work from the uiterlijke aanmelddatum, not the exam date. For the November block, Schrijven II on 10 November closes on 20 October, while Lezen II on 24 November and Spreken II on 25 November close on 3 and 4 November. That is a three-week gap in each case. Booking opens about eight weeks ahead, and DUO allows several parts to be booked in one session, so the practical approach is to reserve everything you intend to sit in a term the week booking opens. Staatsexamens Nt2 warns that popular sittings fill before their closing date, so an early booking is the only reliable one. The roster itself shows how wide the spread can be: the November Schrijven II slot opened on 7 September, more than two weeks before the November reading and speaking slots opened on 21 September, so a single visit to Mijn DUO in mid-September would not have caught all three.

Each part is marked out of a scaled score and you need at least 500 to pass that part. Reading and listening are machine-marked, one point per correct answer. Writing and speaking are marked by trained assessors, and each of those two parts is scored by two raters, with one or more points available per question depending on the criteria. There is no compensation between parts: a strong reading score does not lift a writing score of 480. That structure rewards steady competence across all four skills rather than a spike in the one you find easiest.

Sequence the parts by turnaround, not difficulty

Passed parts are banked. If you clear all four you are sent the diploma at home by DUO with no further action; if you clear only some, you can request a certificate for each passed part through Mijn diploma's and re-book the rest. That makes it rational to attempt the parts you are closest to first, bank them, and keep re-booking the weak one. The roster helps here, because reading, writing, listening and speaking each recur across the term rather than being locked to a single annual date. Results are not instant either: Staatsexamens Nt2 tells candidates to look in the roster for the date their result is due, and says it becomes visible from 15.00 on that day in Mijn DUO, with the outcome also sent by email and post. Build that gap into any admission deadline you are working towards.

Budget for the full four, and for payment lag

Each part costs EUR 50 and the complete exam EUR 200, the same for Programme I and Programme II. A re-sit is a fresh EUR 50, so a candidate who needs two attempts at writing and speaking is looking at EUR 300. Payment is by iDEAL during booking, by invoice, or from an existing DUO loan. DUO warns explicitly that paying from abroad often costs more and can take a few weeks to clear, so a candidate booking from India should choose iDEAL through a Dutch account where possible, or start the invoice route well before the closing date.

Match the programme to the actual requirement

Programme II is B2 and is described as being for people who want to study or work at hbo or university level; Programme I is B1 and is pitched at mbo 3 and mbo 4. Dutch universities that require NT2 normally name Programme II, so a candidate aiming at a Dutch-taught bachelor's or master's should not sit Programme I to bank an easier pass. Conversely, if the requirement in front of you is civic integration rather than admission, the B1 and B2 exams are the same staatsexamen Nt2 and the level you need is set in your own Mijn Inburgering file. The workload difference is real but not dramatic in clock terms: at B2 the reading paper runs 100 minutes against 110 at B1, listening 90 minutes, writing 100 minutes and speaking about 30 minutes, so the gap is in the standard applied rather than the time allowed.

<a href="/exam/netherlands-nt2-programme-ii">This article has been published in Dutch State Exam NT2 Programme II. Explore everything related to it here.</a>

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