GATE Humanities And Social Sciences Syllabus 2026, Topic-Wise Syllabus

GATE Humanities and Social Sciences Syllabus 2026: IIT Guwahati will conduct the Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering for the forthcoming year. The exam will be organized for 30 various disciplines, including Humanities and Social Sciences. Candidates who are planning to appear for GATE 2026 for this paper must go through the entire syllabus to prepare systematically.

The GATE Syllabus for Humanities and Social Sciences will be officially released at gate.iitg.ac.in. Candidates must have an in-depth knowledge of the GATE XH Syllabus to ace their preparation accordingly. A proper understanding of syllabus provides detailed insights into topic-wise weightage and key focus areas.

PW Online GATE Courses

GATE Humanities and Social Sciences Syllabus 2026

Candidates who wish to perform well in the Humanities and Social Sciences examination in GATE 2026 must kick-start their preparation by reviewing the comprehensive syllabus. The GATE Humanities and Social Sciences Syllabus includes Reasoning and Comprehension which is compulsory section and Economics, English, Linguistic, Philosophy, Psychology and Sociology are optional sections. Candidates must refer to the entire topic-wise syllabus for GATE XH paper in this article.

GATE Humanities and Social Sciences Subjects

The GATE Humanities and Social Sciences subjects are reasoning and comprehension, economics, English, linguistics, philosophy, psychology, and sociology. The Reasoning and Comprehension subject is compulsory for all aspirants appearing for the GATE Humanities and Social Sciences (XH) paper.

On the other hand, the remaining six GATE Humanities and Social Sciences subjects are optional sections where aspirants have to select any one subject.

GATE Humanities and Social Sciences Syllabus For Reasoning and Comprehension

The GATE Humanities and Social Sciences Syllabus for Reasoning and Comprehension evaluates aspirants ability to understand and interpret written information and the skills needed for research in the humanities and social sciences.

Find out the important topics from the GATE Humanities and Social Sciences Syllabus 2026 below:

• Reading Comprehension: Understanding complex language material in short paragraphs and answering questions related to them
• Expression: Addressing stylistic and rhetorical aspects of a short passage, including sentence corrections or modifications
• Analytical Reasoning: Comprehending relationships in statements or brief passages and drawing reasonable conclusions or inferences from them
• Logical Reasoning: Critically assessing arguments, identifying main and supporting points, and predicting outcomes

GATE Humanities and Social Sciences Syllabus 2026 for Economics

The GATE Humanities and Social Sciences Syllabus for Economics paper with code XH -C1 covers topics such as microeconomics, macroeconomics, public economics, Indian Economics, Development Economics, etc.

More essential GATE Humanities and Social Sciences subjects from the Economics section are listed below:

GATE Humanities and Social Sciences Syllabus 2026 for English

The GATE Humanities and Social Sciences Syllabus 2026 for English (XH -C2) includes English literature, multi-genre literature, and other genres of fiction such as short tales, drama, creative nonfiction, and non-fiction prose.

Multi-genre literature in English:

• Poetry, the novel, and other forms of fiction, including the short story, drama, creative non-fiction, and non-fiction prose
• Emphasis on the long 19th and 20th centuries.

Literature from India and the Larger Subcontinent:

• Anglophone literatures and those in English translation
• Especially in a comparative context.
• Extending to some degree to the larger Indian subcontinent.

Literary Criticism, Theory, and Traditions:

• Literary criticism and theory
• Critical and cultural intellectual traditions and widely used approaches in the discipline of English

History of English Literature:

• History of English literature and English literary studies.

Research Approaches and Methodologies:

• Research approaches and methodologies
• Interpretive techniques responsive to literary forms, devices, concepts, and genres.

GATE Humanities and Social Sciences Syllabus for Linguistics

The GATE Humanities and Social Sciences Syllabus for Linguistics (XH -C3) in 2025 which includes grammar, phonetics, morphology, syntax, semantics, and other topics as outlined below.

GATE Humanities and Social Science Syllabus 2026 for Philosophy

The Philosophy (XH-C4) GATE Humanities and Social Sciences subject offers a wide range of topics in Classical, Contemporary, and Modern Western Philosophy.

GATE Humanities and Social Science Syllabus 2026 for Psychology

The GATE Humanities and Social Sciences Syllabus for Psychology (XH -C5) provides an array of topics that are necessary for a thorough understanding of the subject. The main subjects on which applicants can expect questions in the GATE 2026 examination are as follows:

GATE Humanities and Social Sciences Syllabus for Sociology

The Sociology GATE Humanities and Social Sciences Subject evaluates applicants' social awareness and knowledge in a variety of areas, including various social movements, marriage, family, and kinship, among others.

GATE Humanities and Social Sciences Syllabus for General Aptitude

The General Aptitude section of the GATE Humanities and Social Sciences syllabus covers the following topics:

• English grammar
• Sentence completion
• Instructions
• Verbal analogies
• Word groups
• Critical reasoning
• Verbal deduction
• Numerical computation
• Numerical reasoning
• Numerical estimation
• Data interpretation

GATE Humanities and Social Sciences Syllabus - Important Topics

Studying all GATE Humanities and Social Sciences subjects is important to score well. So, aspirants are advised to give special attention to the specific topics highlighted below from the comprehensive GATE Humanities and Social Science Syllabus.

This strategy will enhance the overall understanding of subjects and lead to better scores in the GATE XH 2026 examination.

GATE Humanities And Social Sciences Syllabus PDF

The GATE Humanities and Social Sciences subject was introduced in GATE 2021. For the upcoming examination, IIT Guwahati will release the detailed GATE Humanities and Social Sciences Syllabus PDF on its official website, gate.iitg.ac.in. Further, for aspirants convenience, a direct link to download the GATE Humanities and Social Sciences Syllabus 2026 PDF is provided below:

GATE Humanities and Social Sciences Syllabus PDF

GATE Humanities and Social Sciences Syllabus - Sectional Weightage

In accordance with the GATE Exam Pattern 2026, the examination will carry a total of 65 questions based on core Humanities and Social Sciences subjects, reasoning and comprehension, and general aptitude, worth 100 marks.

Check out the sectional weightage of the subjects from the GATE Humanities and Social Sciences Syllabus 2026.

Elevate your GATE readiness with Physics Wallah’s GATE Online Courses. PW GATE Online Coaching offers comprehensive live sessions tailored to the syllabus, invaluable study materials, practice tests, and much more.