Table of Contents
Get the complete Kerala SET syllabus 2026 for Paper I and Paper II in a detailed, subject-wise format. The Kerala SET exam pattern 2026 includes 120 objective-type questions in each paper, covering General Knowledge, Teaching Aptitude, and subject-specific topics across 37 disciplines. This page breaks down the exact topics, marks distribution, qualifying criteria, and — beyond just listing the syllabus — how to actually turn it into a study plan.
Kerala SET Notification 2026 Overview
| Kerala State Eligibility Test (SET) 2026 Highlights | |
|---|---|
| Exam Conducting Body | LBS Centre for Science & Technology, Government of Kerala |
| Kerala SET Full Form | Kerala State Eligibility Test |
| Name of the Exam | Kerala SET 2026 |
| Exam Level | State Level |
| Mode of Application | Online |
| Exam Frequency | Twice a year (January & July sessions) |
| Exam Duration | Paper I: 2 hours · Paper II: 2 hours |
| Exam Language | English & Malayalam |
| Official Website | www.lbscentre.kerala.gov.in |
Kerala SET Exam Pattern 2026 – Paper 1 & Paper 2 Marks & Subject-Wise Scheme
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The Kerala SET Exam 2026 consists of two objective-type papers — Paper I (common for all candidates) and Paper II (subject-specific). Both papers are objective with four answer options per question, carry no negative marking, and every question carries equal weightage except in Mathematics and Statistics.
| Paper | Parts / Subjects Covered | Total Questions | Marks per Question | Total Marks | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paper I | Part A: General Knowledge · Part B: Teaching Aptitude | 120 (60 + 60) | 1 mark each | 120 marks | 120 minutes |
| Paper II (most subjects) | Subject-specific (based on candidate’s PG subject) | 120 questions | 1 mark each | 120 marks | 120 minutes |
| Paper II (Mathematics & Statistics only) | Subject-specific | 80 questions | 1.5 marks each | 120 marks | 120 minutes |
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Join Now!Subject-Wise Kerala SET Syllabus 2026 PDF Download – Paper 1 & Paper 2
Download the Kerala SET 2026 Syllabus PDF for Paper I (General Knowledge & Teaching Aptitude) and Paper II (Subject-wise syllabus) in one place. This complete syllabus helps candidates understand important topics, chapter weightage, and question pattern for each subject. Access the latest Kerala SET syllabus 2026 below!
| SUBJCET | FREE PDF |
| GENERAL | |
| ANTHROPOLOGY | |
| BENGALI | |
| CHEMICAL SCIENCES | |
| COMMERCE | |
| COMPUTER SCIENCE AND APPLICATIONS | |
| EARTH, ATMOSPHERIC, OCEAN AND PLANETARY SCIENCES | |
| ECONOMICS | |
| EDUCATION | |
| ELECTRONIC SCIENCE | |
| ENGLISH | |
| GEOGRAPHY | |
| HINDI | |
| HISTORY | |
| HOME SCIENCE | |
| LAW | |
| LIBRARY AND INFORMATION SCIENCE | |
| LIFE SCIENCES | |
| MASS COMMUNICATION AND JOURNALISM | |
| MATHEMATICAL SCIENCES | |
| MUSIC | |
| NEPALI | |
| PHILOSOPHY | |
| PHYSICAL EDUCATION | |
| PHYSICAL SCIENCES | |
| POLITICAL SCIENCE | |
| PSYCHOLOGY | |
| SANSKRIT | |
| SANTHALI | |
| SOCIOLOGY | |
| URDU | |
| MANAGEMENT | |
| ARABIC | |
| ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES |
Kerala SET 2026 Paper 1 vs Paper 2: What’s Actually Different
Candidates often assume Paper I is “easier” simply because it’s common to everyone — that’s not quite right. Here’s the practical difference that matters for how you split your prep time:
| Paper I | Paper II | |
|---|---|---|
| Content depth | 10th-level General Science/Social Science + Teaching Aptitude concepts | Postgraduate-level subject theory |
| Where marks are lost | Time pressure in Part B reasoning/data interpretation, not lack of knowledge | Gaps in core PG units, not exam pattern |
| How to revise | Solve reasoning sets + revise Teaching Aptitude framework names (theories, committees, Acts) | Go unit-by-unit through your PG syllabus, cross-check against previous papers |
| Realistic prep window | 3–4 weeks is enough with daily practice sets | Needs the bulk of your study timeline — start early |
This is why “I’ll do Paper I closer to the exam” is a common mistake — Part B (Teaching Aptitude) has a defined, memorizable syllabus and rewards early revision just as much as Paper II does.
Kerala SET 2026 Qualifying Marks – Category-Wise Pass Criteria
To qualify, candidates must secure the minimum percentage of marks in both papers as well as the overall total.
| Category | Minimum Marks in Paper I | Minimum Marks in Paper II | Aggregate (Total) Percentage Required |
|---|---|---|---|
| General | 40% | 40% | 48% |
| OBC (Non-Creamy Layer) | 35% | 35% | 45% |
| SC / ST / Differently Abled | 35% | 35% | 40% |
Important notes:
- Candidates must qualify Paper I and Paper II separately — a strong Paper II score cannot compensate for missing the Paper I minimum.
- Final selection is based on the aggregate percentage of both papers combined.
- No negative marking is applicable.
- OBC/SC/ST candidates claiming relaxation must submit a valid Non-Creamy Layer / Community Certificate from the Kerala Government.
- Percentage is calculated as: (Marks secured in Paper I + Paper II) ÷ (Maximum marks for Paper I + Paper II) × 100, rounded to two decimal places.
For the full category-wise cutoff trend across previous sessions, see the Kerala SET Cut Off page.
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Join Now!How to Use Kerala SET 2026 Syllabus to Actually Plan Your Preparation
A syllabus list tells you what to study — it doesn’t tell you how much time to give each part. Here’s a practical way to convert the syllabus below into a study plan:
- Split Paper I prep into two separate tracks, not one. General Knowledge (current affairs-heavy, needs continuous daily input) and Teaching Aptitude (a fixed, closed syllabus you can fully complete and revise) behave differently — treat GK as an ongoing habit and Teaching Aptitude as a checklist you finish early.
- For Paper II, map each syllabus unit to your PG coursework first. Most candidates already covered 60–70% of this syllabus during their Master’s — start by identifying which units are genuinely new to you rather than re-studying everything from zero.
- Use previous year papers to sanity-check your unit weighting, not just the syllabus list below. The syllabus tells you what can be asked; previous papers tell you what tends to actually get asked.
- Revisit the qualifying marks table above before you finalize your target score. If you’re in the General category, 48% aggregate is a real, achievable bar — don’t over-prepare Paper II at the expense of Paper I when both need to individually clear their own threshold.
- Build a week-by-week plan against this syllabus rather than studying subjects in random order — see the Kerala SET Study Plan for a structured template.
Kerala SET 2026 Paper 2 – Subject List
| Code | Subject | Code | Subject |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Anthropology | 19 | Latin |
| 02 | Arabic | 20 | Malayalam |
| 03 | Botany | 21 | Mathematics |
| 04 | Chemistry | 22 | Music |
| 05 | Commerce | 23 | Philosophy |
| 06 | Economics | 24 | Physics |
| 07 | English | 25 | Political Science |
| 08 | French | 26 | Psychology |
| 09 | Gandhian Studies | 27 | Russian |
| 10 | Geography | 28 | Sanskrit |
| 11 | Geology | 29 | Social Work |
| 12 | German | 30 | Sociology |
| 13 | Hindi | 31 | Statistics |
| 14 | History | 32 | Syriac |
| 15 | Home Science | 33 | Tamil |
| 16 | Islamic History | 34 | Urdu |
| 17 | Journalism | 35 | Zoology |
| 18 | Kannada | 36 | General Paper (Paper I) |
| 37 | Biotechnology |
Kerala SET Syllabus 2026 – Paper I & II Detailed Syllabus
The Kerala SET Syllabus 2026 covers the topics and subject areas candidates need to prepare for Paper I and Paper II. Paper I focuses on general areas such as teaching, research, reasoning, communication and education, while Paper II covers the selected subject in detail. Check the section-wise Kerala SET syllabus below!
Kerala SET Paper 1 Detailed Syllabus 2026 – General Knowledge & Teaching Aptitude
- General Science: Mathematics, Statistics, Physics, Chemistry and Biology (Basics – Class X Level)
- Social Science: Economics, History, Geography and Indian Polity (Basics – Class X Level)
- Humanities: Literature, Art and Culture
- English Language and Reasoning
- Current Affairs: latest technologies, environmental issues, UN & global affairs, national/state initiatives, Indian polity, sports, awards, events, persons, culture
Teaching Aptitude Topics:
- Foundations of Education: Philosophical, Sociological, Psychological
- History & Policies of Education
- Teaching, Learning & Evaluation
- Teaching Aptitudes and Teaching Methods
- Learning Theories & Evaluation
- Computer and ICT
- Communication
- Research in Education
- Educational Administration
Kerala SET Paper 2 Syllabus 2026 – Subject-Wise Detailed Syllabus for All 37 Subjects
The Kerala SET Paper 2 syllabus covers postgraduate-level topics testing subject expertise and depth across all 37 disciplines.
Anthropology: Meaning and scope of Social/Cultural/Biological Anthropology · Family, Marriage & Kinship · Political Organisation and Social Control · Social Stratification · Human evolution and genetics · Indian society, civilization and culture · Research methodology and fieldwork · Structural Functionalism, Structuralism and Post-Structuralism · Ecological, Medical and Economic Anthropology
Arabic: Arabic Prose (Mu’allaqat, Umayyad and Abbasid periods, Modern period) · Contemporary Arab World · Arabic Grammar (Rhetorics, Linguistics, Prosody) · Arabic Criticism · Indo-Arabic Literature · Journal Arabic · Translation
Botany: Diversity of lifeforms (Bacteria, Viruses, Phycology, Mycology, Bryology, Gymnosperms, Angiosperms) · Reproductive Biology · Functional Plant Biology and Physiology · Molecular Cell Biology and Heredity · Ecology and Environment · Applied Botany
Chemistry: Organic Chemistry (reaction mechanisms, stereochemistry, photochemistry) · Inorganic Chemistry (main group, transition elements, coordination chemistry) · Physical Chemistry (thermodynamics, kinetics, electrochemistry) · Theoretical Chemistry (quantum mechanics, chemical bonding) · Analytical, Green, Medicinal and Environmental Chemistry
Commerce: Management concepts and strategies · Business Environment, Policy and MIS · Financial and Corporate Accounting · Quantitative Techniques & Research Methods · Financial Management and Marketing · Cost and Management Accounting
Economics: Microeconomic and Macroeconomic Theory · Quantitative Methods for Economic Analysis · Development Experiences of India and Kerala · Economic Development and Environmental Economics · Money, Banking, Public Finance and International Trade
English: Chaucer’s Age to Restoration · Neoclassical Age · Romanticism · Victorian Age · 20th Century and Contemporary British Literature · American, Indian and New Literatures in English · African Literature and Colonialism · History of the English Language · Literary Theory and Criticism
French: Middle Ages to 21st century literature · Literary criticism · Culture and Civilization · Linguistics, Methodology & FLE · Grammar · Francophone Literature and Contemporary France
Gandhian Studies: Making of the Mahatma · Fundamentals of Gandhian Thought (Truth, Nonviolence, Satyagraha) · Political and Economic Thought · Social and Educational Ideas · Peace Studies and Conflict Resolution · Gandhi and the modern world
Geography: Development of Geographical thought · Physical Geography (Geomorphology, Oceanography, Biogeography) · Resource Geography · Urban and Regional Geography · Indian Geography · Geoinformatics (Cartography, GIS)
Geology: Physical, Marine and Structural Geology · Crystallography and Mineralogy · Igneous, Metamorphic and Sedimentary Petrology · Stratigraphy and Paleontology · Indian Geology · Hydrogeology and Geochemistry · Remote Sensing and Geoinformatics
German: Linguistik / Deutsche Sprachgeschichte · Deutsche Literaturgeschichte · History of Western Philosophy and German Culture · Politische Geschichte / Landeskunde · Methods of Teaching German as a Foreign Language
Hindi: History of Hindi Literature (Aadikal to 2015) · Structural Grammar · Western and Eastern Literary Thought, Prosody & Poetics · Functional Hindi, Translation & Linguistics
History: Historical Methods and Historiography · Kerala History · Ancient and Medieval Indian History · Modern Indian History · Select Themes in World History
Home Science: Human Development and Family Relations · Food Science, Nutrition and Dietetics · Family Resources Management · Textile Science and Fashion Designing · Extension and Development Communication · Research and Development in Family and Community Science
Islamic History: Islam under the Prophet and Pious Caliphs · Muslim dynasties of the Middle Age · Reform and Revivalist Movements · Islam in India · Modern and Contemporary Muslim World
Journalism: Dimensions of Mass Communication · Media History & Laws · Reporting and Editing · Advertising, PR and Corporate Communication · Electronic and Digital Media · Communication Research
Kannada: Modern, medieval and ancient literature · Folklore and Cultural Studies · Prosody and Literary Criticism · History of Kannada Language and Dravidian Linguistics · Research Methodology and Journalism
Latin: History · Grammar · Prose and Poetry · Translation (Latin–English) · Short Story & Drama
Malayalam: Verse and Prose · Visual Arts · Cultural Studies · Literary Theories and Malayalam Criticism · Linguistics, History & Grammar
Mathematics: Sets and Functions, Analytic Geometry, Elementary Calculus, Probability · Real and Complex Analysis · Abstract Algebra (Groups, Rings, Fields) · Linear Algebra and Matrix Theory · Number Theory and Differential Equations · Topology and Functional Analysis
Music: History of Music and Vedic Music · Lakshana granthas and the 72 Melakarta scheme · Composers and Vaggeyakaras across periods · Raga Lakshana and Talas · Stringed, Percussion and Wind instruments · Manodharma Sangeetha · Music Therapy and modern trends
Philosophy: Classical and Contemporary Indian Philosophy · Western and Contemporary Western Philosophy · Logic · Ethics
Physics: Mathematical Physics · Classical and Quantum Mechanics · Statistical Mechanics · Electromagnetic Theory · Atomic and Molecular Physics · Nuclear and Particle Physics · Condensed Matter Physics · Electronics
Political Science: Modern Political Analysis · Political Thought · Indian Government and Politics · Comparative Politics · International Relations · Public Administration
Psychology: Cognitive Processes · Motivation, Emotion and Learning · Psychometry and Research Methodology · Personality and Social Psychology · Psychopathology · Applied Psychology
Russian: Russian Grammar · Modern Russian Language (Phonetics, Lexicology, Morphology, Syntax) · Russian Cultural History · Russian Literature (Prose, Poetry and Drama)
Sanskrit: History of Sanskrit · Vrtta and Alankar · Linguistics · Sahitya (Poetry & Drama) · Jyotisa · Vyakaran · Nyaya · Vedanta
Social Work: History and Philosophy of Social Work · Social Legislations · Sociology and Developmental Psychology · Counseling · Social Case Work and Group Work · Community Organization · Social Work Research and Statistics
Sociology: Sociology — Discipline, Concepts and Processes · Sociological Theories · Social Research Methods and Statistics · Sociology of India · Theory and Practice of Development · Globalization and Emerging Challenges
Statistics: Mathematical Methods for Statistics · Probability Theory · Distributions · Estimation and Testing of Hypotheses · Sample Surveys and Design of Experiments · Multivariate Analysis, Stochastic Processes and Index Numbers
Syriac: Syriac Grammar, History and Structure · Syriac Poetry and Liturgical Literature · Secular, Biblical and Monastic Literature · India and Syriac Literature · History of Syriac Churches · Current affairs
Tamil: Literature (Society, Justice, Epic & Devotional) · Contemporary Literature · Tamil Grammar · Performance and Literary Theories · History of Tamil Literature · Communication, Tourism, Folklore, Anthropology and Philosophy
Urdu: Beginning and evolution of Urdu Literature and Language · Sufi traditions · Urdu poetry and trends · Urdu Prose
Zoology: Taxonomy, Animal Diversity and Applied Zoology · Evolution, Ecology and Ethology · Physiology, Immunology and Developmental Biology · Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biostatistics · Genetics, Biotechnology and Microbiology · Cell and Molecular Biology, Bioinformatics
Bio-Technology: Cell Biology, Genetics and Molecular Biology · Biochemistry, Enzymology and Biophysics · Microbiology, Immunology, Pharmaceutical Biotechnology · Genetic Engineering, Biosafety and Bioethics · Bioinformatics, Biostatistics and IPR · Environmental and Food Biotechnology, Bioprocess Engineering
[Keep subject-wise PDF download table with existing file links below this section, unchanged]
How to Download Kerala SET Syllabus 2026 PDF & Exam Pattern
- Visit the official website: www.lbscentre.kerala.gov.in
- Navigate to the section dedicated to the Kerala State Eligibility Test (SET) on the homepage
- Select the current session (January or July 2026)
- Go to the Syllabus section and choose Paper I (General) or Paper II (subject-wise)
- Download the detailed syllabus PDF for your subject
- Cross-check it against the subject-wise table on this page to confirm you have the latest version
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Join Now!Frequently Asked Questions
Is the Kerala SET syllabus the same for the January and July sessions?
Yes. The syllabus and exam pattern for both Paper I and Paper II remain the same across sessions — only the actual question papers differ.
How many subjects does Kerala SET Paper II cover?
37 subjects, ranging from Anthropology and Arabic to Zoology and Bio-Technology, listed in the subject table above.
Is there a difference between the Kerala SET syllabus and the UGC NET syllabus for the same subject?
They’re closely aligned since Kerala SET follows a similar broad discipline structure, but always cross-check the official Kerala SET syllabus PDF for your subject rather than assuming an exact match — some units differ in emphasis.
Do Mathematics and Statistics candidates follow a different exam pattern?
Yes — while every other Paper II subject has 120 questions worth 1 mark each, Mathematics and Statistics candidates get 80 questions worth 1.5 marks each, keeping the total at 120 marks.
Is Kerala SET Paper 1 compulsory even if I score well in Paper 2?
Yes. Both papers must individually meet the minimum qualifying percentage for your category — a high Paper II score cannot compensate for failing to clear the Paper I minimum.
How is the final Kerala SET qualifying percentage calculated?
It’s the combined marks scored in Paper I and Paper II, expressed as a percentage of the combined maximum marks (240) — see the exact formula in the Qualifying Marks section above.
Where can I get study material organized against this syllabus?
Check Kerala SET Study Notes and Best Books for Kerala SET for material mapped to this syllabus structure, or Kerala SET Mock Tests to practice against it.
