GATE Application Date:28 Aug' 25 - 28 Sep' 25
GATE COAP 2026: IIT Guwahati will announce the GATE 2026 COAP registration dates on the official website. The GATE COAP 2026 registration will begin in March 2026. Candidates who have qualified the GATE exam in 2026, 2025 or 2024 and seek MTech admission to prestigious IITs must register for COAP 2026 counselling. The Common Offer Acceptance Portal (COAP) and Centralised Counselling for M.Tech/ M.Des (CCMT) are the two modes of GATE counselling. The authority will conduct the GATE 2026 exam on February 7, 8, 14 and 15, 2026. IIT aspirants must register at COAP for admission to M.Tech courses, in addition to applying to the respective institutes.
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The CCMT counselling will be held for admission to NITs and IIITs. During counselling, candidates must register and fill in their choice of programmes and institutes. Read this article to learn more about GATE COAP 2026.
| Events | GATE COAP Important Dates |
|---|---|
GATE COAP registration 2026 | March 2026 |
COAP Seat Allotment Round 1 | May 2026 |
| COAP round 1 window to view offers and take a decision | May 2026 |
COAP Seat Allotment Round 2 | May 2026 |
| COAP round 2 window to view offers and take a decision | May 2026 |
COAP Seat Allotment Round 3 | May 2026 |
| COAP round 3 window to view offers and take a decision | May 2026 |
COAP Seat Allotment Round 4 | June 2026 |
| COAP round 4 window to view offers and take a decision | June 2026 |
COAP Seat Allotment Round 5 | June 2026 |
| COAP round 5 window to view offers and take a decision | June 2026 |
COAP Seat Allotment Round for additional round - round 6 | June 2026 |
| COAP round 6 window to view offers and take a decision | June 2026 |
| COAP Seat Allotment Round for additional round - round 7 | June 2026 |
| COAP round 7 window to view offers and take a decision | June 2026 |
| COAP Seat Allotment Round for additional round - round 8 | June 2026 |
| COAP round 8 window to view offers and take a decision | June 2026 |
| COAP Seat Allotment Round for additional round - round 9 | July 2026 |
| COAP round 9 window to view offers and take a decision | July 2026 |
| COAP Seat Allotment Round for additional round - round 10 | July 2026 |
| COAP round 10 window to view offers and take a decision | July 2026 |
Common Offer Acceptance Portal, commonly known as COAP, is a portal where all the participating IITs and IISc Bangalore publish the results of seat allotment. For admission in M.Tech courses in any of the participating IITs, candidates having a valid GATE 2026 score are required to register online at the COAP portal along with the institute. Admission to M.Tech courses at NITs and GFTIs is through the CCMT portal. Using the COAP portal, candidates will have to check their seat allotment status and accept/ reject the seat.
There are certain conditions and requirements that every applicant needs to fulfil to be eligible for admission. Candidates check eligibility criteria at the COAP 2026 official website. Applications of candidates who do not meet the eligibility conditions are liable to be rejected. Candidates are advised to check the eligibility criteria of GATE 2026 COAP before applying.
The GATE 2026 COAP application will be released in March 2026. Candidates seeking IIT admission must register for COAP 2026. The COAP login will be created after completing the registration process. Candidates will be able to check the detailed procedure to fill the GATE COAP application form 2026 for reference purposes.
Candidates can check the admissions offered by the participating institutes on the GATE COAP portal. To check the COAP counselling 2026 status, candidates must log into the COAP login using valid credentials. Candidates should check the following steps to know how to check the COAP seat allotment result 2026.
Once the seat allotment is done during COAP counselling 2026, candidates will have to respond to the seat allotment with options from “Accept and Freeze”, “Retain and Wait”, “Reject and Wait” and “Reject”. Candidates who have not been allotted any seat will have to wait for subsequent rounds for the allotment.
Rounds | Available Options | ||
Accept and Freeze | Retain and Wait | Reject and Wait | |
Round 1 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Round 2 | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Round 3 | Yes | Yes/No | Yes |
Round 4 | Yes | Yes/No | Yes |
Round 5 | Yes | No | Yes |
Online Additional Rounds | |||
Round A | Yes | No | Yes |
Round B | Yes | No | Yes |
Round C | Yes | No | Yes |
Round D | Yes | No | Yes** |
* No, if the candidates have already used Retain & Wait on the same offer twice. The same offer refers to the program “XYZ” of a particular Institute “ABC”.
**Candidates may have to follow spot rounds either online or offline and it could be specific to the institutes. Depending on the vacancy status and admission date, there could be a few more extra rounds from the participating institutes.
Candidates who complete the COAP registration 2026 will be eligible to be considered for admission into the following participating institutions:
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Candidates seeking M.Tech admissions in any of the participating Institutes of COAP and who have a valid GATE 2026 score or from the year 2025/2024 can register for COAP.
IIT Guwahati will commence the GATE COAP 2026 in March 2026.
It is advisable to register with the highest GATE Score. During registration, you will also provide valid GATE score details for the remaining years. You will register only once but registration details will include all other GATE scores of the last three years. Failing to do so will result in disqualification.
You will register only once. Subsequently, when you login COAP for the first time, you will provide all three/ two GATE scores (different papers) in one registration form. For example: if you have GATE Scores for EC and CS papers, then you can register with any one of the GATE paper score (EC or CS). And include the remaining GATE paper score when you login to COAP for the first time.
COAP is a common platform for candidates where participating institutes publish the seat allotment result and students make the choice for admission into an M.Tech. Programme in the institutes. COAP is not a portal for applying for M.Tech. admission. Candidates have to apply separately to respective Institute for M.Tech. admission. Admission Offers will be uploaded by the participating Institutes in a common time window on COAP.
Yes. Candidates who apply for admission into an M.Tech. Programme in any of the participating institutes have to register for COAP as they will receive admission offers via COAP only.
To access and make a decision on the allotted seats made by participating Institute, each candidate should register and visit COAP. Without registering at COAP, the candidate will not be able to access the offers on COAP.
No. COAP is not an M.Tech. Admission / Job Application Portal. Every candidate should apply separately to respective Institute(s) for M.Tech. admission.
You can check the offer status, during the scheduled dates, by logging in to COAP (Common Offers Admission Portal) using your login id and password, sent to you by email/SMS after your registration at COAP.
On Question asked by student community
Hello
As an EEE (Electrical and Electronics Engineering) graduate, your core GATE paper is EE (Electrical Engineering).
You can also choose papers like IN (Instrumentation) or EC (Electronics and Communication) if you're comfortable. GATE now allows two-paper combinations EE plus IN is a valid pair.
Choose based on your strengths and future goals (e.g., PSU jobs, M.Tech). Always check the latest GATE brochure for updated paper codes and combinations.
How to clear GATE Exam :
First, know the syllabus and exam pattern.
Make a small study plan and follow it every week.
Read from good books or trusted online notes.
Practice old GATE question papers.
Give mock tests to check speed and accuracy.
Revise your notes and formulas again and again.
How to get Job in PSU:
Score high in GATE, because PSUs take only top ranks.
Keep checking PSU job notices regularly.
Apply on time with your GATE score.
Be ready for interviews or group discussions.
Work on subject knowledge and also your communication skills.
Yes, it will be acceptable. In GATE registration, the name should match your valid photo ID proof in terms of spelling, not the order. Many Indian IDs have surname written first, while the portal generates it as first–middle–last. Since all three parts of your name (Vikash, Rameshbhai, Bhagel) are correct, there won’t be any issue. Just ensure you upload the correct ID proof. During verification, they check spelling, photo, and signature, not the word order.
Hello,
Yes, you can change your category from General to OBC during the GATE 2026 correction window.
GATE always allows candidates to correct details like category. You will need to pay a small correction fee for this change. Make sure you upload a valid OBC certificate as per the format and date mentioned by GATE.
So, wait for the correction window, log in to your application, and update your category to OBC.
Hope it helps !
Hello! If you are preparing for GATE, there are plenty of free resources available online that can boost your preparation. You can easily access e-books, handwritten notes, subject wise PYQs, and test series shared by toppers on different platforms. Along with that, free PDFs and study material are available through various websites and Telegram channels. To make it easier, I will be attaching the link where you can find preparation tips, a study timetable, free study materials, and previous year question papers all in one place.
https://engineering.careers360.com/articles/gate-preparation-timetable
https://engineering.careers360.com/articles/how-to-prepare-for-gate
https://engineering.careers360.com/articles/gate-preparation-material
https://engineering.careers360.com/articles/gate-mock-test
https://engineering.careers360.com/articles/gate-question-papers
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