Every GATE aspirant needs to know this. Starting with a summary, have detailed out the opportunities further down the answer.
Summary of different opportunities after GATE
Masters in IISc, IITs, NITs and a few private colleges.
PSUs Entry Level Positions
Scientist Positions
Higher Studies outside India
+ 1 more value add on
After all the hard work one puts to prepare and crack GATE, it is, in fact, important to know the destinations this exam can lead to.
1. Masters in IISc, IITs, NITs and a few private colleges.
You can do Masters in a variety of courses
Structural Engineering
Transportation Engineering
Water Resources Engineering
Geotechnical Engineering
Remote Sensing
Building Technology and Construction Management
The list goes on. Few colleges offer masters in Railway Engineering, Earthquake Engineering, Ocean/Marine Engineering etc. There are a few colleges which offer inter-disciplinary courses as well - Urban Planning, Environmental Science and Engineering etc,.
After MTech - again you have a lot of opportunities in front of you from landing a job to research/ teaching career path.
2. PSUs Entry Level Positions
There are entry-level positions in Public Sector Units ranging from Maharatna’s like ONGC, IOCL, NLC to Miniratna’s like RITES. The choice between Masters or PSUs is purely an individual choice.
3. Scientists Positions
BARC (Bhabha Atomic Research Centre), DRDO (Defense Research and Development Organisation) and a few more recruit for entry-level Scientist Positions through GATE Score. Mostly, the GATE Score serves as qualification criteria and once you qualify there will tests and interviews with hard scrutiny.
4. Higher Studies outside India
You can get into the Master's Programme at National University of Singapore (NUS) and Nanyang Technological University(NTU), Singapore. They are top-ranked universities providing you with great exposure. Also, a few more universities outside India are starting to adopt GATE as qualification criteria.
5. Passive Value Add on
Clearing GATE and securing a good rank is a good value add-on to your profile. The fact that the exam is written by lakhs of people, and getting in the top few percentiles is an achievement which can go into your resume.
Before giving GATE, do have a look at all the window of opportunities in front of you to make the best use out of it.
All the best! What are you giving GATE for?