GATE 2026 Petroleum Engineering Preparation Strategy, Syllabus, Important Chapters, Best Books
You should also focus on important topics such as Petroleum Exploration, Oil & Gas Well Drilling Technology, and Reservoir Engineering for focused studies. GATE 2026 Petroleum Engineering 6-month study plan will help you complete the syllabus and give you sufficient time for revisions and mock test preparations.,
GATE 2026 Petroleum Engineering Preparation Strategy: GATE 2026 Petroleum Engineering is one of the 30 papers. If you are planning to appear in the GATE 2026 exam for Petroleum Engineering, you must have an effective exam study plan to ensure good marks. In the past year, the General category cutoff for the GATE 2026 Petroleum Engineering was 31.1, and to score qualifying marks, you need a thorough study plan. The IIT Guwahati will be conducting the GATE 2026 exam on February 7, 8, 14, and 15, 2026, in CBT mode, and thus, you have just over six months left to prepare for the exam. However, you don’t need to stress out, as we have come up with a focused GATE 2026 Petroleum Engineering preparation strategy, along with the list of important topics and books in this article.
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GATE 2026 Petroleum Engineering Syllabus PDF
IIT Guwahati has released the official GATE 2026 syllabus for all the exams. If you are preparing for the Petroleum Engineering paper, you must have a good understanding of the syllabus and its contents. You can access the direct link to download the GATE 2026 Petroleum Engineering syllabus from the following:
GATE 2026 Petroleum Engineering Syllabus Segregation - 6 Months Preparation
Now that we are aware of the GATE 2026 Petroleum Engineering Syllabus, we have to divide the syllabus into chunks so that we can prepare a study plan accordingly. Given below overview of the division of the GATE 2026 Petroleum Engineering syllabus for 6 months of preparation:
Total Subjects for the GATE 2026 Exam | 3 (Petroleum Engineering, General Aptitude, Mathematics) |
Total Chapters for GATE Petroleum Engineering Exam | 09 |
Total Chapters for General Aptitude | 04 |
Total Chapters for Mathematics | 08 |
Total Chapter Count | 22 |
GATE 2026 Petroleum Engineering Subject Wise Sub-Topics
To prepare a study plan for the chapters included in the GATE 2026 Petroleum Engineering syllabus, we also need to review the subtopics included in each chapter. The GATE Petroleum Engineering subject-wise sub-topics as per the previous year are listed below:
Chapters | Sub-Topics (Expected) |
Linear Algebra | 3 |
Calculus | 17 |
Differential Equation | 7 |
Complex Variables | 3 |
Probability & Statistics | 9 |
Numerical Method | 3 |
Petroleum Exploration | 3 |
Oil & Gas Well Drilling Technology | 12 |
Reservoir Engineering | 9 |
Petroleum Production Operations | 16 |
Offshore Drilling and Production Practices | 10 |
Petroleum Formation Evaluation | 7 |
Oil & Gas Well Testing | 12 |
Health Safety and Environment in the Petroleum Industry | 11 |
Enhanced Oil Recovery Techniques | 4 |
Latest Trends in Petroleum Engineering | 5 |
Total Number of Sub-Topics | 131 |
GATE 2026 Petroleum Engineering: Exam Pattern
Knowing exam patterns will help you significantly in knowing the structure of the exam. The exam pattern consists of details such as the total number of questions, the number of sections, etc. Get more details about the exam pattern of GATE Petroleum Engineering below:-
Particulars | Details |
Mode of Examination | Computer-Based Test |
Total No. of Papers | 30 |
Time | 3 Hours |
Sections |
|
Kind/ Nature of Questions | Recall, Comprehension, Application, Analysis & Synthesis |
Total No. of Questions | General Aptitude 10 + Subject Specific 55 |
Total Marks | 100 |
Type of Questions | MCQs, MSQs & NAT |
Marks Distribution |
|
Marking Scheme | 1 Mark & 2 Mark Questions |
Negative Marking |
|
Language of Question Paper | English |
Sectional Time-Limit | No |
GATE 2026 Petroleum Engineering 6 Months Study Plan
There are well over 6 months left for the GATE 2026 exam; therefore, you should plan your Petroleum Engineering exam preparation accordingly. In the following table, we have provided the detailed 6 month GATE 2026 PE study plan:
Month | Focus Areas | Chapters to Cover | Daily Study Time |
Months 1 to 4 | Chapter coverage | 5 to 6 chapters every month | 3 to 4 hrs per day |
Month 5 | Completion and start revision | Last 2 to 3 chapters and start revision | 4 to 5 hrs per day |
Month 6 | Intensive revision and full-length mock tests | Full syllabus revision and final polish | 5 to 6 hrs per day |
GATE 2026 Petroleum Engineering 2 Months Timetable/ Study Plan
We have created a study plan based on our analysis of the syllabus in the below table. However, this study plan is just for the reference of the students, and they can make modifications to the timetable as per their schedule.
Days Left for the Exam | 60 Days (2 Months) |
Total Chapters | 22 |
Number of Sub-Topics in Total | 131 |
Recommended Number of Study Hours Per Day | 7 Hours |
Number of Days to Cover Each Chapter | 2 Days |
Number of Chapters Covered in One Month | 15 |
Total Number of Days to Cover all the Chapters | 42 Days |
Days Left for the Exam | 18 Days |
Revision, Mock Test and Solving Sample Papers | 16 Days |
Number of Practice Tests to do in a Day | 2 |
Last Minute Revision | 2 Days |
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GATE 2026 Petroleum Engineering One Month Revision Plan
Since the GATE 2026 Syllabus is vast, covering the entire syllabus in one month is not feasible. Hence, it is recommended for the students to only revise the concepts they have already studied in the last month before the exam. Find the GATE Petroleum Engineering one-month revision plan in the below table -
Days Left for the Exam | 30 Days (1 Month) |
Recommended Hours to Revise Each Day | 5 Hours |
Total Chapters to Revise in One Day | 1 Chapter |
Number of Days to Revise All Chapters | 22 Days |
Last Minute Revision, Mock Tests, and Sample Papers | 9 Days |
Last Minute Revision | 1 Day |
GATE 2026 Petroleum Engineering Most Important Chapters
Though the GATE 2026 hopefuls must study all the chapters included in the GATE Petroleum Engineering syllabus, some chapters can help students earn higher scores on the exam. Some of the most important chapters for GATE Petroleum Engineering are listed below:
- Linear Algebra
- Calculus
- Origin, migration, and accumulation of Petroleum
- Well-planning & drilling method
- Reservoir Engineering
- Diffusivity equation, derivation & solutions
- Health, Safety, and Environment in the Petroleum Industry
- Basic principles and mechanisms of EOR
- EOR methods: Chemical flooding, Miscible flooding, Thermal recoveries (steam stimulation, hot water & steam flooding, in-situ combustion), Microbial EOR
List of Best Books for GATE 2026 Petroleum Engineering
Apart from effective preparation, it is also important for the students to choose the best books for preparation which are updated to the latest edition. Some of the best books for GATE Petroleum Engineering are listed below:
| Name of the books & their authors | |
Fundamentals of Reservoir Engineering by L. P. Dake | Drilling Engineering by Jamal J. Azar |
Nontechnical Guide to Petroleum Geology, Exploration, Drilling, and Production by Norman J. Hyne | Oil Well Testing Handbook by Amanat U. Chaudhry |
Petroleum Refining Processes by Rakesh Rathi | Reservoir Engineering Handbook by Amar Kumar |
Oil Well Testing by Navid Naderpour | Petroleum Production Engineering by Boyun Guo |
Khanna's Objective Questions in Petroleum Engineering by Vikas Mahto | Applied Petroleum Reservoir Engineering by J. Brandon Rogers and Ronald E. Terry |
List of Popular Colleges for Petroleum Engineering
Given below is the list of popular colleges for Petroleum Engineering in India where you can get admission through a GATE score:
Name of the College | NIRF 2024 Ranking |
| Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras | 1 |
2 | |
3 | |
6 | |
4 | |
7 |
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We hope that the above-mentioned preparation strategy will help you qualify for the GATE Petroleum Engineering exam with a good score. We wish you all the best for your exam. For more information related to the GATE exam, stay tuned to CollegeDekho.