The dMAT (Digital Master Assessment Test) is a standardised study-aptitude test that selected international applicants must now complete for admission to Master's degree programmes in Germany. It is developed and centrally evaluated by g.a.s.t., the TestDaF Institute in Bochum — the same body behind TestAS and TestDaF — and was designed in cooperation with German universities, with support from the DAAD.
For Indian applicants, the important detail is where it sits. APS India introduced the dMAT on 29 June 2026 as an additional document inside the existing APS verification process. It is not a university entrance exam, it does not replace anything you were already doing, and it does not remove any existing requirement. It is one more certificate that a specific group of applicants must produce.
Four conditions have to be true at once. You are applying for a Master's programme, not a bachelor's. Your intake is Summer Semester 2027 or later. Your bachelor's degree is in engineering (including computer science and IT), commerce, accounting, finance, economics, business or management. And you started your APS process on or after 29 June 2026.
If any one of those is false, the dMAT does not apply to you this cycle. In particular, if you completed your APS online registration or posted your documents before 29 June 2026, or you already hold an APS certificate, you are exempt regardless of your field. Bachelor's applicants, PhD applicants, and students on confirmed exchange, double-degree or university-partnership programmes are also outside the requirement.
This is not a niche rule. Per DAAD India's 2025 enrolment data, around 60% of Indian students in Germany are in engineering-related fields, with a further 21% in social sciences, economics and management — so the affected group covers most of the Indian applicant pool.
Read the full eligibility breakdown, including borderline degrees →
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The dMAT has two parts separated by a 30-minute break, running about three and a half hours in total. It is delivered in English, on a computer, at an authorised test centre. Every question is single-choice with four options and exactly one correct answer. There is no negative marking.
| Component | Task type | Questions | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Core Module — Subtest 1 | Figure Sequences | 20 | 25 min |
| Core Module — Subtest 2 | Mathematical Equations | 20 | 25 min |
| Core Module — Subtest 3 | Latin Squares | 16 | 20 min |
| Break | — | — | 30 min |
| Subject Module | Input text + single-choice questions | Varies | 90 min |
The Core Module measures general study aptitude through three subtests of cognitive ability. The Subject Module tests your ability to apply what you learned during your bachelor's — you read an input text, which may contain figures, tables and formulas, then answer single-choice questions about it. The official materials are explicit that this requires subject knowledge and application skills, not memorised factual knowledge.
Two rules deserve emphasis because they change how you should practise. You may not take notes at any point in the exam, and no calculator is provided. And the timing is enforced per subtest, not per sitting — you cannot borrow minutes from Latin Squares to finish Figure Sequences.
Full exam pattern and marking scheme →
The first Indian cycle runs on fixed dates. Registration opened 29 June 2026 and closes 15 September 2026. The exam is on 26 September 2026, with results and certificates released on 12 October 2026. No second sitting has been confirmed for the 2026 cycle, which makes the September deadline unusually consequential.
The fee is EUR 150, roughly Rs 16,500 depending on the day's exchange rate, paid directly to g.a.s.t. during registration on their portal. It is entirely separate from the Rs 18,000 APS documentation fee, so the realistic combined budget is around Rs 34,500 before university application costs.
Test centres operate in ten Indian cities: Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Bhopal, Chandigarh, Chennai, Kolkata, Mananthavady, Mumbai, New Delhi and Pune. Seats are allotted first-come, first-served with no waitlist, and the metro centres fill first.
Full fee breakdown → · Dates and centres →
Results are reported on a 0–200 scale centred on a mean of 100, with your core score and subject score combining into the total. Evaluation is central, at the TestDaF Institute in Bochum, with no local examiner discretion — which is precisely what lets German universities compare applicants across very different national education systems.
One reassurance worth stating plainly: APS India has confirmed that a low dMAT score does not block your APS certificate. Admission decisions remain at each university's discretion, and different programmes weigh the score differently. The dMAT score has lifetime validity.
There is no syllabus in the traditional sense, which throws most students. The Core Module tests fixed task types rather than curriculum content, so there is no chapter list to revise. What you can do — and what actually moves your score — is four things:
The full four-week preparation plan →
No. It applies only to Master's applicants for Summer Semester 2027 or later whose bachelor's is in engineering, commerce, accounting, finance, economics, business or management, and who began the APS process on or after 29 June 2026.
No. APS India has confirmed that a low score does not block the APS certificate. Universities decide how much weight to give the score.
The dMAT score has lifetime validity.
No. TestAS is an aptitude test for undergraduate applicants. The dMAT is for Master's applicants. Both are administered by g.a.s.t.
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