Software Engineering Question Paper GATE PSU

Software Engineering Question Paper-GATE & PSU Exam

/ Previous Year Questions / Nielit Exam, Previous Year Questions, PSU pyqs

Last updated on March 20th, 2025 at 03:27 am

Here, we will see the Software Engineering Question Paper for the GATE and PSU Exams from the previous year and the syllabus of Software Engineering for the GATE and PSU Exams.

1. Software Engineering

Software Engineering (SE) is a critical subject in the GATE CSE exam, testing candidates’ understanding of software development principles, lifecycle models, and project management.
The GATE CSE syllabus includes topics like software development methodologies (Agile, Waterfall), requirements engineering, design patterns, testing techniques (unit, integration), maintenance, and software metrics. Additionally, concepts like UML diagrams, risk management, and quality assurance (CMM, ISO) are emphasized.

2. Software Engineering Syllabus

The Software Engineering Questions asked in the GATE and PSU Exam focused on topics:

  • Software development methodologies (Agile, Waterfall), requirements engineering, design patterns, testing techniques (unit, integration), maintenance, and software metrics.
  • UML diagrams, risk management, and quality assurance
  • SDLC phases, CASE tools, software configuration management, and real-world problem-solving scenarios.

Software Engineering Question Paper-GATE & PSU Exam

Q. Consider the following C program segment.

while(first<=last) 
{ 
     if(array[middle]<search)
     first=middle+1;
     else if(array[middle]== search)
     found=True;
     else last=middle-1; 
     middle=(first+last)/2;
}
if(first<last)not Present = True;

The cyclomatic complexity of the program segment is _______ .

  1. 3
  2. 4
  3. 5
  4. 6
Answer

5
NIELIT Scientific Assistant A 2020 November

Q. The Function Points(FP) calculated for software projects are often used to obtain an estimate of Lines of Code(LOC) required for that project. Which of the following statements is FALSE in this context?

  1. The relationship between FP and LOC depends on the programming language used to implement the software.
  2. LOC requirement for an assembly language implementation will be more for a given FP value, than LOC for implementation in COBOL.
  3. On an average, one LOC of C++ provides approximately 1.6 times the functionality of a single LOC of FORTRAN.
  4. FP and LOC are not related to each other.
Answer

FP and LOC are not related to each other.
NIELIT 2017 July Scientist B (IT)

Q. Which of the following is not defined in a good Software Requirement Specification(SRS) document?

  1. Functional requirement
  2. Goals of implementation
  3. Nonfunctional requirement
  4. Algorithm for software implementation
Answer

Algorithm for software implementation
NIELIT 2016 DEC Scientist B (CS)

Q. Consider the basic COCOMO model where E is the effort applied in person-months, D is the development time in chronological months, KLOC is the estimated number of delivered lines of code (in thousands) and has ab,bb,cb,db their usual meanings. The basic COCOMO equations are of the form.

  1. E= ab(KLOC) exp(bb), D= cb(E) exp(db)
  2. D= ab(KLOC) exp(bb), E= cb(D) exp(db)
  3. E= ab exp(bb), D= cb(KLOC) exp(db)
  4. E= ab exp(db), D= cb(KLOC) exp(bb)
Answer

E= ab(KLOC) exp(bb), D= cb(E) exp(db)
NIELIT Scientist B 2020 November

Q. Software Requirement Specification (SRS) is also known as specification of

  1. White box testing
  2. Integrated testing
  3. Acceptance testing
  4. Black box testing
Answer

Black box testing
NIELIT 2016 DEC Scientist B (CS)

Q. _________ has a feature of remote access through which a customer can access the data from anywhere and at any time with the help of internet connection.

  1. IaaS
  2. PaaS
  3. NaaS
  4. SaaS
Answer

SaaS
NIELIT Scientist B 2020 November

Q. Line of code(LOC) of the product comes under which type of measures?

  1. Indirect measures
  2. Coding
  3. Direct measures
  4. None of the above
Answer

Direct measures
NIELIT 2016 DEC Scientist B (CS)

Q. What is the testing to ensure the WebApp properly interfaces with other applications or databases?

  1. Compatibility
  2. Interoperability
  3. Performance
  4. Security
Answer

Interoperability
NIELIT 2016 DEC Scientist B (CS)

Q. What is described by means of DFDs as studied earlier and represented in algebraic form?

  1. Data flow
  2. Data storage
  3. Data structures
  4. Data elements
Answer

Data flow
NIELIT 2016 DEC Scientist B (CS)

Q. Software projects management comprises of a number of activities, which contains:

  1. Project planning
  2. Project estimation
  3. Scope management
  4. All mentioned above
Answer

All mentioned above
NIELIT 2016 DEC Scientist B (IT)

Q. According to Brooks, if n is the number of programmers in a project team, then the number of communication path is

  1. n(n-1)/2
  2. n logn
  3. n
  4. n(n+1)/2
Answer

n(n-1)/2
NIELIT 2016 MAR Scientist B

Q. Integration testing, Unit Testing & System Testing are _______.

  1. Fundamental logic of Testing
  2. Level Testing
  3. Core Testing
  4. Testing Suites
Answer

Level Testing
NIELIT 2021 Dec Scientist B

Q. In object-oriented design of software, objects have

  1. attributes and name only
  2. operations and name only
  3. attributes name and operations
  4. mutation and permutation property
Answer

attributes name and operations
NIELIT 2016 MAR Scientist B

Q. The extent to which the software can control to operate correctly despite the introduction of invalid input is called as

  1. reliability
  2. robustness
  3. fault tolerance
  4. portability
Answer

robustness
NIELIT 2016 MAR Scientist B

Q. On an average, the programmer months is given by 3.6×(KLOC)1.2. If so, a project requiring one thousand source instructions will require

  1. 3.6 PM.
  2. 0.36 PM.
  3. 0.0036 PM.
  4. 7.23 PM
Answer

3.6 PM.
NIELIT 2016 MAR Scientist B

Q. Relation of COCOMO model is

  1. E = α*(KLOC)6
  2. E = α*(KLOC)5
  3. E = α*(KLOC)7
  4. E = α*(KLOC)3
Answer

E = α*(KLOC)3
NIELIT 2016 MAR Scientist B

Q. The advantage of better testing in software development is in

  1. waterfall model
  2. prototyping
  3. iterative
  4. all of these
Answer

prototyping
NIELIT 2016 MAR Scientist C

Q. The graph theoretic concept will be useful in software testing i

  1. Cyclomatic number
  2. Hamiltonian circuit
  3. Eulerian cycle
  4. None of these
Answer

Cyclomatic number
NIELIT 2016 MAR Scientist C

Q. Delivery of the software product on time is considered as _________ .

  1. SDLC
  2. User Satisfaction
  3. Planning
  4. UI/UX design for software
Answer

User Satisfaction
NIELIT 2021 Dec Scientist B

Q. In testing phase, the effort distribution is upto

  1. 10%
  2. 20%
  3. 40%
  4. 50%
Answer

50%
NIELIT 2016 MAR Scientist C

Q. The _______ enables the software engineer to develop models of the information domain and functional domain at the same time.

  1. data flow diagram
  2. state transition diagram
  3. control specification
  4. activity diagram
Answer

data flow diagram
NIELIT 2021 Dec Scientist B

Q. Elicitation of requirements is a _______ .

  1. SDLC Process
  2. Cyclic Process
  3. SRS Process
  4. Development Process
Answer

Cyclic Process
NIELIT 2021 Dec Scientist A

Q. 58000 LOC gaming software is developed with effort of 3 person-year. What is the productivity of person- month?

  1. 1.9 KLOC
  2. 1.6 KLOC
  3. 4.8 KLOC
  4. 4.2 KLOC
Answer

1.6 KLOC
NIELIT Scientist B 2020 November

Q. Match the following:

1. Waterfall modela. Specifications can be developed incrementally
2. Evolutionary modelb. Re-usability in development
3. Component-based software engineeringc. Explicit recognition of risk
4. Spiral developmentd. Inflexible partitioning of the project into stages
  1. 1-a, 2-b, 3-c, 4-d
  2. 1-d, 2-a, 3-b, 4-c
  3. 1-d, 2-b, 3-a, 4-c
  4. 1-c, 2-a, 3-b, 4-d
Answer

1-d, 2-a, 3-b, 4-c
NIELIT Scientist B 2020 November

Q. Which one of the following statements is incorrect?

  1. The number of regions corresponds to the cyclomatic complexity
  2. Cyclomatic complexity for a flow graph G is V(G)=N-E+2, where E is the number of edges and N is the number of nodes in flow graph
  3. Cyclomatic complexity for a flow graph G is V(G)=E-N+2, where E is the number of edges and N is the number of nodes in flow graph
  4. Cyclomatic complexity for a flow graph G is V(G)=P+1, where P is the number of predicate nodes contained in the flow graph G
Answer

Cyclomatic complexity for a flow graph G is V(G)=N-E+2, where E is the number of edges and N is the number of nodes in flow graph
NIELIT Scientist B 2020 November

Q. Data leakage threats are done by internal agents. Which of them is not an example of an internal data leakage threat?

  1. Data leak from stolen credentials from desk
  2. Data leak by partners
  3. Data leak by 3rd party apps
  4. All of the options
Answer

Data leak by 3rd party apps
NIELIT Scientist B 2020 November

Q. Which of the following is not deliverable of the structured system analysis?

  1. Data flow diagram
  2. Prototype model
  3. Entity Relationship diagram
  4. Data dictionary
Answer

Prototype model
NIELIT 2017 DEC Scientist B

Q. In Software Modeling ‘ISA’ represents ___________ relationship.

  1. Aggregation
  2. Overloading
  3. Inheritance
  4. Design Patterns
Answer

Inheritance
NIELIT 2021 Dec Scientist B

Q. If the developer wants to transform the model into source code is also known as _________.

  1. Backward Testing / Engineering
  2. Forward Engineering
  3. Forward Testing
  4. Reverse Engineering
Answer

Forward Engineering
NIELIT 2021 Dec Scientist B

Q. The Cyclomatic complexity of each of the modules A and B shown below is 10. What is the Cyclomatic complexity of the sequential integration shown on the right-hand side?

  1. 19
  2. 21
  3. 20
  4. 10
Answer

19
NIELIT 2017 July Scientist B (CS)

Q. What is the main objective of ISO 9001?

  1. Verification
  2. Validation
  3. S/W Testing
  4. H/W Testing
Answer

Verification
NIELIT 2021 Dec Scientist A

Q. What is the appropriate pairing of items in the two columns listing various activities encountered in a software life cycle?

P. Requirements Capture1. Module Development and Integration
Q. Design2. Domain Analysis
R. Implementation3. Structural and Behavioral Marketing
S. Maintenance4. Performance Tunit
  1. P-3, Q-2, R-4, S-1
  2. P-2, Q-3, R-1, S-4
  3. P-3, Q-2, R-1, S-4
  4. P-2, Q-3, R-4, S-1
Answer

P-2, Q-3, R-1, S-4
NIELIT 2017 July Scientist B (CS)

Q. Match the following:

List IList II
W. Condition coverage1. Black-box testing
X. Equivalence class partitioning2. System testing
Y. Volume testing3. White-box testing
Z. Alpha testing4. Performance testing
  1. W-2,X-3,Y-1,Z-4
  2. W-3,X-4,Y-2,Z-1
  3. W-3,X-1,Y-4,Z-2
  4. W-3,X-1,Y-2,Z-4
Answer

W-3,X-1,Y-4,Z-2
NIELIT 2021 Dec Scientist B

Q. A company needs to develop a strategy for software product development for which it has a choice of two programming languages L1 and L2. The number of Lines Of Code (LOC) developed using L2 is estimated
to be twice the LOC developed with L1. The product will have to be maintained for five years. Various parameters
for the company are given in the table below:

ParameterLanguage L1Language L2
Man years needed for developmentLOC/10000LOC/10000
Development cost per man yearRs. 10,00,000Rs. 7,50,000
Maintenance time5 years5 years
Cost of maintenance per yearRs. 1,00,000Rs. 50,000

Total cost of the project includes cost of development and maintenance. What is the LOC for L1 for which the cost of the project using L1 is equal to the cost of the project using L2?

  1. 4000
  2. 5000
  3. 4333
  4. 4667
Answer

5000
NIELIT 2017 July Scientist B (CS)

Q. Which of the following step is not a part of the requirement engineering process?

  1. Feasibility Study
  2. Programming Language Requirement Specification
  3. Software Requirement Specification
  4. Requirement Gathering & Validation
Answer

Programming Language Requirement Specification
NIELIT 2021 Dec Scientist A

Q. Which one of them is a good software?

  1. High cohesion low coupling
  2. Low cohesion high coupling
  3. High cohesion high coupling
  4. Low cohesion low coupling
Answer

High cohesion low coupling
NIELIT 2021 Dec Scientist A

Q. A company needs to develop digital signal processing software for one of its newest inventions. The software is expected to have 40000 lines of code. The company needs to determine the effort in person-months needed to develop this software using the basic COCOMO model. The multiplicative factor for this model is given as 2.8 for the software development on embedded systems, while the exponentiation factor is given as 1.20. What is the estimated effort in person-months?

  1. 234.25
  2. 932.50
  3. 287.80
  4. 122.40
Answer

234.25
NIELIT 2017 July Scientist B (CS)

Q. Which one of the following is NOT desired in a good Software Requirement Specifications (SRS) document?

  1. Functional Requirements
  2. Non-Functional Requirements
  3. Goals of Implementation
  4. Algorithms for Software Implementation
Answer

Algorithms for Software Implementation
NIELIT 2017 July Scientist B (CS)

Q. The coupling between different modules of software is categorized as follows:
I. Content coupling
II. Common coupling
III. Control coupling
IV. Stamp Coupling
V. Data Coupling
Coupling between modules can be ranked in the order of strongest (least desirable) to weakest(most desirable) as
follows:

  1. I-II-III-IV-V
  2. V-IV-III-II-I
  3. I-III-V-II-IV
  4. IV-II-V-III-I
Answer

I-II-III-IV-V
NIELIT 2017 July Scientist B (IT)

Q. Given the two statements S1 and S2 for software engineering :
S1 : Statement coverage cannot guarantee execution of loops in program under test.
S2 : Use of independent path testing criterion guarantees execution of each loop in a program under test more than once.
Then which among the following is true ?

  1. S1 is True, S2 is True
  2. S1 is True, S2 is False
  3. S1 is False, S2 is True
  4. S1 is False, S2 is False
Answer

S1 is True, S2 is False
NIELIT 2021 Dec Scientist A

Q. Which of the following statements are TRUE?
I. The context diagram should depict the system as a single bubble.
II. External entities should be identified clearly at all levels of DFDs.
III. Control information should not be represented in a DFD.
IV. A data store can be connected either to another data store or to an external entity.

  1. II and IV
  2. II and III
  3. I and III
  4. I,II and III
Answer

I and III
NIELIT 2017 July Scientist B (IT)

Q. _______ is automatically loaded and operates as part of browser.

  1. Add-ons
  2. Plug-ins
  3. Utilities
  4. Widgets
Answer

Plug-ins
NIELIT Scientist B 2020 November

Q. Identify the odd one out.

  1. Amazon web service
  2. Microsoft Azure
  3. Google cloud Platform
  4. Twitter Platform
Answer

Twitter Platform
NIELIT Scientist B 2020 November

Q. By open domain CASE tools we mean

  1. tools available in open domain
  2. software packages which can be downloaded from the internet
  3. software packages to aid each phase of the systems analysis and design which can be downloaded free of cost from the internet
  4. source codes of CASE tools
Answer

software packages to aid each phase of the systems analysis and design which can be downloaded free of cost from the internet
NIELIT 2017 OCT Scientific Assistant A (CS)

Q. Which of the following is not a part of the Test Implementation and Execution Phase?

  1. Creating test suites from the test cases
  2. Executing test cases either manually or by using test execution tools
  3. Comparing actual results
  4. Designing the tests
Answer

Designing the tests
NIELIT Scientific Assistant A 2020 November

Q. SRD stands for _____ .

  1. Software Requirements Definition
  2. Structured Requirements Definition
  3. Software Requirements Diagram
  4. Structured Requirements Diagram
Answer

Structured Requirements Definition
NIELIT Scientific Assistant A 2020 November

Q. What is the annual change in traffic of software with 1 million lines of code with 30% lines added and 10% lines are deleted?

  1. 0.25
  2. has0.15
  3. 0.4
  4. 0.6
Answer

0.4
NIELIT 2021 Dec Scientist A

Q. A software Requirements Specification document should avoid discussing which one of the following?

  1. User interface issues
  2. Non-functional requirements
  3. Design solutions
  4. Interfaces with third-party software
Answer

Design solutions
NIELIT Scientific Assistant A 2020 November

Q. Match the following:

1) Waterfall modela) Specifications can be developed incrementally
2) Evolutionary modelb) Inflexible partitioning of the project into stages
3) Component-basedc) Explicit recognition of risk software engineering
4) Spiral developmentd) Requirement compromises are inevitable
  1. (1)-(a),(2)-(c),(3)-(b),(4)-(d)
  2. (1)-(b),(2)-(a),(3)-(d),(4)-(c)
  3. (1)-(d),(2)-(b),(3)-(a),(4)-(c)
  4. (1)-(c),(2)-(a),(3)-(b),(4)-(d)
Answer

(1)-(b),(2)-(a),(3)-(d),(4)-(c)
NIELIT 2022 April Scientist B

Q. Match the following:

List-IList-II
P. Condition coverage1. Black-box testing
Q. Equivalence class partitioning2. System testing
R. Volume testing3. White-box testing
S. Alpha testing4. Performance testing
  1. P-2, Q-3, R-1, S-4
  2. P-3, Q-4, R-2, S-1
  3. P-3, Q-1, R-4, S-2
  4. P-3, Q-1, R-2, S-4
Answer

P-3, Q-1, R-4, S-2
NIELIT 2022 April Scientist B

Q. RAD software process model stands for:

  1. Rapid Application Development.
  2. Rapid Application Design.
  3. Relative Application Development.
  4. Recent Application Development.
Answer

Rapid Application Development.
NIELIT 2016 DEC Scientist B (IT)

Q. What is the main focus of Reverse Engineering (RE)?

  1. Database structure
  2. file structure
  3. Memory
  4. Utilization
Answer

file structure
NIELIT 2021 Dec Scientist A

Q. What are the characteristics of software?

  1. Software is developed or engineered; It is not manufactured in the classical sense.
  2. Software can be custom built or custom buid.
  3. Software doesn’t “wear out”.
  4. All mentioned above
Answer

All mentioned above
NIELIT 2016 DEC Scientist B (IT)

Q. Software consists of ___________

  1. Set of instructions + operating procedures
  2. Programs + documentation + operating procedures
  3. Programs + hardware manuals
  4. Set of programs
Answer

Programs + documentation + operating procedures
NIELIT Scientific Assistant A 2020 November

Q. Changes are made to the system to reduce the future system failure chances is called ______ .

  1. Preventive Maintenance
  2. Adaptive Maintenance
  3. Corrective Maintenance
  4. Perfective Maintenance
Answer

Preventive Maintenance
NIELIT Scientific Assistant A 2020 November

Q. In the context of modular software design, which one of the following combinations is desirable?

  1. High cohesion and high coupling
  2. High cohesion and low coupling
  3. Low cohesion and high coupling
  4. Low cohesion and low coupling
Answer

High cohesion and low coupling
NIELIT Scientific Assistant A 2020 November

Q. A company needs to develop a strategy for software product development for which it has a choice of two programming languages L1 and L2. The number lines of code (LOC) developed using L2 is estimated to be twice of the LOC developed with L1. The product will have to be maintained for five years. Various parameters for the company are given in the table below.

ParameterLanguage L1Language L2
Man years needed for
development		LOC/10000LOC/10000
Development Cost per man yearRs. 10, 00, 000Rs. 7, 50, 000
Maintenance Time5 years5 years
Cost of maintenance per yearRs. 1,00,000Rs. 50, 000

Total cost of the project includes cost of development and maintenance. What is the LOC for L1 or which of the cost of the project using L1 is equal to the cost of the project using L2?

  1. 4000
  2. 5000
  3. 4333
  4. 4667
Answer

5000
NIELIT 2022 April Scientist B

Q. Maintenance testing is performed using which methodology?

  1. Breadth test and depth test
  2. Sanity testing
  3. Retesting
  4. Confirmation testing
Answer

Confirmation testing
NIELIT 2021 Dec Scientist B

Q. Boundary value analysis is based on which testing :

  1. White Box Testing
  2. Black Box Testing
  3. White Box & Black Box Testing
  4. None of the options
Answer

Black Box Testing
NIELIT 2021 Dec Scientist B

Q. In the Model-View-Controller (MVC) architecture, the model defines the ________ .

  1. Data-access layer
  2. Presentation layer
  3. Business-logic layer
  4. Interface layer
Answer

Data-access layer
NIELIT Scientific Assistant A 2020 November

Q. To carry out white box testing of a program, its flow chart representation is obtained as shown in the figure below:
For basis path based testing of this program, its cyclomatic complexity is

  1. 5
  2. 4
  3. 3
  4. 2
Answer

3
NIELIT 2022 April Scientist B

Q. Which testing is equivalent to Cyclomatic complexity?

  1. Black box testing
  2. Green box testing
  3. Yellow box testing
  4. White box testing
Answer

White box testing
NIELIT 2021 Dec Scientist B

Q. What is WordPress?

  1. It is software used to press text
  2. It is a text formatting software
  3. It is a CMS (Content Management System)
  4. It is a mail service
Answer

It is a CMS (Content Management System)
NIELIT 2021 Dec Scientist B

Q. The availability of complex software is 90% its Mean Time Between Failure(MTBF) is 200 days. Because of the critical nature of the usage, the organization deploying the software further enhanced it to obtain an availability of 95%. In the process, the Mean Time To Repair(MTTR) increased by 5 days. What is the MTBF of the enhanced software?(choose the nearest option)

  1. 205 days.
  2. 300 days.
  3. 500 days.
  4. 700 days.
Answer

500 days.
NIELIT 2017 July Scientist B (IT)

Q. The Cyclomatic complexity of two modules A and B are 10 and 15 respectively :
What is the cyclomatic complexity of the sequential integration of A and B?

  1. 19
  2. 21
  3. 24
  4. 25
Answer

19
NIELIT 2021 Dec Scientist A

Q. Which of these does not account for software failure?

  1. Increasing Demand
  2. Low expectation
  3. Increasing Supply
  4. Less reliable and expensive
Answer

Low expectation
NIELIT 2021 Dec Scientist B

Q. Test levels are performed in which order?

  1. Unit, Integration, Acceptance, System.
  2. It depends on the nature of a project.
  3. Unit, Integration, System, Acceptance.
  4. Unit, System, Integration, Acceptance.
Answer

Unit, Integration, System, Acceptance.
NIELIT 2021 Dec Scientist B

Q. A particular control flow graph has 15 nodes out of which 7 are decision nodes. The cyclomatic complexity and number of edges respectively can be given by the following :

  1. 7,21
  2. 15,24
  3. 8,21
  4. 16,16
Answer

8,21
NIELIT 2021 Dec Scientist B

Q. A program P calls two subprograms P1 and P2. P1can fail 50% time and P2 can fail 40% times. The program P can fail

  1. 50%
  2. 10%
  3. 60%
  4. 70%
Answer

70%
NIELIT Scientific Assistant A 2020 November

Q. Black Box Software Testing method focuses on the

  1. Boundary condition of the software
  2. Control structure of the software
  3. Testing of user Interface only
  4. Cyclomatic Complexity
Answer

Testing of user Interface only
NIELIT Scientific Assistant A 2020 November

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