HEC HAT Answer Key 25 October 2026: HAT-MS and HAT-PhD, All 5 Categories and Colours

HEC has published the HAT answer keys for the test held on Sunday 25 October 2026, for both HAT-MS and HAT-PhD. Each has five categories, General, I, II, III and IV, and each key lists the correct option for 100 questions. Pick your test, category and booklet colour on HEC's answer keys page.

The Higher Education Aptitude Test (HAT) is the test HEC's Education Testing Council (ETC) runs for MS, MPhil and PhD admissions and for HEC scholarships. The keys went up on 27 October 2026. ETC's calendar puts the result on 16 November, so the key is your best early guide to the score.

We downloaded and read the keys on 28 October 2026. Below is which file is yours, the one colour trap in the General category, how to count your score, and when the next HAT is.

HEC posted two sets of HAT keys, MS and PhD

There are two separate pages: "Answer Keys for HAT-MS (Five Categories)" and "Answer Keys for HAT-PhD (Five Categories)", both for the 25 October test. Each lists General, I, II, III and IV. Open the page for the test you sat, not the degree you hold.

HAT General has keys in only two colours, White and Yellow. There is no Blue, Green or Pink General key, so check the colour printed on your booklet before you mark against any key. The other four categories each come in all five colours.

Your category follows your 16 year degree. HAT I is for engineering and the hard sciences, HAT II for business, HAT III for arts and social sciences, HAT IV for life and applied sciences, and General for religious studies. The full list, as HEC's advertisement gives it, is in our HEC HAT test guide.

How to download the HAT answer key for your booklet

The keys sit on HEC's public announcements pages, so no login is needed. Choose the category, then the booklet colour. Each PDF is one page, headed "ANSWER KEY (Sunday, October 25, 2026)", with a code line such as F-26-1264-HAT-MS-I-251026-Blue.

1. Open HEC's announcements page and choose the HAT-MS or HAT-PhD answer keys for 25 October 2026.
2. Pick your category: General, I, II, III or IV.
3. Pick the colour printed on your question booklet.
4. Check that the code line names your test, category and colour.
5. Mark your noted answers against Q1 to Q100 and count the matches.

The PhD key carries "HAT-PHD" in its code, and the MS key carries "HAT-MS". Both use the same F-26-1264 test number, so the code is the quickest way to spot a wrong file.

Count your matches out of 100

Each HAT key has 100 answers, and every HAT paper has 100 multiple choice questions. So your number of matches is roughly your percentage before any adjustment. A count of 62 means about 62 per cent, if marking is one mark a question.

The answer key pages do not say whether wrong answers cost marks. Do not deduct anything on a guess. The official score comes in the result, and that is the number a university or scholarship will use.

What score is enough depends on where you use it. HEC's own minimum criteria and its scholarship rules set different floors, and universities can ask for more. We set those out, with the sources, in our HAT guide. The HAT plan that would make the test compulsory for every MS and PhD applicant is a separate matter, and it was deferred to Fall 2027.

The HAT result is due on 16 November 2026

ETC's revised test calendar gives 16 November 2026 as the result date for the 25 October sitting. It labels that day a Friday, but 16 November 2026 is a Monday. Allow a few days either side, and check etc.hec.gov.pk, where you registered.

If you applied for an HEC scholarship that needs a HAT score, keep your registration details safe until the result is out. The Commonwealth route has its own HAT rules, set out in our page on the Commonwealth scholarship through HEC.

The next HAT sitting is on 13 December 2026

ETC's calendar lists one more HAT this year. It is announced on Sunday 8 November, registration closes on Sunday 22 November, and the test is on Sunday 13 December 2026. The calendar names this row "HAT MS, MPhil" and does not list a separate PhD row.

So if your key count is well short of what your programme asks, you have a second chance before the year ends. PhD candidates should check the announcement on 8 November to see whether a PhD category is offered in that sitting.

Common questions

Where is the HEC HAT answer key for 25 October 2026?

On HEC's announcements page, in two entries: HAT-MS (Five Categories) and HAT-PhD (Five Categories), both for the test held on 25 October 2026.

How many questions are in the HAT answer key?

100, numbered Q1 to Q100, in both the MS and PhD keys.

Why are there only two colours for HAT General?

HEC lists HAT General keys in White and Yellow only. The other categories have five colours. Use the colour printed on your booklet.

When will the HAT result for 25 October come out?

ETC's calendar gives 16 November 2026. It calls that day a Friday, but it is a Monday, so allow a few days either side.

Is there negative marking in the HAT?

The answer key pages do not say. Count correct answers only until the official result.

When is the next HAT test?

Sunday 13 December 2026, with registration closing on 22 November, according to ETC's calendar.

How we verified this

What we checked, where we read it, and what we could not confirm.

On 28 October 2026 we read HEC's HAT-MS answer keys page and its HAT-PhD page, and downloaded three keys: HAT-MS I Blue, HAT-MS General White and HAT-PhD I Blue. Their files are dated 27 October 2026 on HEC's server. We also read ETC's Test Calendar 2026, revised on 25 August. We did not open all 50 key files. We found no objection window or negative marking rule on HEC's pages. The plain category descriptions come from HEC's HAT advertisement as recorded in our earlier HAT guide.