IBPS RRB SO Exam 2024: Notification, Dates, Eligibility, Syllabus

The Institute of Banking Personnel Selection conducts the IBPS RRB SO exam every year across pan India.  This exam is used to recruit Specialist Officers (SO) for several Public Sector Banks. The IBPS organizes the Common Written Examination (CWE). The CWE is used by the institution to employ officers and clerks. The applicant needs to know about the Eligibility Criteria, Vacancy Details, Application Fee, Examination Pattern, Salary, and Selection Process. The application form for exam registration will be available on the official website and the candidates can check the highlights for an overview:

Exam Conducting Body	Institute of Banking Personnel Selection (IBPS)
Name of the Post	Specialist Officer
Exam Level	National Level
No. of Posts	SO – 710
Mode of Application	Online
Mode of Examination	Online
IBPS RRB SO Notification	May 31st 2023
Job Location	Across India
Negative Marking	No
Language of the Examination	English/Hindi
Official Website	https://ibps.in/

Must Read: IBPS PO 2023: A Complete Guide!

IBPS RRB SO 2024 Notification

The IBPS RRB SO exam’s latest notification has been released from May 31st 2024 onwards. Candidates who deem themselves eligible for the banking personnel jobs can fill out the IBPS RRB application before June 21st 2024. All the other notifications related to the specialist officer examination are going to be updated on the official website very soon.

IBPS RRB SO Exam Dates 2024

All the important dates of the exam were mentioned in the official notification announced by the IBPS. The whole timetable for the selection process has been provided. The IBPS RRB SO exam dates and other important dates in relation to the recruitment test are listed as follows:

Exam Schedules	Tentative Dates
IBPS SO Notification Release Date	May 31st 2024
IBPS RRB SO Application Process	June 2024
IBPS RRB SO Application Deadline	June 2024
Preliminary: Call letters Downloading	July 2024
Preliminary: Exam Training	July 2024
IBPS RRB Scale I Officer Exam	August 3, 4, 10, 17 and 18, 2024
IBPS RRB Scale I & II Officer Exam	September 29 2024
IBPS RRB SO Exam Preliminary Result	Yet to be announced
IBPS RRB Main Exam Call Letter	Yet to be announced
IBPS RRB Single Exam Call Letter	Yet to be announced
Conduct of Interview	Yet to be announced
IBPS SO Final Result	Yet to be announced

IBPS RRB SO Eligibility Criteria 

There are a set of eligibility criteria that the candidates must meet to be eligible for the IBPS SO Examination for the year 2023. The candidates who wish to apply for IBPS RRB SO positions in different divisions should review the minimum aggregate criteria in terms of nationality, educational qualification, and age restriction.

Age Limit 

Applicants enrolling for IBPS SO Posts must be aware of the age restrictions imposed by the recruitment campaign.  

• The age limit of the applicant must be between 20 and 30 years old.
• Age relaxation will be implemented according to the category, as shown in the following table: 

Category	Age Relaxation
SC/ST	5 Years
OBC	3 Years
PWD	10 Years
Ex-Servicemen	5 Years
A person affected by the 1984 riots	5 Years

Educational Qualification 

The educational qualifications for IBPS SO for various positions are as follows: 

I.T. Officer (Scale-I)

• 4-year Engineering/Technology Degree in Computer Science/Information Technology/Computer Applications/Electronics/Electronics & Telecommunications/Electronics & Communication/Electronics & Instrumentation OR.

• Postgraduate Degree in Electronics/Electronics and Tele Communication/Electronics and Communication/Electronics and Instrumentation/Computer Science/Information Technology/Computer Applications OR.

• Graduate with a DOEACC ‘B’ level 

Agricultural Field Officer (Scale-I)

• 4-year Degree (Bachelor) in Agriculture/Animal Husbandry/  Horticulture/Veterinary/Dairy Science/ Science/ Pisciculture/ Fishery Science/ Agri. Marketing & Cooperation/ Co-operation & Banking/ Agro-Forestry/Forestry/Agricultural Biotechnology/ Food Science/ Agriculture Business Management/ Food Technology/ Dairy Technology/ Agricultural Engineering/ Sericulture

Rajbhasha Adhikari (Scale-I)

• Postgraduate Degree in Hindi and English as a subject at the degree (graduation) level.

• Postgraduate degree in Sanskrit includes English and Hindi as degree (graduation) disciplines.

Law officer ( scale-I)

• Bachelor’s Degree in Law (LLB) registered as an advocate in the Bar Council 

 HR/Personnel Officer (Scale-I) 

• Graduate with a two-year full-time postgraduate degree or a two-year full-time postgraduate diploma in Personnel Management / Industrial Relations / HR / HRD / Social Work / Labour Law.

Marketing Director (Scale-I)

• Graduate and two years full-time MMS (Marketing)/two years full-time MBA (Marketing)/two years full-time PGDBA / PGDBM/ PGPM/ PGDM with Marketing speciality.

Nationality

The following applicants are also eligible to take the IBPS SO exam:

• Citizen of India or
• Citizen of Nepal or
• Citizen of Bhutan or
• Any Tibetan refugee (must be relocated here before Jan 1st, 1962) or
• Migrated from Pakistan, Malawi, Zambia, Uganda, Ethiopia, Kenya, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Zaire, and  Vietnam to settle permanently in India. 

IBPS RRB SO 2023 Syllabus

The IBPS SO syllabus 2023 includes the subjects and sub-subjects that applicants must study for the prelims and main examinations. The prelims examination syllabus includes courses such as English Language, Reasoning, and General Awareness with Special Reference to the Banking Industry. The mains test syllabus includes Professional Knowledge sections.

Preliminary Exam

Reasoning	Seating Arrangements Puzzles Inequalities Syllogism
English Language	Cloze Test Reading Comprehension Spotting Errors Sentence Improvement
Quantitative Aptitude	Number Series Data Interpretation Simplification/ Approximation Quadratic Equation Data Sufficiency
General Awareness	Current Affairs Banking Awareness GK Updates Currencies

Must read: IBPS Exams

Main Exam

Candidates who will get shortlisted after the prelims exam can appear for the mains exam. Those candidates should cover the points mentioned in the table below.

IT Officer (Scale-I) Syllabus	Database Management System, Data Communication and Networking Operating System
Agricultural Field Officer (Scale-I)	Basics of Crop Production, Horticulture Seed Science, Agronomy and Irrigation
Marketing Officer (Scale-I)	Basics of Marketing Management, Brand Management, Advertising, PR
Law Officer (Scale-I)	Banking Regulations, Compliance and Legal Aspects
HR/Personnel Officer (Scale-I)	Human Resource Development, Business policy and strategic analysis, Transnational Analysis

IBPS RRB SO Application Process

The application process is completely online and applicants need to register for the exam on the IBPS website itself. The application process is mentioned below and you can follow the steps:

How to Fill the IBPS SO Application

• Step 1: Check the IBPS official website.
• Step 2: Select ‘CRP Specialist Officers’.
• Step 3: Click the ‘Common Recruitment Process for Specialist Officers X’.
• Step 4: After that, press ‘Click here to apply online for CRP – Specialist Officers – X’.
• Step 5: Complete the form
• Step 6:Upload a scanned copy of your recent passport-size photograph, signature, and left-hand thumb impression.
• Step 7: Finally, click the ‘Submit’ button.
• Step 8:You will then be taken to a fee payment window.
• Step 9: Make the payment with a debit/credit card or via net banking.
• Step 10: After successful payment of the application fee you will receive a copy of a receipt, download it and keep it for later reference

IBPS RRB SO Application Fee

For the convenience of applicants, we have outlined the application amount per class below.

Application Fee

SC/ST/PWD: INR 175 General &All Others: INR 850

IBPS RRB SO Exam Pattern

The IBPS SO Test will be divided into three stages: preliminary exam, main exam, and interview process. The IBPS SO Exam Pattern covers Reasoning Ability, Quantitative Aptitude, English Language, and Professional Knowledge, with the Professional Knowledge course changing per position. We have posted the major departments individually below to aid applicants with their preparation.

Preliminary Exam 

Mode of Examination	Online
Question Type	Objective
Duration	120 minutes
Total Questions	150
Total Marks	125
Sections	3
Name Of Sections	English language/General Awareness/Quantitative Aptitude Reasoning
Language	English and Hindi

Main Exam

For the post of I.T. Officer, Agricultural Field Officer, Law Officer, HR/Personnel Officer and Marketing Officer

Mode of Examination	Online
Question Type	Objective
Duration	120 minutes
Total Questions	60
Total Marks	60
Language	English and Hindi

IBPS SO Law Officer and Rajbhasha Adhikari

Mode of Examination	Online
Question Type	Objective + Descriptive
Duration	30 minutes (Objective) 30 minutes (Descriptive)
Total Questions	45 (Objective) 2 (Descriptive)
Total Marks	60
Language	English and Hindi

IBPS RRB SO Recruitment Procedure

The selection procedure for the IBPS SO exam comprises three different stages. These stages are listed below:

1. Preliminary exam
2. Mains exam
3. Interview

The IBPS SO Prelims test is a qualifying exam. For the final selection, the marks from the mains test and the interview are combined. It is critical to score well in both the main exam and the interview to get selected.

IBPS SO Vacancies

The IBPS SO Exam is held to select candidates for Specialist Officer positions such as IT Officer, Agricultural Field Officer, Rajbhasha Adhikari, Law Officer, HR/ Personnel Officer, and Marketing Officer. As Specialist Officers, our industry demands highly qualified individuals with strong will and determination. Based on the various available positions, the total number of openings is as follows:

No. of Posts	No. of Vacancies
Agriculture field officer Scale I	875
Marketing Officer (Scale-I)	195
IT Officer (Scale-I)	120
Law Officer (Scale-I)	60
HR/Personnel Officer (Scale-I)	35
Rajbhasha Adhikari (Scale-I)	30

IBPS RRB SO Salary Structure

IBPS SO shortlisted applicants will be paid according to their package that meets. In addition to the salary, selected candidates will also be eligible for benefits such as transport allowance, provident fund, festival bonus, etc. The following is the IBPS Specialist Officer Salary information for various posts:

Officer Scale-I	Monthly salary – INR 36400/-
Officer Scale-II	Monthly salary – INR 48800/-
Officer Scale-II	Monthly salary- INR 64600/-

IBPS RRB SO Job Profile

The job profile for each role in IBPS SO is determined by the specialization chosen by the applicant. The job profile for every position under IBPS SO is mentioned below in brief:

• IT Officer – Accountable for web platforms, Core Banking Systems, protecting software and online applications against cybercrime, and handling any technical glitches in the organization’s system. 
• Agricultural Officer – primarily responsible for the Bank’s rural field initiatives and collaborating with NABARD and other rural development organizations. 
• Marketing Officer – focuses on the banking organization’s sales and marketing efforts. 
• Law Officer – The Law Officer is in charge of all legal matters. All RBI-recommended norms and regulations must be observed.
• HR/ Personnel Officer – Communicating with employees, analyzing employee performance, and working for employee welfare. 
• Rajbhasha Adhikari – One of the most essential roles of a Rajbhasha Adhikari is to promote the national languages.

IBPS RRB SO Career Scope

As a Specialist Officer, there is a lot of room for advancement. Internal interviews and promotional examinations are held at regular intervals to give staff greater career opportunities. The following are the various career paths that a SO can pursue after promotion:

• Scale 1 – Officer / Assistant Manager
• Scale 2 – Manager
• Scale 3 – Senior Manager
• Scale 4 – Chief Manager
• Scale 5 – Asst. General Manager
• Scale 6 – Deputy General Manager
• Scale 7 – General Manager.

Rural Regional Banks allow staff to deal with diverse client groups, perform as full-time training instructors, and provide equal chances for professional progression. The bank also provides promotions to its workers so they can progress within the government and improve their job via experience.

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