The Institute of Banking Personnel Selection (IBPS) recently released the official notification for the post of Specialist Officer (SO) for recruitment in different banking sectors of India in July. The recruitments made by IBPS are for 11 public sector banks including Punjab National Bank(PNB), Bank of Baroda (BOB), Canara Bank, Indian Bank, Bank of India, UCO Bank, etc. This exam which has been conducted since 2011 will see its 14th edition in 2024. The number of posts notified in the notification released by IBPS for the SO exam is 1402.
All interested candidates are suggested to head to the official website at www.ibps.in and fill out the registration form as soon as possible to get to their desired examination centre. The application window will however be open till August for the convenience of the candidates. This article deals with all the recruitment-related information, important dates, eligibility criteria, application procedure, selection process and other relevant details related to the exam. Continue reading to learn in detail the examination pattern and tips on how to prepare for the exam.
Highlights of the IBPS SO Exam 2024
IBPS SO Recruitment 2024 is handled by the Institute of Banking Personnel Selection (IBPS). IBPS is the main organising body of this exam. This exam is at undergraduate and postgraduate levels which means candidates who completed their undergraduate course and Postgraduate courses can apply for this vacancy. The exam is conducted once a year and the mode of examination is online. There are a total of 3 stages in this exam name Prelims, Mains and Interview. This exam is conducted to recruit Specialist Officers in different public sector banks. Exam fees for this recruitment are INR 850 for General Category candidates and INR 175 for reserved category candidates.
| Exam Particulars | Exam Details |
|---|---|
| Exam Name | IBPS SO |
| Conducting Body | Institute of Banking Personnel Selection (IBPS) |
| Exam Level | Undergraduate and Postgraduate Exam at National level |
| Exam Frequency | Once a year |
| Mode of Exam | Online |
| Stages of Exam | Prelims, Mains, and Interview |
| Purpose of Exam | To recruit Specialist Officers in different public sector banks |
| Exam Fees | General: INR 850
Others: INR 175 |
| Exam Duration | Prelims: 120 minutes (40 minutes for each section)
Mains: Law Officer, IT Officer, Agriculture Field Officer, HR/Personnel Officer, and Marketing Officer posts: 45 minutes Rajbhasha Adhikari: 30 minutes for each section |
| No. of Papers and Total Marks | Prelims: Three (125 marks)
Mains: Law Officer, IT Officer, Agriculture Field Officer, HR/Personnel Officer, and Marketing Officer: One (60 marks) Rajbhasha Adhikari: Two (60 marks) Interview: 100 |
| Total Questions | Prelims: 150
Mains: Law Officer, IT Officer, Agriculture Field Officer, HR/Personnel Officer, and Marketing Officer: 60 Rajbhasha Adhikari: 47 |
| Marking Scheme | ¼th marks are deducted for wrong answers |
| Language/Medium of Exam | English and Hindi |
| No. of Test Cities | Prelims: Around 200 cities
Mains: More than 50 cities |
| Official Website | ibps.in |
| Contact Details | 1800 222 366 |
SO Recruitment 2024 Important Dates
The IBPS SO exam notification was released in July 2024. The exam is conducted in three stages and the dates for the preliminary and the main exams have also been released.
Candidates can check the PDF details on the official website of IBPS SO Recruitment 2024. The notification will be released in the month of July. IBPS PO Preliminary Exam will be held on 9th November 2024 and Mains exam date is 14th December 2024. To check the important dates related to the exam, have a look at the table below.
| IBPS SO 2024- Important Dates | |
| Activity | IBPS SO 2024 Dates |
| IBPS SO Notification 2024 | July 2024 |
| Online Registration Starts From | — |
| Last Date to Apply for IBPS SO | — |
| IBPS SO Prelims Admit Card 2024 | — |
| Commencement of IBPS SO Preliminary Exam | 9th November 2024 |
| IBPS SO Mains Exam Date 2024 | 14th December 2024 |
IBPS SO Recruitment 2024 Vacancy Details
IBPS SO Recruitment 2024 pre exam will be conducted in November and mains will be conducted in December month. The authority released a total number of 1402 vacancies which is a significant number. Through the Institute of Banking Personnel Selection (IBPS) Specialist Officer (SO) exam recruitments are made for various posts. In this recruitment season, vacancies are available for posts such as :
- Agriculture Field Officer
- Marketing Officer (Scale I)
- HR/Personnel Officer (Scale I)
- IT Officer (Scale I)
- Law Officer (Scale I)
- Rajbhasha Adhikari (Scale I)
The total number of vacancies notified in the official notification is 1402 which includes vacancies for all the official posts listed above. The number of vacancies under each category along with posts as per reservation is also shown below in a tabular format.
| Post Name | Gen | OBC | EWS | SC | ST | Total |
| IT Officer | 49 | 32 | 13 | 18 | 08 | 120 |
| Agriculture Field Officer (AFO) | 203 | 135 | 50 | 75 | 37 | 500 |
| Rajbasha Adhikari | 18 | 11 | 03 | 06 | 03 | 41 |
| Law Officer | 06 | 02 | 01 | 01 | 0 | 10 |
| HR / Personal Officer | 17 | 08 | 02 | 03 | 01 | 31 |
| Marketing Officer (MO) | 284 | 189 | 70 | 105 | 52 | 700 |
IBPS SO Recruitment 2024 Eligibility Criteria
Before applying for the post of Specialist Officer, candidates must ensure they fit into the eligibility criteria. A candidate eligible for the post should fulfill the following eligibility criteria.
Citizenship Criteria
Must be a citizen of India, Nepal, Bhutan or must be a Tibetan refugee or a Person of Indian Origin(PIO) Who has migrated from Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Uganda, or Kenya
| Citizenship Criteria |
|---|
| • Indian resident |
| • Nepalese citizen |
| • Tibetan refugees who arrived in India before 1st January 1962 and settled permanently |
| • Persons of Indian origin who migrated from Burma, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Namibia, Ethiopia, Zambia, Malawi, Zaire, or Vietnam |
Age Criteria
A person applying for the post of IBPS SO must have attained the age of 20 years and must not be more than 30 years of age. However, there is certain age relaxation provided to some reserved categories as per government laws.
Criteria for Age Relaxation
Subjects from various communities are eligible for age relaxation:
- For SC/ST: 5 years
- For OBC: 3 years
- For PWD : 9 years
- For Ex-servicemen: 5 years
- For Widows/Divorced Women: 9 years
Educational Qualifications
The various posts under IBPS SO have different requirements as far as the education qualification is concerned.
1. Agriculture Field Officer – A candidate applying for the post of Agriculture Field Officer( AFO) must have completed a graduation in agriculture, Horticulture, animal husbandry, veterinary science, Dairy science, agriculture engineering, fishery science, Pisciculture, marketing and cooperation, co-operation and banking or Agroforestry.
2. Marketing Officer (Scale I) – A candidate applying for the post of marketing officer must be a graduate in marketing or must hold an MBA degree with specialization and marketing.
3. HR/Personnel Officer (Scale I) – A candidate applying for the post of HR/Personnel Officer Must withhold a graduate and postgraduate degree, or a diploma in personnel management, Industrial Relation, HR, HRD, social work or Labour Law.
4. IT Officer (Scale I) – A person applying for the post of IT officer Must have completed a four year degree in engineering in computer science, IT, Electronics and communication, electronics and telecommunication, or electronic and instrumentation.
The applicant may also hold a postgraduate degree in computer science, IT, computer application, electronic and communication, electronic communication, or electronic and instrumentation.
Any graduate who has cleared the DOEACC ‘B’ level exam is also eligible to apply for the post.
- Law Officer (Scale I) – A candidate who wishes to apply for the post of Law Officer must withhold a degree in law and should be enrolled with the bar council as an advocate.
- Rajbhasha Adhikari (Scale I) – Any post graduate in Hindi with English as a compulsory language in graduation or post graduation is applicable for this post.
A post to graduate in Sanskrit with English as an elective subject may also apply.
| S No. | Name of the Post | Educational Qualification |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | I.T. Officer (Scale I) | 1) Four years engineering/technology degree in Computer Science/IT/Computer Application/Electronics and Communication Engineering/Electronics and Telecommunication/Electronics and Instrumentation OR<br>2) Post Graduate Degree in Computer Science/IT/Computer Application/Electronics and Communication Engineering/Electronics and Telecommunication/Electronics and Instrumentation OR<br>Graduates having passed DOEACC ‘B’ level exam |
| 2 | Agricultural Field Officer (Scale I) | 4 years graduation degree in Agriculture/Horticulture/Animal Husbandry/Veterinary Science/Dairy Science/Agricultural Engineering/Fishery Science/Pisciculture/Agri Marketing and Cooperation/Co-Operation and Banking/Agro-Forestry |
| 3 | Rajbhasha Adhikari (Scale I) | Post Graduate in Hindi with English as a subject at graduation or degree level OR Post Graduate Degree in Sanskrit with English and Hindi as subjects at graduation level |
| 4 | Law Officer (Scale I) | A bachelor’s degree in Law and enrolled as an advocate with Bar Council |
| 5 | HR/Personnel Officer (Scale I) | Graduate and Full-Time Post Graduate Degree or Full-Time Diploma in Personnel Management/Industrial Relations/HR/HRD/Social Work/Labour Law |
| 6 | Marketing Officer (Scale I) | Graduate and Full-Time MMS (Marketing)/MBA (Marketing)/Full-Time PGDBA/PGDBM with specialization in Marketing |
IBPS SO Recruitment 2024 Application Fee
All candidates have to pay a minimal fee to apply for the IBPS PO exam.
For the general and OBC category the fee is ₹850 while the SC, ST & PWD categories only have to pay an intimation charge of ₹175. The fee can be paid using credit card, debit card, net banking or UPI before the application window closes.
IBPS SO Recruitment 2024 Application Process
All candidates who wish to apply for the post of Specialist Officer must do so via online mode. Here we have listed for you the steps to fill the application form.
- Visit the IBPS official website at www.ibps.in
- Register here
- Login and fill the application form correctly
- Upload the documents as instructed
- You can pay the application fee by using your bank credit card, debit card, net banking or UPI
- Click on Submit
- Take a printout of your application form which will contain your registration number which will be later required to download your admit card
IBPS SO Recruitment 2024 Selection Procedure
The IBPS PO exam is conducted in three stages which consists of:
- A preliminary qualifying exam
- A Mains Exam and,
- A final Interview
Preliminary Exam
The preliminary exam for the posts of IT Officer, Agricultural Field Officer, HR/Personnel Officer, Marketing Officer Scale I, Law Officer & Rajbhasha Adhikari happens as follows.
- Duration of the exam is 2 hours
- The topics asked include:
- English language,
- Reasoning ability,
- Quantitative aptitude only for Marketing Officer’s post and Professional Knowledge only for IT Officer, Agricultural Field Officer, HR/Personnel Officer posts
- General Awareness with Special Reference to Banking Industry is only asked in Law Officer & Rajbhasha Adhikari exams
Mains Exam
- The exam is a 60 minutes process.
- Here, the professional knowledge of the candidates is tested. The dimensions the candidates are tested in include :
- IT Officer: Computer Networks, Database Management System, etc.
- Agricultural Field Officer: Agriculture, Horticulture, etc.
- HR/Personnel Officer: Human Resource Development, Industrial Relations, etc.
- Marketing Officer: Basics of Marketing, Brand Management, etc.
Personal interview
The final phase of the exam consists of a face-to-face interview round which generally lasts for 15 to 20 minutes. This face carries 100 marks that is a huge decider in the selection process. Questions asked are related to the candidate’s background, current affairs, general awareness and relating to the banking sector.
The candidates are advised to prepare for this stage holistically because the questions asked contain various dimensions and aspects.
