Every year Institute of Banking Personal Selection conducts IBPS SO exam for various Public Sector Banks listed under IBPS. Common Written Examination (CWE) was started by IBPS in the year 2011 to recruit Specialist Officers (SO), Probationary Officers (PO) and Clerks in Nationalized banks. The registration for IBPS SO is done in online mode by visiting the official website of IBPS.
It is held at various locations throughout India. The mode of examination is online.IBPS SO Main Examination will be held on 24th January 2021. IBPS SO Exam is conducted for recruiting candidates for various posts like:
- IT Officer
- Agricultural Field Officer
- Rajbhasha Adhikari
- Law Officer
- HR/ Personnel Officer
- Marketing Officer
The exam is conducted through 3 stages – Prelims, Main Exam and Interview round.
Check the important dates for the IBPS SO 2020-21 exam. The exam is not over yet
| IBPS SO 2020-21 Events | Dates |
| IBPS SO Mains Exam | 24th January 2021 |
| Mains Exam Result | 04th February 2021 |
| Conduct of Interview | February 2021 |
| IBPS SO 2020-21 Final Result | April 2021 |
IBPS SO 2021 Vacancy
IBPS will be releasing the vacancies along with the notification pdf tentatively in the month of October 2021. This sector requires highly skilled people with a strong will and dedication to work as a Specialist Officer. Check out the table given below for post-wise vacancy details for the previous year:
| Name of Post | No. of Vacancies (2020) |
|---|---|
| Agriculture Officer (Scale-I) | 485 |
| Marketing Officer (Scale-I) | 60 |
| IT Officer (Scale-I) | 20 |
| Law Officer (Scale-I) | 50 |
| HR/Personnel Officer (Scale-I) | 07 |
| Rajbhasha Adhikari (Scale-I) | 25 |
| Total | 647 |
IBPS SO 2021 Eligibility Criteria
Nationality
The candidate who is going to apply for IBPS SO 2021 exam should have citizenship of India issued by the government of India. The following candidates can also apply for the IBPS SO 2021 exam:
- a subject of Nepal or
- a subject of Bhutan or
- a Tibetan Refugee, who came to India before 1st January 1962 with the intention of permanently settling in India or
- Persons migrated from India from Pakistan, Burma, Sri Lanka, East African countries of Kenya, Uganda, the United Republic of Tanzania (formerly Tanganyika and Zanzibar), Zambia, Malawi, Zaire, Ethiopia and Vietnam with the intention of permanently settling in India, along with the certificate of eligibility issued by the Government of India.
Educational Qualification
1. I.T. Officer (Scale-I)
- 4 year Engineering/Technology Degree or PG in CS/CA/IT/EE/EC/Electronics & Instrumentation/ Electronics & Telecommunications OR
- Graduate having passed DOEACC ‘B’ level
2. Agricultural Field Officer (Scale-I)
- 4 year Degree (graduation) in Agriculture/ Agricultural Biotechnology/ Horticulture/ Forestry/ Food Science/ Animal Husbandry/Veterinary Science/ Dairy Science/ Fishery Science/ Pisciculture/ Agri. Marketing & Co./ Co-operation & Banking/ Agro-Forestry/ Agriculture Business Management/ Food Tech./ Dairy Tech./ Agricultural Engineering/ Sericulture
3. Rajbhasha Adhikari (Scale-I)
- PG Degree in Hindi with English as a core subject OR
- PG Degree in Sanskrit with English & Hindi as core subjects.
4. Law Officer (Scale-I)
- Bachelor’s Degree in Law (LLB) and enrolled as an advocate with Bar Council.
5. HR/Personnel Officer (Scale-I)
- Graduate and 2 Years Full-time PG degree or 2 Years Full-time PG Diploma in Personnel Management /Industrial Relations/HR/HRD/Social Work /Labour Law.
6. Marketing Officer (Scale-I)
- Graduate and 2 Years Full-time MMS (Marketing)/ 2 Years Full-time MBA (Marketing)/ 2 Years Full-time PGDBA / PGDBM/ PGPM/ PGDM with specialization in Marketing.
Age Limit
- The age of the applicant must range from anywhere between 20 to 30 years
- Age relaxation will be applicable as per category and is given in the table below:
| Category | Age Relaxation |
|---|---|
| SC/ ST | 5 years |
| OBC | 3 years |
| PWD | 10 years |
| Ex-Servicemen | 5 years |
| An individual domiciled in J&K during the period January 1, 1980, and December 31, 1989 | 5 years |
| Person affected by 1984 riots | 5 years |
Application Fee For IBPS SO 2021
The exam fee for the post of IBPS Specialist Officer is mentioned below. The application fee has to be paid online.
| Category | Application Fee |
| General & Others | Rs. 850/- |
| SC/ST/PWD | Rs. 175/- |
How To Apply For IBPS SO 2021?
The online application process for IBPS SO 2021 will comprise of two-stage:
|| Registration | Log In ||
Part I: Registration
- The candidates are to first click on the link that is given below.
- Enter the details asked for.
- A provisional registration number and password will be sent on the registered Email ID and Mobile number.
Part II: Log In
- On receiving the registration no. and password, log in to complete the application procedure.
- Fill up the personal, academic details, and communication details correctly.
- Choose the exam centre carefully.
- Upload the photograph, signature, Left Hand Thumb Impression, Handwritten declaration.
- The details for uploading of the documents is given below in the next paragraph.
- Verify the details entered in the form before paying the application fee.
- After verification, pay the required application fee.
- Your application form for IBPS SO will be accepted provisionally after you have paid the application fee.
Documents To Upload For IBPS SO 2021
The candidates will have to upload the following documents in the required size in JPEG format in the IBPS SO 2021 Online Form.
| Documents | Dimensions | File Size |
| Passport Size Photograph | 200 x 230 Pixels | 20 – 50 KBs |
| Signature | 140 x 60 Pixels | 10 – 20 KBs |
| Left Thumb Impression | 240 x 240 Pixels | 20 – 50 KBs |
| Hand Written Declaration | 800 x 400 Pixels | 50 – 100 KBs |
Hand Written Declaration Text:
“I, _______ (Name of the candidate), hereby declare that all the information submitted by me in the application form is correct, true and valid. I will present the supporting documents as and when required.”
IBPS SO Admit Card 2021
The Institute of Banking Personnel Selection (IBPS), will be conducting the Specialist Officer Prelims Exam on 18th December and 26th December 2021. The admit card for IBPS SO Prelims 2021 is expected
BPS SO 2021 Selection Process
IBPS SO selection procedure includes the following stages. The Preliminary exam will be conducted by IBPS, which will be followed by the Mains Exam.
- Preliminary exam
- Mains exam
- Interview
The IBPS SO Prelims is qualifying in nature. The marks obtained in the mains exam and interview are added for the final selection. It is very important to perform well in the mains exam as well as in an interview to get the final selection.
IBPS SO Exam Pattern 2021
IBPS SO Syllabus includes Reasoning Ability, Quantitative Aptitude, English language, and Professional knowledge, where the syllabus of Professional knowledge is different for every post.
IBPS SO Prelims Exam Pattern
IBPS SO Law Officer and Rajbhasha Adhikari Exam Pattern
| Name of Test | Number of Questions | Maximum Marks | Medium of Exam | Timing (Minutes) |
| English Language | 50 | 25 | English | 40 |
| Reasoning Ability | 50 | 50 | English and Hindi | 40 |
| General Awareness with Special Reference to Banking Industry | 50 | 50 | English and Hindi | 40 |
| Total | 150 | 125 | 120 mins. |
IBPS SO IT Officer, Agriculture Field Officer, HR/Personnel Officer, and Marketing Officer Exam Pattern
| Name of Test | Number of Questions | Maximum Marks | Medium of Exam | Timing (Minutes) |
| English Language | 50 | 25 | English | 40 |
| Reasoning Ability | 50 | 50 | English and Hindi | 40 |
| Quantitative Aptitude | 50 | 50 | English and Hindi | 40 |
| Total | 150 | 125 | 120 |
BPS SO Mains Exam Pattern
The mains exam pattern for the IBPS SO is different for different posts as mentioned below.
For the Post of Law Officer, IT Officer, Agriculture Field Officer, HR/Personnel Officer and Marketing Officer:
| Name of the Test | No. of Qs. | Max. Marks | Duration |
| Profession Knowledge | 60 | 60 | 45 minutes |
For the Post of Rajbhasha Adhikari:
| Name of the Test | No. of Qs. | Max. Marks | Duration |
| Profession Knowledge (Objective) | 45 | 60 | 30 minutes |
| Profession Knowledge (Descriptive) | 2 | 30 minutes |
IBPS SO Cut Off 2021
The IBPS SO Cut Off for the Prelims Exam for previous year is given below:
| Name of the Section | Maximum Marks | Cutoff | |
| General | SC/ST/OBC/PWD | ||
| English | 25 | 8 | 06.75 |
| Reasoning | 50 | 11.25 | 08.75 |
| General Awareness / Quantitative Aptitude | 50 | 09.50 | 07.50 |
