IBPS SO AFO 2023 , Syllabus, Eligibility, Exam Pattern, Cutoff

By Naquiya Nadeem | Updated on: Mar 14, 2023

IBPS Agriculture Field Officer Exam Highlights

 IBPS SO Exam 2022

The Institute of Banking Personnel Selection or the IBPS conducts recruitment drives for commercial (public sector) as well as rural banks in India. It holds separate examinations for various posts such as PO, SO & Clerk. IBPS SO official notification 2023 is expected to come out soon. In 2022, a whopping 516 IBPS SO vacancy 2022 for the post of Agriculture Field Officer were announced. IBPS SO 2023 exam for Prelims will be conducted on December 30 and 31, 2023 and IBPS SO Mains 2023 is scheduled to take place on January 28, 2024. IBPS conducts the exam for Specialist Officers under various streams such as Law Officer, IT, Rajbhasha & Agriculture Field Officer (AFO). You can check all the details related to IBPS (SO) AFO exam on this page.

IBPS SO (AFO) 2023 Highlights

Conducting AuthorityIBPS
Official Website https://www.ibps.in/
Name of the Posts Specialist Officer (Agriculture Field Officer)
Mode of application Online
Stages of Exam Three Stages-
  • Phase 1- Preliminary Exam
  • Phase 2- Mains Exam
  • Phase 3- Interview
Maximum marks & Time duration
  • Phase 1 (Preliminary Exam)- 150 marks, 2 hours
  • Phase 2 (Mains Exam)- 60 marks, 45 minutes
  • Phase 3 (Interview)- 100 marks
Online registration including Edit/Modification of Application by candidates 2023-24 To be notified later
IBPS SO Prelims Admit Card  To be notified later
IBPS SO Prelims Exam Date  To be notified later
IBPS SO Prelims Exam Result Status  To be notified later
IBPS SO Prelims Exam Result Score  To be notified later
IBPS SO Mains Admit Card  To be notified later
IBPS SO Mains Exam Date  To be notified later
Number of Vacancies  To be notified later
IBPS SO Official Notification PDF 2022-23 Click Here
IBPS SO Mains Exam Result  To be notified later
IBPS SO Final Result 2022-23 Click Here

IBPS SO Final Result 2022-23 Out

The IBPS SO Final Result 2022-23 was published on the official website, ibps.in, by the Institute of Banking Personnel Selection (IBPS), on April 01, 2023, for all streams. Here is a direct link to the IBPS SO Final 2022 result. You can check your IBPS SO Phase 3 combined result for the online Mains examination and interview by logging in with your registration ID and password/D.O.B details.

Team ixamBee is very happy for all successful applicants and wishes them the very best as they move on to a new phase in their careers.

IBPS SO AFO Notification 2023

The IBPS SO recruitment 2023 notification will be released soon.  This IBPS SO 2023 notification will contain all the details regarding the application process, fees, exam dates, etc. The IBPS will conduct the online examination for IBPS Specialist Officer 2023 for various posts like Agriculture Field Officer (AFO), IT Officer Scale I, Law Officer and Rajbhasha Adhikari Scale I. Let us study all the details related to the IBPS SO recruitment 2023 process in the following sections.

IBPS AFO Exam Pattern 2023

It is extremely important to get in touch with all the relevant details such as the IBPS SO AFO exam pattern that will help you in the preparation process. The IBPS SO 2023 exam for the post of Agriculture Field Officer (AFO) will be conducted in online mode. It will consist of three phases -

  • Prelims
  • Mains
  • Interview

Both Prelims & Mains will be conducted online. There will be a negative marking of 1/4th of the marks allotted to each question. No marks will be deducted for an unanswered question.

IBPS AFO Prelims Exam Pattern

Phase 1 or Prelims of IBPS SO AFO selection process will be an online objective test that will consist of three sections: English Language, Reasoning & Quantitative Aptitude. Both Reasoning & Quantitative Aptitude sections will be available in both English & Hindi. Check out the complete details below.

S. No.Name of testMedium of ExamNo.of questionsMaximum MarksDuration
1 English Language English 50 25 40 Minutes
2 Reasoning English & Hindi 50 50 40 Minutes
3 Quantitative Aptitude English & Hindi 50 50 40 Minutes
  Total   1501252 Hours

IBPS AFO Mains Exam Pattern

All the candidates who are able to clear Prelims will be called for IBPS (SO) AFO Mains. This phase will also be conducted in online mode. There will only be a single test in this phase that will test the ‘Professional Knowledge’ of the candidates. This section will have 60 questions and will carry 1 mark each. The questions will be available bilingually. 

Name of the TestNo. of QuestionsMaximum MarksMedium of ExamDuration
Professional Knowledge 60 60 English & Hindi 45 minutes

IBPS SO AFO Interview

Those who are able to qualify for the IBPS SO AFO Mains will be called for the final phase, i.e., the IBPS SO AFO Interview. The Interview stage will carry 100 marks. Post Interview, the final scores will be obtained by taking both IBPS AFO Mains & Interview scores into consideration. The candidates who score high in merit will be shortlisted at last. The weightage given to the online exam with respect to the Interview will be 80:20. The minimum qualifying marks will be 40%.

IBPS AFO Syllabus 2023

An important aspect of exam preparation is knowing the syllabus. Before you start with your preparation, it will be extremely beneficial for you to take note of the IBPS SO AFO syllabus 2023. The IBPS SO (AFO) Prelims will contain questions from QRE (Quants, Reasoning & English Language). Thus, you should first know what you actually need to cover with respect to each of the subjects. In IBPS AFO Mains, the knowledge in your specialized subject will be tested. Have a look at the detailed syllabus below.

Agricultural Field Officer
Introduction to Agriculture & Crop: Seed Technology, Agriculture Economics, Agricultural Practices, Seasonal Crops (Rabi and Kharif)
Soil & Fertility: Soil Resources, Types of Soils in India, Physical Properties of these Soils
Manures & Fertilizers: Green Manures, Fertilizer – types, chemical composition
Cropping Scheme: Crop Rotation, Cropping System, Soil and Crop suitability, Climate and Crops
Irrigation: Sources and Methods of Irrigation, Problems related to Irrigation, Advanced Irrigational Facilities, Important Dams and Rivers that have played a major role in shaping Irrigational Activities
Rural Credit: Agriculture Insurance Schemes, Woman & Child Development Schemes, Role of RRBs, Agricultural Loans and Financing
Vegetable & Fruit Science: Crop Horticulture – Sowing Time & Spacing, Seed Rate, Important Varieties, Herbicides & Pesticides, Plant Diseases, Preservation and Types of Cropping Systems Fruits & Vegetables Preservation Methods
Weeds: Classification of weeds, Merits and Demerits, Weed Control
Surveying: Introduction to Surveying, Classification of Surveying, Benefits and Recent Surveys and Committees
Animal Husbandry: Classifications, Small Industries, Diseases and Causes, Breeding Dairy, Cattle Management, Small Scale Industries and Threats to them
Dairy: Cattle Management, Rearing
Botany: Plant Biotechnology, Agricultural Microbiology, Plant Physiology & Biochemistry, Soil Microbiology
Agriculture Engineering: Farm Machinery & Power, Food Processing, Agricultural Structure, Post Harvest Technology
Miscellaneous: Latest Developments, Recent Discoveries, Latest Bt Crops and related Research, Hybrid

IBPS AFO Important Dates 2023

The IBPS conducts an online exam every year to recruit candidates for the posts of Specialist Officers in various fields like IT, Rajbhasha Adhikari, Agricultural Field Officer, Marketing Officer, Law Officer, and HR/ Personnel Officer. According to the official IBPS SO Calendar 2023, the IBPS SO 2023 for Prelims will be conducted on December 30 and 31, 2023. The IBPS SO AFO exam date for the Mains exam is scheduled to take place on January 28, 2024. For further details on IBPS SO 2023 exam dates for AFO, please refer below.

IBPS SO Important Dates 2023-24

EventsTentative Dates
IBPS SO Notification  To be notified later
Online Registration Starts From To be notified later
Last Date to Apply Online for IBPS SO To be notified later
IBPS SO Prelims Admit Card  To be notified later
Commencement of IBPS SO Preliminary Exam To be notified later
IBPS SO Prelims Exam Result Status  To be notified later
IBPS SO Prelims Exam Result Score  To be notified later
IBPS SO Mains Admit Card To be notified later
Commencement of IBPS SO Mains Exam To be notified later
IBPS SO Mains Exam Result  To be notified later
Conduct of Interview To be notified later
IBPS SO Final Result 2022-23 Click Here

IBPS AFO Salary 2023

One of the reasons why IBPS SO is preferred by a lot of young individuals is, that along with job security, it provides a handsome salary. The IBPS SO AFO salary will come around to be Rs. 38800/- (approx.). An Agriculture Field Officer (AFO) posted in Scale I is also entitled to receive other allowances aside from their Bank SO salary, like House Rent Allowance, Dearness Allowance, Special Allowance, Travel Allowance, Medical expenses & also reimbursements for newspapers. The allowances may also be meant for entertainment, cleaning, petrol and mobile expenses.

PostSalary
IBPS SO AFO (Agriculture Field Officer) Basic Pay - Rs. 36,000/- Per month
Gross Income - Rs. 58,240/- Per month

IBPS AFO Job Profile

After you get selected as an IBPS Agriculture Field Officer (AFO), you will have to perform a variety of duties, including fieldwork. The job can be highly challenging and interesting too. An IBPS SO Agriculture Field Officer may have to take up many responsibilities. Some basic duties and responsibilities of an IBPS AFO are as follows.

  • Disbursing loans to the farmers
  • Reviewing agricultural loans
  • Promoting rural financing
  • Looking into crop failure cases
  • Promoting bank’s products in rural areas, specifically among farmers

IBPS Agriculture Field Officer Vacancies

The IBPS official notification 2022 released a total of 516 vacancies for the post of IBPS SO Agriculture Field Officer. The number of IBPS SO AFO vacancies 2022 were be divided between the general and reserved categories. The IBPS SO vacancies 2023 will be updated here once the IBPS SO 2023 notification is out. Please refer to the table below for IBPS SO 2022 recruitment vacancies. 

BANKSCSTOBCEWSGENTOTALOut of Which
HIOCVIID
BANK OF BARODA NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR
BANK OF INDIA NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR
BANK OF MAHARASHTRA NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR
CANARA BANK 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
CENTRAL BANK OF INDIA NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR
INDIAN BANK NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR
INDIAN OVERSEAS BANK NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR NR
PUNJAB & SIND BANK 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
PUNJAB NATIONAL BANK 15 7 27 10 41 100 1 1 1 1
UCO BANK 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
UNION BANK OF INDIA 69 31 114 37 165 416 3 2 2 3
TOTAL 84 38 141 47 206 516 4 3 3 4

IBPS AFO Eligibility Criteria 2023

IBPS has already released the exam calendar for the Specialist Officers’ recruitment process for the year 2023-24. Before you move on with the online application, you need to know whether you are eligible for the preferred post or not. To ensure successful completion, you need to know the complete IBPS SO eligibility criteria 2023.

IBPS AFO Educational Criteria

Any aspirant who wishes to apply for the post of IBPS SO Agriculture Field Officer needs to possess the required educational qualification/s. To know which of the disciplines are permissible, check out the table given below.

Post CodeName of the PostEducational Qualification
02 Agricultural Field Officer (Scale I) 4 year Degree (graduation) in Agriculture/ Horticulture/Animal Husbandry/Veterinary Science/ Dairy Science/ Fishery Science/ Pisciculture/ Agri.Marketing & Cooperation/ Co-operation & Banking/ Agro-Forestry/Forestry/Agricultural Biotechnology/ Food Science/ Agriculture Business Management/Food Technology/ Dairy Technology/ Agricultural Engineering/ Sericulture

IBPS AFO Age Criteria

Adhering to the age criteria is equally necessary as possessing the requisite educational qualifications. To be eligible for the post of Agriculture Field Officer, you need to lie within the specified IBPS Agriculture Field Officer age limit. You will only be eligible if you fall into a specific age bracket mentioned by IBPS. Read complete details below for IBPS SO age limit 2023.

Post CodeName of the PostAge
02 Agricultural Field Officer (Scale I) Min- 20 Years / Max-30 Years

IBPS AFO Age Relaxation

IBPS provides certain age relaxation to reserved category candidates like SC/ST/OBC/EX servicemen. The relaxation in age varies within the reserved category. If you are eligible for age relaxation, you should ensure that you have the necessary documents related to it when asked for verification. Complete details related to IBPS SO AFO age relaxation is provided below.

CategoryAge Relaxation
Other Backward Classes (OBC) (Non- creamy layer)  3 years
Scheduled Caste / Scheduled Tribe 5 years
Ex-Servicemen, Commissioned Officers including Emergency Commissioned Officers (ECOs)/ Short Service Commissioned Officers (SSCOs) who have rendered at least 5 years military service and have been released on completion of assignment (including those whose assignment is due to be completed within one year from the last date of receipt of application) otherwise than by way of dismissal or discharge on account of misconduct or inefficiency or physical disability attributable to military service or invalidment 5 years
Persons affected by 1984 riots 5 years

Persons with Benchmark Disabilities (PWBD) 10 years

How To Apply Online for IBPS AFO

In order to apply successfully for IBPS (SO) AFO exam, you should first go through the following step-by-step guide. The application form has to be filled out via online mode. No other mode of application will be acceptable. Therefore, you need to fill in the application very carefully.

  • Visit the official website of IBPS to apply for the exam
  • Click on the ‘Click here for New Registration’ link
  • Fill in details like name, date of birth, contact details, and valid email ID and click on ‘Register’
  • A Provisional Registration Number and Password will be generated
  • An email and SMS on your registered email ID and a mobile number indicating the same will be sent
  • Login again using these credentials to proceed with the IBPS SO AFO recruitment application process
  • Fill in other details like academic qualification, work experience, preference exam center and others as asked
  • Upload scanned images of your recent photograph, signature, thumb impression and handwritten declaration as per the specifications mentioned
  • Go through all the details carefully and click on ‘Final Submit’ to proceed to the IBPS SO application fees
  • Pay the application fee as per your category using a Credit/ Debit card, Net banking, Cash Card, Wallet, and IMPS option
  • Take a print of the e-receipt of the online transaction and application form for future reference

IBPS AFO Important Books

The IBPS Agriculture Field Officer is one of the popular posts released by IBPS in its yearly recruitment notification. It is a golden opportunity for those belonging to an agricultural background. To ensure success, you need to get hold of the best books as they are the most important aspect for preparing for this Specialist Officer exam with the best IBPS SO AFO study material. It is always essential to ensure that you have the best study material in the form of notes and books to prepare. We have listed the best books for IBPS SO AFO exam preparation in the table below.

PaperBookAuthor/Publisher
Basic Agriculture Fundamentals of Agriculture Vol. 1 & 2 Arun Katyayan
Agriculture at a Glance R.K. Sharma
Objective Books A Competitive Book of Agriculture Nemraj Sunda
Objective Agriculture S.R. Kantwa
Agri Wizard Surahee Publication
IBPS (Specialist officer) Agricultural Field officer (Scale-I) R. Gupta's

IBPS AFO Previous Year Cut-off

To prepare well for an exam, it is essential to know the complete ‘in’ and ‘out’ of it. For those who are beginners, knowing every detail related to the exam, will help you in forming a basic idea of the exam. Besides the exam pattern and syllabus, the IBPS SO exam cut-off 2022 is a significant detail that needs to be taken note of. It gives you a fair idea of the exam. Thus it is extremely necessary to properly analyze and jot down the previous year’s exam cut-offs and prepare accordingly.

IBPS SO Mains Cut Off 2022

PostCut Off for Shortlisting for Interview (Out of 60)
Category
SCSTOBCEWSURHIOCVIID
IT Officer (Scale I) 10.25 11 13.25 13.75 13.75 15 11.75 17.25 14
Agriculture Field Officer (Scale I) 27 22.25 27.50 27.50 27.50 19.75 27 24.50 20.75
Rajbhasha Adhikari (Scale I) 27.75 25.25 27.75 27.75 27.75 NA NA NA NA
Law officer (Scale I) 26.25 26.25 19.25 21.25 26.25 NA 17.50 16.75 18
HR/Personnel Officer (Scale I) 16 12.50 20.75 21.50 21.50 NA 12.50 22.50 28.25
Marketing Officer (Scale I) 21.75 19 22.50 20 22.75 25.25 17.25 18.25 NA

IBPS SO Maximum Scores and Cut Offs 2022 in Each Objective Test

Name of the TestMaximum MarksPostCut Off
SC/ ST/ OBC/ PWBDEWS/ General
Professional Knowledge 60 IT Officer (Scale I) 10.25 12.75
Agriculture Field Officer (Scale I) 19.25 23.00
Rajbhasha Adhikari (Scale I) 24.25 27.75
Law officer (Scale I) 16.75 21.25
HR/Personnel Officer (Scale I) 12.00 16.00
Marketing Officer (Scale I) 16.00 19.50

Maximum Scores and Cutoffs in Each Objective Test 2021-22

IBPS SO Agricultural Field Officer (Scale-1) Minimum Scores and Cut-offs 2021-22

PostCategory
SCSTOBCEWSURHIOCVIID
Agricultural Field Officer (Scale 1) 56.67 53.00 63.47 62.00 63.87 46.00 58.87 58.07 40.07
08/09/98 20/09/97 09/04/97 15/09/97 11/12/96 30/07/00 04/03/96 18/05/98 25/01/95

IBPS SO Agricultural Field Officer (Scale-1) Professional Knowledge Total Score & Cut-offs 2021-22

CategoryCut-offs for shortlisting for interview (Out of 60)
Scheduled Caste (SC) 27.75
Scheduled Tribe (ST) 23.75
Other Backward Classes (OBC) 27.75
Economically Weaker Section (EWS) 27.75
General (Gen) 27.75
Hearing Impaired (HI) 18.75
Orthopaedically Challenged (OC/Locomotor Disability) 25.75
Visually Impaired (VI) 25.25
Intellectual Disability (ID & Others) 19.25

IBPS SO Prelims Sectional Cut Off 2021-22: Agricultural Field Officer (Scale-I)

Sr.NoName of TestMaximum MarksCut-off
SC/ST/OBC/PWBDEWS/General
1 English Language 25 2.50 4.75
2 Reasoning  50 3.25 6.50
3 Quantitative Aptitude 50 5.25 9.00

IBPS SO Prelims Overall Cut Off 2021- 22: Agricultural Field Officer (Scale-I)

Posts NameSCSTOBCUREWS
Agricultural Field Officer 21.25 21.25 21.25 21.25 21.25

IBPS SO cutoff 2020-21: Minimum Scores (Combined Scores in Online Main Examination and Interview Out of 100)

Provisional Allotment

PostCategory
SCSTOBCEWSURHIOCVIID
Agriculture Field Officer (Scale-I) 67.60
28/11/1997
65.33
13/05/1995
76.20
20/03/1995
74.67
06/02/1997
77.07
30/05/1994
63.27
12/08/1994
65.80
04/06/1996
71.07
30/03/1999
53.40
26/10/1992

IBPS SO Prelims Sectional Cut Off 2020-21: Agricultural Field Officer (Scale-I)

Sr.NoName of TestMaximum MarksSectional Cut off
1 Quantitative Aptitude  25 9.75
2 Reasoning  50 5.50
3 English Language 50  5.25

IBPS SO Prelims Overall Cut Off 2020- 21: Agricultural Field Officer (Scale-I)

Maximum MarksOverall Cut off
Agricultural Field Officer 40.88

IBPS AFO Online Course 2023

If you are willing to apply for the IBPS (SO) AFO post and are feeling clueless about how you will start your preparation, ixamBee is here to your rescue. To help you prepare and ace your exam and provide you with all the necessary information and knowledge, ixamBee has put together a comprehensive and well-curated IBPS SO AFO Online Course that consists of ‘just what you need’. You will find every important detail that is necessary to excel in the examination and attain your dream job. Enroll and leave behind all the worries.

IBPS SO AFO Free Mock Test

The IBPS SO notification is awaited eagerly by many job aspirants who are looking for a stable government job. The competition thus cannot be expected to be an easy one. Therefore, intelligence lies in preparing yourself in advance. While you prepare, one thing that you shouldn’t ignore is enough practice. That’s where practicing mock tests come to the rescue. By practicing online mock tests, you will be able to develop a fair understanding of the exam pattern. ixamBee provides free online mock tests for IBPS SO AFO Prelims & IBPS AFO Mains. By practicing enough mock tests online, you will be able to gradually improve your performance.

IBPS AFO Blogs

Self-preparation holds a lot of importance but can also pose tough challenges at times. Therefore, we need to push ourselves sometimes, so that we run faster than before. Keeping this in mind and to give an edge to your preparation we are here to assist you with some very useful blogs related to the IBPS Agriculture Field Officer exam. All the candidates are advised to go to our blog section and explore where he/she can get the relevant material.

Rooftop rainwater harvesting

ZBNF in details

Ramsar Sites In India

Salary of an IBPS SO Agriculture Field Officer

IBPS AFO Useful Videos

Videos can also help you in your IBPS SO 2023 exam preparation. ixamBee has some important videos related to IBPS SO 2023 and their links are mentioned below.

Farm Bills repealed

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FAQs

Yes, the IBPS SO AFO exam dates have been announced. The AFO Prelims exam will be held on December 24 or 31, 2023 and the Mains exam will be held on January 29, 2023.
A total of 516 IBPS SO AFO vacancies have been announced in the IBPS SO notification PDF.
The subjects assessed in the IBPS AFO Prelims exam are: Quantitative Aptitude, English Language and Reasoning.
There will be three phases in the IBPS AFO recruitment process: Prelims, Mains & an Interviews.
You can find the IBPS SO AFO mock tests on ixamBee. These IBPS AFO mock exams are available for free.

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