IBPS Specialist Officer

Institute of Banking Personnel Selection or IBPS is the main recruiting body that conducts online examinations to recruit eligible candidates on various posts in banking organizations. IBPS conducts an online examination for the post of Specialist Officer (SO) every year which recruits eligible candidates on various posts according to eligibility. IBPS has just released the official notification for IBPS SO 2019. This is a great opportunity for those who possess professional qualifications and wish to work in the banking sector. Before starting the application process, you should know the highlights of the examination

IBPS has recently released its official notification for IBPS SO 2019. IBPS includes all the commercial banks because of which IBPS Exams are the most important ones among the job aspirants as they give a golden chance to all the candidates to make way into one of these banks in the country. IBPS SO Official Notification 2019 has just been released and the registration process for the same has been started from 6th November 2019. IBPS will conduct the online examination for IBPS Specialist Officer 2019 for various posts like Agriculture Field Officer (AFO), IT Officer Scale I, Law Officer, HR Officer and Rajbhasha Adhikari Scale I.

IBPS follows a standard selection process in all its recruitment examinations. It conducts an online examination for IBPS SO which has an exam pattern that may vary for different posts under Specialist Officers (SO). To be able to prepare in the best way possible, you should first know the exam pattern of the IBPS SO exam which will help in making a preparation plan accordingly. It conducts online examination for all the posts under SO which is divided into three phases:

• Prelims
• Mains
• Interview.

The IBPS SO Prelims examination for some of the posts is common and consists of three sections. The Mains examination is different for some posts and common for some. These two phases will be followed by the Interview stage which will lead to the final selection.

IBPS SO Prelims Exam Pattern

The IBPS SO Prelims 2019 will be an online examination that consists of three sections and will have sectional timings of 40 minutes each but with variable marks. IBPS SO prelims pattern may differ for some posts. The total marks for IBPS SO Prelims for all the posts will be 125  whereas the total number of questions will be 150. The IBPS SO Prelims 2019 for Rajbhasha Adhikari Scale I & Law Officer will have a common exam pattern and will consist of three sections: Reasoning, English Language & General Awareness (With special reference to Banking industry).

IBPS SO Prelims Exam Pattern for the Post of Law Officer and Rajbhasha Adhikari.

The IBPS SO Prelims examination pattern for the post of Law officer and Rajbjahsa Adhikari is mentioned below with complete details:

The IBPS SO Prelims for the posts of Agriculture Field Officer, Marketing Officer (Scale I), HR/Personnel Officer, IT Officer (Scale I) will also consist of three sections but will contain Quantitative Aptitude as a subject in place of General Awareness. The other two sections will be Reasoning and English Language. The number of questions here will also be the same as stated above - 150 and the total marks will be 125 with a total time duration of 120 minutes.

Exam pattern for IBPS SO Post of IT Officer, Agriculture Field Officer, HR/Personnel Officer and Marketing Officer.

The IBPS SO Prelims exam pattern for the post of IT officer, Agricultural field officer HR/Personnel Officer and Marketing Officer is provided in the table below:

IBPS SO Mains Exam Pattern

The candidates who will be able to qualify IBPS SO Prelims will appear for the Mains. IBPS SO Mains is a bit different than the other IBPS Exams. IBPS SO Mains consists of either one or maximum two sections which depends on the posts. For the post of Rajbhasha Adhikari, there will be two tests on Professional Knowledge: Objective & Descriptive. The total marks for this test will be 60 and total time will be 1 hour. Both the tests can be given in either Hindi or English Language.

Mains Exam Pattern for the post of Rajbhasha Adhikari:

Mains examination pattern for IBPS SO Rajbhasha Adhikari is provided in the table below:

IBPS SO Mains for the posts of Law Officer, IT Officer, Agriculture Field Officer, HR/Personnel Officer and Marketing Officer will consist of only one objective test of Professional Knowledge comprising of 60 marks, 60 questions and the time duration will be 45 minutes. The test can be given in both English and Hindi language. 

Main Exam Pattern for the Post of Law Officer, IT Officer, Agriculture Field Officer, HR/Personnel Officer, and Marketing Officer:

IBPS SO Mains examination pattern for the post of Law Officer, IT Officer, Agriculture Field Officer, HR/Personnel Officer, and Marketing Officer is provided in the table below:

All the candidates who qualify IBPS SO Mains will be shortlisted for Interview and the scores obtained in Mains and Interview will be taken into consideration while making the final list of selected candidates.

IBPS SO is one of the most sought-after jobs. A huge number of candidates apply for this job and IBPS makes sure that it provides all facilities to the candidates. You can choose the language in which you wish to attempt the exam. You will have a choice of English and Hindi as the exam language except for the test of English Language. You will also have the choice of viewing any particular question in another language other than the one chosen by you.

IBPS follows fixed criteria in all its exams when it comes to the marking scheme. In IBPS SO Prelims, all questions carry 1 mark except the section of English Language where the questions carry 0.5 marks. 1/4th or 0.25 of the marks alloted will be charged for every incorrect answer.

IBPS SO holds equal importance just like IBPS PO. The only difference between the two is the kind of job and the professional qualifications that are required to apply for it owing to the job requirements. Therefore you can get a clear idea that the IBPS SO exam level will also be of an equally good level. You need to be well prepared for the examination and for that you should be well aware of the syllabus for IBPS SO which will give you the right direction to start off with the preparation and you will know what to study and then make a plan so that you know how to study. IBPS SO will have two written examinations: Prelims and Mains, where the questions will be asked from different subjects and by knowing the complete and correct syllabus, you can ace the IBPS Specialist Officer 2019.

IBPS SO Prelims Syllabus

IBPS SO 2019 can be counted among the most difficult exams with IBPS surprising candidates with the level and changing question pattern. So to ace the IBPS SO exam a candidate should be aware of the syllabus in order to avoid missing any important details. A candidate can go through the entire syllabus given below and plan the strategy accordingly.

IBPS SO Mains Exam Syllabus

IBPS SO Mains exam is the next stage. The syllabus for IBPS SO mains exam is very different from IBPS SO prelims exam. For all the posts a candidate needs to know the syllabus of his/her Professional Field. So proficiency in the respective field is important. For eg post like AFO or Agriculture Field Officer will test the knowledge of the candidate in the agriculture field. Different topics will be covered under this and will carry different weightage of marks.The details syllabus for IBPS SO mains for AFO is mentioned below

IBPS SO Exam Syllabus for Mains Professional Paper – Agriculture

For IBPS SO AFO syllabus you should know all the basics of agriculture, its type, what its importance , soil fertility. Since India is an agrarian land so a candidate must be aware of the agricultural dynamics of it and various schemes that the government has introduced. Further insight can be get from below

IBPS SO Professional Paper Syllabus – IT

Similarly IBPS SO IT Officer will test your skills for various computer programming and operating system. Besides this you will also be tested for web technologies, computer hardware and its architecture. Further details are mentioned in the table given below

To apply for IBPS SO 2019, an aspirant should meet the eligibility criteria with respect to Educational Qualification, Age etc. which are already mentioned in IBPS SO 2019 official notification. Eligibility for IBPS SO should be fulfilled by all the candidates who apply for the post of Specialist Officer (SO). Before filling up the application form it is necessary to ensure if you are eligible for the post you wish to apply for. Every post will have different eligibility criteria with respect to educational qualifications.

IBPS SO Educational Qualification

IBPS SO official notification 2019 has just been released and before you are ready to start your preparation you should make sure that you are eligible to apply. IBPS SO further consists of many job posts for which the candidates need to possess a particular educational degree with respect to the type of post. The basic minimum qualification will be a ‘graduate degree’ in the respective discipline required for the post along with other requirements. Refer to the table given below for the detailed educational criteria required for IBPS SO 2019:

IBPS SO Age Criteria

All the candidates willing to apply for IBPS SO 2019 should also follow an age criteria specified by IBPS. All the candidates should be in between a specified age limit with respect to minimum and maximum age for all the posts for which the vacancies has been declared in the IBPS Specialist Officer Recruitment 2019. For all the posts the age criteria will be:

IBPS SO Age Relaxation

Government has certain age relaxation norms for the candidates belong to reserved categories. Like for candidates belong to SC category enjoys an age relaxation of five years whereas the candidates belong to OBC holds an age relaxation of three years. Candidates who fall under this category and want to seek the age relaxation on IBPS SO 2019 exam can go through the table and can get aware about the age relaxation limit. Complete details about the age relaxation is given below in the tabular form:

IBPS SO 2019 will be an online examination and therefore IBPS will need specific exam centres like every year to conduct the examination smoothly where all the facilities and support will be available. These exam centres will be spread all across India and the candidates will choose the exam centres according to their choice of state and city and accordingly the centres will be allotted to the candidates by IBPS. The candidates can not change their choice of centre once the application form is submitted. IBPS reserves the right to make changes in the list of exam centres at its discretion.

IBPS SO Exam Centres for Preliminary Exam

The Exam Centre for IBPS SO 2019 will be asked by the candidate at the time of filling up the application form. He/she can choose the examination Centre of his/her choice. Please note that after the submission of an application form, changes in the examination centre will not be entertained. For IBPS SO prelims examination centres are shown below:

IBPS SO Exam Centre for Mains exam

Candidates who will qualify the IBPS SO prelims examination will be called for the mains exam. The examination centres for mains exams will also be asked at the time of filling up the application form. Following is the list of examination centres for IBPS SO 2019:

IBPS is known for its timely execution of the examination schedule. The IBPS SO 2019 Official Notification for the year 2019-2020 has been recently released and the dates for IBPS SO 2019 Examination have also been mentioned there. IBPS has always followed its time-table and therefore the dates mentioned in the exam calendar can be considered as final. The IBPS SO 2019 Prelims Examination is scheduled to be conducted on 28th December 2019 and 29th December 2019 and Main Examination will be conducted on 25th January 2020.

Important dates regarding IBPS Specialist Officer Exam 2019-20 as follows:

One of the major reasons behind most of the candidates preferring Bank jobs is the stability and security that you receive in a Bank. Along with this stability you also get an attractive salary which makes Banks an obvious choice. An IBPS SO working as an AFO will receive a starting salary of Rs 22,700 - Rs 23,700 /- per month. An Agriculture Field Officer (AFO) posted in Scale I is also entitled to receive other allowances like HRA, DA, Special Allowance, Travel Allowance etc. He/she will also receive reimbursement for medical expenses, newspaper etc.

IBPS releases a good number of vacancies every year for the post of Specialist Officers (SO) under various categories. Last year it released around 1590 vacancies including all the posts in different streams. This year too IBPS has released a total number of 1163 vacancies under various posts. Talking about individual posts there are 670 vacancies that has been allotted for AFO and for IT officer 76 vacancies has been released. Therefore, all the candidates interested to apply can start preparing for the same, without waiting for the last moment.

IBPS SO Vacancies for I.T.Officer (Scale-I) 2019

Following are the bank-wise vacancies released for the post of IBPS SO I.T Officer (Scale I):

IBPS SO Vacancies for Agricultural Field Officer (Scale-I) 2019

Below is the bank-wise vacancies released for the post of IBPS SO AGRICULTURAL FIELD OFFICER (SCALE-I)

IBPS SO Vacancies for Rajbhasha Adhikari (Scale-I) 2019

Bank wise vacancies released for the post of IBPS SO RAJBHASHA ADHIKARI (SCALE-I) 2019 is mentioned below in the table:

IBPS SO Vacancies for Law Officer (Scale-I) 2019

Following are the bank-wise vacancies released for the post of IBPS SO LAW OFFICER (SCALE-I) 2019

IBPS SO Vacancies for HR/Personnel Officer (Scale-I) 2019

Bank wise vacancies released for the post of IBPS SO HR/PERSONNEL OFFICER (SCALE-I) 2019 are shown in the table below:

IBPS SO Vacancies for Marketing Officer (Scale-I) 2019

Following are the bank-wise vacancies released for the post of IBPS SO I.T Officer (Scale I):

IBPS SO 2019 is going to be among the important examinations that are most awaited by all the job aspirants. Everyone is going to prepare for this much awaited exam and give their best to get a stable and good job like that of a ‘Specialist Officer’. All of this will be useful only if you are able to apply for the job successfully and for that you should be well aware of the complete application process and clear out all the confusion,if you have any. The IBPS SO apply online procedure is mentioned below.

• Go to the official website of IBPS and click on the "CLICK HERE FOR REGISTRATION" tab provided on the top right corner of the page.

• You will be redirected to the first page of the IBPS SO application form where you will be required to fill in all the basic details and click on the Save & Next button to move forward.

• You will now be redirected to the second page of the form where you will be asked to upload your scanned passport size photograph and signature based on the specification mentioned therein and click on the next button.

• After you move on to the next page, you will have to fill in your personal details including your educational qualifications.

• The next step would be filling the exam centres preference list. You will be required to fill in 4 centres. Click on 'Save & Next'.

• After you are finished with entering the details, the preview of your form will be shown, so that if you find any error, you may edit and correct it. Once the application is submitted, you will not be able to edit it.

• At the end, you will have to choose a preferable online payment method to submit the application fee for IBPS PO. You can pay the fees through credit card / debit card / net banking etc.

• Click on the 'Submit' button to complete the application.

All those who will apply for IBPS SO Recruitment 2019 will have to complete the application process in the proper way. This implies that until and unless you make the fee payment, your application will be considered incomplete.You will have to choose any one of the online payment methods given there and pay the application fee for the exam. The fee amount will vary according to the category of candidates. The details are as follows:

Once the application process for IBPS SO 2019 will be completed, the next step will be releasing the admit cards for the Preliminary exam. The admit cards for IBPS SO will be released in the month of December as mentioned in the official IBPS SO  notification. The admit card of IBPS SO 2019 will contain all the details of the exam Centre including the exam venue, date, time and other exam related instructions. Candidates are advised to follow these instructions to avoid any last-minute tension. After the Prelims examination, the IBPS SO Mains 2019 will be held soon after for which the admit cards will be released in the month of January. The candidates will have to download/print a copy of the admit card from the official website of IBPS and bring a valid identity proof along with it to the exam venue.

Preparation of any exam should be accompanied by complete and extensive information related to the exam. An important exam like IBPS SO needs good preparation and information. By tracking the previous year exams that have been held in all the past years, gives a lot of clarity about the exam and its level. You can get a good idea about what to be expected from IBPS SO 2019, by referring to the IBPS SO cut-off for the previous year.

IBPS SO Final Cut-Off 2018-19: Category-wise

IBPS SO final merit list for each category with sectional cutoff in each section is given below. Check in the table for further details

Category wise Official Final IBPS SO Cut Off 2018-19

Since IBPS SO is held for various posts so each post has different cut off. The cut off for IT Officer (Scale I) and Agriculture Field Officer (Scale I) is given below:

Category-wise IBPS SO Cut Off Maximum IBPS SO Cut Off (Mains + Interview)

The total marks that constitutes the final merit of IBPS SO is the combination of the marks obtained by the candidate in the Mains objective type online mode exam and Interview. Given below is the final merit for IT Officer and Agriculture Field Officer Scale I

Category-wise IBPS SO Cut Off Minimum IBPS SO Cut Off (Reserve List)

IBPS also has a reserve list prepared on the basis of the marks obtained by the candidate. If a candidate miss the opportunity to enter in to the final merit list of IBPS SO he/she still has one chance to enter into the banking sector through this merit list. Further details in the table given below:

IBPS SO Cut off Mains 2017 – IT Officer Scale I

Besides having sectional cut off for each section IBPS SO also has Professional Knowledge cut off which is given below:

IBPS SO Cut off Mains 2017 – Agriculture Field Officer (Scale I)

Just like other post IBPS Agriculture Field Officer also has professional knowledge cut off which is listed in the table given below:

The IBPS SO notification 2019 has been released and all the candidates who are eligible and interested to apply for the post of Specialist Officer in one of the public sector banks (PSBs) can apply for the exam. The IBPS SO notification has declared the vacancies for various posts as mentioned above. IBPS AFO - Agriculture Field Officer - is one of the best jobs listed under IBPS SO vacancies. An IBPS AFO, just as the title of the job suggests, works as a ‘field officer’. Some of the job responsibilities of an AFO are:

• 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 has been increasing the level of its exams since few years owing to the competition and race among the aspirants to get a good job for themselves. Therefore it has become even more necessary to prepare in the best way possible. You should keep few points in mind:

• Know the syllabus and exam pattern.
• Strengthen your basics in all the subjects.
• Do not waste too much of time in doing so.
• Only knowledge doesn’t matter,speed also contributes to the performance of the exam.
• Practice as much as you can.
• Set practical goals.
• Make a time-table that suits your daily routine.
• Push your limits so that you may know what actually you are capable of.
• Do not overstress yourself.
• Take one at a time. Don’t try to gulp everything in an instant.
• Take short breaks.
• Do away with fixed strategies, make one that suits your routine, availability and capabilities.

There is a pool of information available online these days. You should know which source to refer to as you may get lost and waste your valuable time there. Blogs are one of the best sources of information in this online era. Educational blogs give you a clear idea and information related to almost all important exam these days. IBPS SO is one of these important examinations which is awaited by many and applied by a huge number of candidates. To get some information regarding IBPS SO, you can read the following blogs:

IBPS SO 2019 Notification Out: Vacancy, Exam Date and Other Details

IBPS SO : Some Important IT Questions

IBPS SO Final Results Declared: Check Your Results Now

IBPS SO (AFO) 2019: Reasoning- Short Preparation Tips

IBPS SO Pre: Tips and Tricks For The Night Before Exam

2019 IBPS PO vs IBPS SO – WHICH ONE TO CHOOSE?

IBPS SO (AFO) 2019: Reasoning- Short Preparation Tips

Gathering all information about the exam like the syllabus, exam pattern is a good step but it would not prove helpful if you do not accompany it with a good quality study material. Talking about the study material, books play a very important role even in this online digital era. To have a book by your side to refer at any point is always beneficial and you cannot totally do away with books. Therefore it is better to research well and get hold of some best quality books which guide you in the right direction and provide you with just the right information.

The online examination for IBPS SO 2019 will be conducted in the months of December 2019 and January 2020. All eligible candidates will have to start their preparation well as the IBPS SO 2019 notification has already been released but what will matter most is how well you actually sink in all that preparation and for how long does it stay, if you start preparing from now on. It is very important to check on your knowledge and for that you need a lot of practice. If this practice is accompanied by real exam experience, it would prove even more helpful and will let you ace the IBPS SO Exam. Practicing mock tests for IBPS SO is one such way through which you can make the most out of your daily practice along with learning more. If this practice comes with mock tests that are totally free, it adds on to your advantage in a better way. To get an edge over others ixamBee is providing 700+ free mock test series for IBPS SO 2019 exam. Candidates can visit the ixamBee website’s FMT (Free Mock Test) section and proceed to attempt the mock tests.

To Attempt Free Mock tests for IBPS So Please click here

IBPS SO being one of the most important exams, needs a thorough study and a good level of preparation. Being in a digital era, everyone today prefers going online where you may find an ocean of knowledge and information. You need to be sensible enough to select the useful sources of knowledge and information. Everyone can get directionless and lost seeing excess of information. Therefore, to give a set direction to your preparation ixamBee has come up with a comprehensive yet crisp IBPS AFO Online Course which will provide you with complete and correct information and resources that you need to qualify this important exam. This course is designed by ixamBee experts:

• Ms. Arunima Sinha (Coach for Banking exams for 6 years, Ex-Manager SIDBI, Ex-Bank PO)
• Mr. Chandraprakash Joshi (ex-AFO , ex-AGM RBI, MBA-Finance, PhD)
• Mr. Karan Sardana (Coach for Bank, SSC, Insurance, MAT, CLAT Exams for 12 years)
• Ms.Veena.M (B.Sc. Agri, MBA in Agri-Business Management).

IBPS AFO Online Course for 2019 consists of the following features:

• 375+ Video Lessons
• 6500+ practice questions in the form of Chapter Tests, Section Tests and Mock Tests are provided wherever required.
• 20 Full-Length Mock Tests
• Live Online Classes for Doubt Clarification
• Guidance for Prelims and Mains exam
• Special focus and coverage of topics from Agriculture
• Guidance for Interview Round

The IBPS AFO Online Course will be valid till final selection.

To know details about our IBPS SO AFO Online course, Please Click here

IBPS SO IT Officer Online Course for 2019 consist of the following features:

• 450+ Video Lessons
• 11,000+ Practice Questions
• Full Length Mock Test For Prelims and Mains
• 125+ Study notes in PDF format
• Live Classes for Doubt Clarification
• Guidance for Interview Round

The IBPS SO IT Online Course will be valid till selection

To know details about our IBPS SO IT Officer Online course, Please Click here

Question: Can those students who are appearing in final year of Graduation apply for any post in IBPS SO 2019 recruitment?

Answer: Yes. The candidates who have appeared for the final examinations and waiting for the results are eligible to appear in the IBPS SO selection process.

Question: In IBPS SO 2019 Exam, can I choose Hindi language as the exam language?

Answer: Yes, IBPS SO 2019 Exam is bilingual (i.e, Hindi & English). You can choose your preferred language accordingly.

Question: Is the IBPS SO 2019 Examination in ONLINE or OFFLINE mode?

Answer: IBPS SO 2019 Exam will be in online mode.

Question: Is there any sectional CUT-OFF in IBPS SO 2019 Exam ?

Answer: Yes, IBPS SO 2019 Exam will have sectional cut-off along with the overall cut-off.

Question: Is IBPS SO 2019 Job transferable?

Answer: Yes, IBPS SO is liable to be posted anywhere in India, also depending on the job profile and department being served.

Question: How many attempts are there in IBPS SO 2019 Exam ?

Answer: There is no such limit on the number of attempts for IBPS SO 2019 Exam. You can appear for this exam till the time you are eligible according to the eligibility criteria provided by IBPS in its notification.

Question: What is the age limit for IBPS SO post?

Answer: The minimum age of the candidates must be 20 years & maximum age limit is 30 years as on 1st November 2019.