IFSCA Grade A Exam Pattern 2024

To do well in the IFSCA Assistant Manager exam, it is essential that you are well acquainted with the IFSCA Grade A exam pattern 2024. The exam pattern IFSCA exam will consist of three phases:

  • Phase 1- Online Exam
  • Phase 2- Online Exam
  • Phase 3- Interview

Let’s look at the IFSCA Grade A exam pattern 2024 in detail below.

IFSCA Grade A Phase 1 Exam Pattern

Phase 1 of the IFSCA Grade A exam comprises 2 papers, which will consist of multiple-choice questions. You are required to secure a minimum cut-off of 30% in Paper 1 and 40% in Paper 2. Apart from that, you also need to secure an aggregate cut-off of 40% in the Phase 1 exam to be shortlisted for the next phase, i.e Phase 2.

Furthermore, the IFSCA Grade A Phase 1 exam will be qualifying in nature and marks obtained by the candidates in Phase 1 will not be counted for final selection. Please refer to the table below for more details on the IFSCA Grade A Phase 1 exam pattern 2024.

PaperSubjectNo. of QuestionsMaximum MarksDurationCut Off
Paper 1 General awareness (financial sector) 25 25 1 hour 30%
English language 25 25
Quantitative Aptitude 25 25
Test of Reasoning 25 25
Total 100 100    
Paper 2 General knowledge, Current events of national and international importance, Economic and social development (sustainable development, poverty, inclusion, and demographics), Commerce, Accountancy, Management, Finance and costing, Indian Economy, Global Economy, Five-year plans, Central Government’s initiatives/ Schemes in the financial sector. 50 100 1 hour 40%

IFSCA Grade A Phase 2 Exam Pattern

Phase 2 of the IFSCA Assistant Manager also comprises 2 papers. Paper 1 will consist of a Descriptive English Test, while Paper 2 will consist of multiple-choice questions.

The minimum cut-off for Paper 1 is 30%, and for Paper 2 the minimum cut-off is 40%. Furthermore, you also need to secure an aggregate cut-off of 40% in Phase 2 to be shortlisted for the Interview. The details of the IFSCA Grade A Phase 2 exam pattern are given below.

PaperSubjectNo. of QuestionsMaximum MarksDurationCut OffWeightage
Paper 1 Precis Writing 35 100 1 hour 30% 1/3rd
Essay Writing 30
Comprehension 35
Total 100 100  
Paper 2 IFSCA Act, Union Budget, Economic Survey, Banking, Capital Market, Insurance, Pension Funds, Bullion, GIFT City, GIFT IFSC, IFSCA, Global Financial Centres etc. 50 100 1 hour 40% 2/3rd

IFSCA Grade A Interview

Candidates who qualify for the Phase 2 exam, will be called for the third and final round, i.e Interview. Candidates up to 3 times the number of vacancies will be called for an interview. The weightage of marks obtained in Phase 2 and Interview will be 85:15.

IFSCA Grade A Marking Scheme

The IFSCA Grade A Phase 1 exam will have objective-type questions in both papers, whereas, in the case of Phase 2, only Paper 2 will have objective-type questions. The IFSCA Grade A exam will carry a negative marking for every wrong answer. Refer to the table below for more information on the IFSCA Assistant Manager marking scheme.

IFSCA Officer Grade A (Assistant Manager) Marking Scheme 2024

Marking SchemeConsidered Marks
For correct answers
  • Phase 1 Paper 1 - 1 marks each question
  • Phase 1 Paper 2 & Phase 2 Paper 2 - 2 marks each quetion
For wrong answers -0.25/ 1/4 of marks assigned to the question
For not attempted 0 (no marks)

Exam language

It is important to note that all questions in IFSCA Grade A exam, except the Test of English Language in Phase 1 & Descriptive Test of English in Phase 2, will be bilingual i.e. in English and Hindi.