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The IBPS SO Exam Pattern 2025 is set as per the conventions set by the Institute of Banking Personnel Selection. IBPS SO Exam Pattern is going to help candidates prepare well for the upcoming IBPS SO Examination & strategize their preparation. Interested candidates should not waste their time and begin strategizing their preparation for the upcoming SO Recruitment. This article explains exam pattern for Agriculture Officers, Law Officers, Marketing Officers, Rajbhasha Adhikari, HR/Personnel Officers & IT Officers elaborately. Read further to know details of the type of questions, number of questions, and other important details of the IBPS SO Exam Pattern.
IBPS SO Exam Pattern 2025: Highlights
The IBPS SO Exam 2025 for the prelims examination will take place on 22nd November to 23rd November 2025. To prepare well for the exam candidates must be well aware of the IBPS SO Exam Pattern. Check the details of the Exam Pattern in the table below.
| IBPS SO Exam Pattern 2025 | |
| Conducting Body | Institute of Banking Personnel Selection (IBPS) |
| Post | Specialist Officer (SO) |
| Category | Exam Pattern |
| Selection Process | Prelims- Mains- Interview Round |
| Duration | Prelims- 120 minutes
Mains- 45 minutes/60 minutes |
| Negative Marking | ¼th marks |
| Official website | www.ibps.in |
IBPS Specialist Officer Exam Pattern 2025
IBPS SO is conducted by the Institute of Banking Personnel Selection to select eligible candidates for various posts like that of Agriculture Field Officer, Marketing Officer (Scale I), HR/Personnel Officer, IT Officer Scale I, Law Officer, and Rajbhasha Adhikari Scale I. The recruitment process to select a Specialist Officer through IBPS SO 2025 is done in three phases:
- Online Preliminary Exam,
- Online Mains Exam and
- Interview
A candidate must qualify for both the preliminary exam and the main exam to proceed to the interview round. The candidates selected after the interview round are given the appointment letter as Specialist Officers (SO). Let’s have a look at the detailed Exam Pattern for multiple posts offered through IBPS SO Exam.
IBPS SO Prelims Exam Pattern 2025
Given below is the IBPS SO Exam Pattern of Prelims with respect to various posts of Rajbhasha Adhikari and for other Specialist Officers (Agriculture Field Officer, Marketing Officer (Scale I), HR/Personnel Officer, IT Officer Scale I.
Exam Pattern for the post of Law Officer and Rajbhasha Adhikari
| Serial No | Section | No. of Questions | Total Marks | Duration |
| 1. | Reasoning | 50 | 50 | 40 minutes |
| 2. | English Language | 50 | 25 | 40 minutes |
| 3. | General Awareness with Special Reference to Banking Industry | 50 | 50 | 40 minutes |
| Total | 150 | 125 | 120 minutes | |
Exam Pattern for other Specialist Officers (Agriculture Field Officer, Marketing Officer (Scale I), HR/Personnel Officer, IT Officer Scale I
| Serial No | Section | No. of Questions | Total Marks | Duration |
| 1. | Reasoning | 50 | 50 | 40 minutes |
| 2. | English Language | 50 | 25 | 40 minutes |
| 3. | Quantitative Aptitude | 50 | 50 | 40 minutes |
| Total | 150 | 125 | 120 minutes | |
Note:- Candidates have to qualify in each of the three tests by securing minimum cut-off marks to be decided by IBPS. The adequate number of candidates in each category as decided by IBPS depending upon requirements will be shortlisted for Online Main Examination.
IBPS SO Mains Exam Pattern 2025
The IBPS SO Mains Exam Pattern is different for different posts. Candidates can check the post-wise IBPS SO Mains Exam Pattern below. Candidates who qualify IBPS SO Prelims round will be able to appear for the IBPS SO Mains. Check the details of IBPS SO Mains Exam Pattern below.
IBPS SO Mains Exam Pattern 2025 for the Post of Law Officer:
| Name of Test | Number of Questions | Maximum Marks | Medium of Exam | Duration |
| Professional Knowledge Related to Law | 60 | 60 | English & Hindi | 45 minutes |
IBPS SO Mains Exam Pattern for the Post of Rajyabhasha Adhikari:
| Name of Test | Number of Questions | Maximum Marks | Medium of Exam | Duration |
| Professional Knowledge (Objective) | 45 | 60 | English & Hindi | 30 minutes |
| Professional Knowledge (Descriptive) | 2 | English & Hindi | 30 minutes |
IBPS SO Mains Exam Pattern for the Post of IT Officer:
| Name of Test | Number of Questions | Maximum Marks | Medium of Exam | Duration |
| Professional Knowledge Related to IT | 60 | 60 | English & Hindi | 45 minutes |
IBPS SO Mains Exam Pattern for the Post of Agriculture Field Officer:
| Name of Test | Number of Questions | Maximum Marks | Medium of Exam | Duration |
| Professional Knowledge Related to Agriculture | 60 | 60 | English & Hindi | 45 minutes |
IBPS SO Mains Exam Pattern for the Post of Marketing Officer:
| Name of Test | Number of Questions | Maximum Marks | Medium of Exam | Duration |
| Professional Knowledge Marketing Officer | 60 | 60 | English & Hindi | 45 minutes |
IBPS SO Mains Exam Pattern for the Post of HR/Personnel Officer:Â
| Name of Test | Number of Questions | Maximum Marks | Medium of Exam | Duration |
| Professional Knowledge Related to HR | 60 | 60 | English & Hindi | 45 minutes |
Note- Penalty for Wrong Answers (Applicable to both – Online Preliminary and Online Main examinations). There will be a penalty for wrong answers marked in the Objective Tests. For each question for which a wrong answer has been given by the candidate one-fourth or 0.25 of the marks assigned to that question will be deducted as a penalty to arrive at a corrected score. If a question is left blank, i.e. no answer is marked by the candidate, there will be no penalty for that question.
IBPS SO Exam Pattern 2025: Interview Process
After the IBPS SO Mains exam, qualified candidates are called for a Personal Interview. Personal Interview comprises a good value for the final selection of IBPS SO. It contains 20% weight-age in the merit list. Candidates need to do well in IBPS SO Interview.
IBPS SO Exam Pattern: Important Points
Candidates can check important points of the IBPS SO Exam Pattern of Prelims & Mains.
- The IBPS SO 2025 exam pattern for selecting candidates for Rajbhasha Adhikari Scale I and Law Officer is the same.
- The Exam Pattern for all the other posts is different from the exam pattern of the Law Officer and Rajbhasha Adhikari Officer.
- The Mains Examination will have just one section, i.e. of Professional Knowledge
- Only three sections will be asked in the Preliminary Exam of the IBPS SO 2025 Exam.
- For Rajbhasha Adhikari and Law Officer prelims, the sections asked are English Language, Reasoning, and General Awareness.
- For other posts, the sections asked are English Language, Reasoning, and Quantitative Aptitude.
- The score of the Preliminary Exam will not be taken into consideration for the final selection. A cumulative score of the Mains Exam and Interview process in the ratio of 80:20 will be taken into consideration for final allotment.
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