Check Marking Scheme, Duration & Negative Marking

IBPS SO Exam Pattern 2025: The Institute of Banking Personnel Selection (IBPS) conducts the IBPS Specialist Officer (SO) exam to recruit eligible candidates for various specialist roles in public sector banks across India. The IBPS SO Prelims 2025 is scheduled to be held tomorrow, August 30, to fill a total of 1007 vacancies in different departments such as IT Officer, Agricultural Field Officer, HR/Personnel Officer, Marketing Officer, Law Officer, and Rajbhasha Adhikari. To succeed in this highly competitive exam, candidates need to understand the detailed IBPS SO exam pattern. 

Knowing the IBPS SO Prelims Pattern will acquaint candidates with essential information such as the marking scheme, paper structure and IBPS SO time duration. In this article, we provide a complete overview of the IBPS SO exam pattern, including the prelims, mains, and interview stages, to help aspirants prepare with clarity and confidence.

IBPS SO Exam Pattern 2025

A clear grasp of the exam pattern is crucial for effective preparation. IBPS SO exam is divided into three stages: Prelims, Mains, and Interview. Aspirants must clear all stages to get recruited for Specialist Officer posts in the 11 participating banks. To learn more about it in detail, you must go through this article, as it entails all the details regarding the IBPS SO 2025 Exam Pattern.

IBPS SO Prelims Exam Pattern

The preliminary round is the first stage that candidates need to qualify to get recruited as Specialist Officer in private sector banks. It is conducted in online mode and comprises three sections: Reasoning, English, and General Awareness. 

• IBPS SO Prelims exam comprises 150 multiple-choice questions for 125 marks.

• There is a separate sectional timing for each section.

• Candidates need to qualify prelims to proceed to the mains.

• Score of IBPS SO Preliminary exam will not be taken into consideration for final allotment. Selection of candidates is done based on their marks in the Mains and Interview. 

For the post of Law Officer & Rajbhasha Adhikari

For other Specialist Officers (Agriculture Field Officer, Marketing Officer (Scale I), HR/Personnel Officer, IT Officer Scale I

IBPS SO Exam Pattern 2025 Mains

Through IBPS SO Mains, candidates’ knowledge of professional subjects is tested. Candidates who qualify will be eligible to appear for the final stage, i.e. interview. It is important to note that the selection of candidates will be based on their performance in Mains and Interview.

For the Posts of Law Officer, IT Officer, Agriculture Field Officer, HR/Personnel Officer and Marketing Officer

For the Post of Rajbhasha Adhikari

IBPS SO Marking Scheme

IBPS SO is conducted in three stages: Prelims, Mains, and Interview. In the Prelims and Mains stages, each section carries a different weightage depending on the post applied for. However, the marking scheme remains the same across both stages. 

• Each correct answer carries 1 mark, while 0.25 marks are deducted for every incorrect answer. 

• No marks are awarded or deducted for unattempted questions. 

Only candidates who qualify in the Prelims will be shortlisted for the Mains, and the Mains score plays a crucial role in the final selection process.

What is IBPS SO Negative Marking

As per the marking scheme mentioned in the official notification, there is a negative marking of 0.25 marks in IBPS SO exam. It is important to note that the prelims marks will not be included in the final selection.

IBPS SO Exam Time

The exam duration for the IBPS SO varies by stage and section:

IBPS SO Prelims Exam Time: The total time is 120 minutes (2 hours), divided into three sections. Each section is time-bound with 40 minutes allocated per section.

IBPS SO Exam Time Mains: The duration for the Mains exam differs depending on the post:

• For Rajbhasha Adhikari, the time is 60 minutes (objective + descriptive).

• For other posts like IT Officer, Law Officer, HR, etc., the exam duration is 45 minutes (only objective).