The Institute of Banking Personnel Selection (IBPS) has released notification regarding IBPS specialist officer exam to recruit 1800+ posts of Specialist Officers. Last year, the total number of vacancies was 647. Last date to apply online for IBPS SO 2021 is 23 November 2021. IBPS specialist officer 2021 exam will be conducted on 26 December 2021 (preliminary Exam) and on 30 January 2022 (Main Exam).
IBPS SO Vacancy 2021
The vacancies have been released for the following Specialist officer posts:
- IT Officer (Scale I)
- Law Officer (Scale I)
- Agriculture Field Officer
- Marketing Officer (Scale I)
- HR/Personnel Officer (Scale I)
- Law Officer (Scale I)
- Rajbhasha Adhikari (Scale I)
IBPS has introduced 1828 Specialist Officers (SO) vacancies for IBPS SO 2021 exam. Let’s have a look at the post wise total number of vacancies for IBPS SO 2021.
| Name of Post | No. of Vacancies |
| IT Officer (Scale-I) | 220 |
| Agriculture Officer (Scale-I) | 884 |
| Marketing Office (Scale-I) | 535 |
| Law Officer (Scale-I) | 44 |
| HR/Personnel Officer (Scale-I) | 61 |
| Rajbhasha Adhikari (Scale-I) | 84 |
| Total | 1828 |
IBPS SO 2021 Exam Dates
IBPS SO 2021 notification is out. Interested candidates can apply online by 23 November 2021. Preliminary exam for IBPS SO 2021 is scheduled to be conducted for 26 December 2021 and the Mains examination will be conducted on 30 January 2022. Let’s have a look at the important dates for IBPS SO 2021.
| IBPS SO 2021 Activity | Dates |
| IBPS SO 2021 Notification | 2nd November 2021 |
| Online Registration Starts From | 3rd November 2021 |
| Last Date to Apply Online for IBPS SO | 23rd November 2021 |
| Call letters for Online examination – Preliminary | December 2021 |
| Commencement of IBPS SO Preliminary Exam | 26th December 2021 |
| Result of IBPS SO Online exam – Preliminary | January 2022 |
| Call letters for Online examination – Mains | January 2022 |
| Commencement of IBPS SO Mains Exam | 30th January 2022 |
| Result of IBPS SO Online Mains Exam | February 2022 |
| Conduct of Interview | February 2022/March 2022 |
| IBPS SO 2021 Final Result | April 2022 |
IBPS SO 2021 Eligibility Criteria
The IBPS SO eligibility criteria is different for recruiting candidates to different positions for which the candidates are selected through IBPS SO 2021 Exam. There are three parameters (citizenship, age limit and educational qualification) that a candidate needs to fulfill to be eligible for IBPS SO 2021 Exam.
The Citizenship Criteria for a candidate to be eligible for IBPS SO 2021 exam is discussed below:
| Citizenship Criteria | • A resident of India • A subject of Nepal • Tibetan refugees who came to India before 1st January 1962 and have planned to settle in India permanently • A subject of Indian Origin migrated from Burma, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Uganda, Kenya, United Republic of Tanzania, Namibia, Ethiopia, Zambia, Malawi, Zaire and Vietnam |
Educational Qualifications (As on 23.11.2021)
The educational qualification is different for all these different posts.
| S. No. | Name of the Post | Age | Educational Qualification |
| 1. | I.T. Officer (Scale I) | Min – 20 years Max – 30 years | 1)Four years engineering/Technology degree in Computer Science/IT/Computer Application/Electronics and Communication Engineering/Electronics and Telecommunication/ Electronics and Instrumentation OR 2) Post Graduate Degree in Computer Science/IT/Computer Application/Electronics and Communication Engineering/Electronics and Telecommunication/ Electronics and Instrumentation OR Graduates having passed DOEACC ‘B’ level exam |
| 2. | Agricultural Field Officer (Scale-I) | Min – 20 years Max – 30 years | 4 years graduation degree in agriculture/ Horticulture/ Animal Husbandry/ Veterinary Science/ dairy Science/ Agricultural engineering/ Fishery Science/ Pisciculture/ Agri Marketing and cooperation/ Co-Operation and Banking/ Agro-Forestry |
| 3. | Rajbhasha Adhikari (Scale I) | Min – 20 years Max – 30 years | Post Graduate in Hindi with English as a subject at the graduation or degree level OR Post Graduate Degree in Sanskrit with English and Hindi as a subject at graduation level |
| 4. | Law Office (Scale I) | Min – 20 years Max – 30 years | A bachelor’s degree in Law and enrolled as an advocate with Bar Council |
| 5. | HR/Personnel Officer (Scale I) | Min – 20 years Max – 30 years | Graduate and Full Time Post Graduate Degree or Full time Diploma in Personnel Management/ Industrial Relation/ HR/ HRD/ Social Work/ Labour Law |
| 6. | Marketing Officer (Scale I) | Min – 20 years Max – 30 years | Graduate and Full Time MMS (Marketing)/ MBA (Marketing)/Full time PGDBA/ PGDBM with specialization in Marketing |
IBPS SO Age Limit (As on 01.11.2021)
A candidate is required to be of minimum 20 years to be eligible for IBPS SO exam. The maximum age limit is 30 years. Candidates belonging to reserved categories are given age relaxation. The category wise age relaxation given to candidates for the post of IBPS SO is given below:
| S. No. | Category | Age Relaxation |
| 1. | Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe (SC/ST) | 5 years |
| 2. | Other Backward Class (OBC) | 3 years |
| 3. | Person with Disability (PWD) | 10 years |
| 4. | Ex-Servicemen/Commissioned Officers including ECOS (Emergency Commissioned Officers)/ SSCOs (Short Service Commissioned Officers) 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 1 year from last date of receipt of application) otherwise than by the way of dismissal/discharge on the account of misconduct/inefficiency/physical disability attributable to military service | 5 years |
| 5. | Person ordinarily domiciled in the Jammu and Kashmir province during the period 1.01.1980 and 31.12.1989 | 5 years |
| 6. | Person affected by 1984 riots | 5 years |
IBPS SO 2021 Selection Process
The IBPS SO 2021 is done in three phases:
- Online Preliminary Exam
- Online Mains Exam
- Interview Process
A candidate must qualify both preliminary exam and main exam to proceed to the interview round. The candidates selected after the interview round are given the appointment letter.
IBPS SO 2021 Exam Pattern
Separate Sectional cut-off: IBPS SO exam has separate sectional timing for each section in preliminary exam. The preliminary exam is of qualifying nature and candidates will have to meet the cut-offs to be eligible to appear for main exam.
IBPS SO 2021 Prelims Exam Pattern: Exam pattern depends on the posts. Exam pattern for different posts are given below-
IBPS SO Exam Pattern For the post of IT Officer, Agriculture Field Officer, HR/Personnel Officer and Marketing Officer
| Sr. No. | Name of Tests | No. of Questions | Max. Marks | Medium of Exam | Duration |
| 1 | English Language | 50 | 25 | English | 40 minutes |
| 2 | Reasoning | 50 | 50 | English and Hindi | 40 minutes |
| 3 | Quantitative Aptitude | 50 | 50 | English and Hindi | 40 minutes |
| Total | 150 | 125 | 120 minutes |
IBPS SO Exam Pattern for the post of Law Officer and Rajbhasha Adhikari
| No. | Name of Tests | No. of Questions | Max. Marks | Medium of Exam | Duration |
| 1 | English Language | 50 | 25 | English | 40 minutes |
| 2 | Reasoning | 50 | 50 | English and Hindi | 40 minutes |
| 3 | General Awareness with Special Reference to Banking Industry | 50 | 50 | English and Hindi | 40 minutes |
| Total | 150 | 125 | 120 minutes |
IBPS SO Exam Cut Off
The IBPS SO Cut Off 2021 will be released after each phase of examination has been conducted. Let’s have a look at previous years cut-off for IBPS SO Exam
IBPS SO Prelims cut off
Let’s have look at the sectional cut off for IBPS SO preliminary exam. A candidate needs to qualify in individual section and then overall cutoff for prelims is done.
IBPS SO 2020 Prelims Cutoff – Sectional
Below are the post wise sectional cut-offs for IBPS SO Prelims exam that was conducted on 26 & 27 December 2020:
IT Officer (Scale-I)
| S.No. | Name of Test | Max Marks | SC/ST/OBC/PWBD | EWS/General |
| 1 | English Language | 25 | 6.00 | 8.75 |
| 2 | Reasoning | 50 | 5.00 | 9.00 |
| 3 | General Awareness | 50 | 7.00 | 11.00 |
AGRICULTURAL FIELD OFFICER (SCALE I)
| S.No. | Name of Test | Max Marks | SC/ST/OBC/PWBD | EWS/General |
| 1 | English Language | 25 | 2.75 | 5.25 |
| 2 | Reasoning | 50 | 2.50 | 5.50 |
| 3 | General Awareness | 50 | 5.75 | 9.75 |
RAJBHASHA ADHIKARI (SCALE I)
| S.No. | Name of Test | Max Marks | SC/ST/OBC/PWBD | EWS/General |
| 1 | English Language | 25 | 3.50 | 6.00 |
| 2 | Reasoning | 50 | 1.25 | 5.00 |
| 3 | General Awareness | 50 | 3.75 | 7.00 |
LAW OFFICER (SCALE I)
| S.No. | Name of Test | Max Marks | SC/ST/OBC/PWBD | EWS/General |
| 1 | English Language | 25 | 4.75 | 7.50 |
| 2 | Reasoning | 50 | 3.00 | 7.50 |
| 3 | General Awareness | 50 | 5.50 | 8.50 |
HR/PERSONNEL OFFICER (SCALE I)
| S.No. | Name of Test | Max Marks | SC/ST/OBC/PWBD | EWS/General |
| 1 | English Language | 25 | 6.00 | 8.75 |
| 2 | Reasoning | 50 | 5.00 | 9.00 |
| 3 | General Awareness | 50 | 7.00 | 11.00 |
MARKETING OFFICER (SCALE I)
| S.No. | Name of Test | Max Marks | SC/ST/OBC/PWBD | EWS/General |
| 1 | English Language | 25 | 6.00 | 8.75 |
| 2 | Reasoning | 50 | 5.00 | 9.00 |
| 3 | General Awareness | 50 | 7.00 | 11.00 |
IBPS SO 2019 Prelims Cutoff – Sectional
| Section | Max Marks | General Cut off | SC/ST/OBC/PwD Cut off |
| English | 25 | 8 | 06.75 |
| Reasoning | 50 | 11.25 | 08.75 |
| General Awareness / Quantitative Aptitude | 50 | 09.50 | 07.50 |
IBPS SO 2018 Prelims Cutoff – Sectional
| Section | Max Marks | General | SC/ST/OBC/PwD |
| English | 25 | 4.75 | 2.50 |
| Reasoning | 50 | 15.25 | 10 |
| General Awareness / Quantitative Aptitude | 50 | 16.75 | 11.50 |
Let’s look at the overall cut off for IBPS SO preliminary exam.
IBPS SO 2020 Prelims Cut off (Overall)
| POST | SC | ST | OBC | UR | HI | OC | VI | ID |
| I.T. OFFICER (SCALE I) | 67.25 | 61.13 | 71.75 | 75.88 | 20.88 | 22.13 | 21.88 | 24.00 |
| AGRICULTURAL FIELD OFFICER(SCALE I) | 39.75 | 36 | 40.88 | 40.88 | 14.38 | 39.25 | 27.38 | 25.50 |
| RAJBHASHA ADHIKARI (SCALE I) | 20.75 | 20.75 | 20.75 | 20.75 | NA | 12.75 | 38.75 | NA |
| LAW OFFICER (SCALE I) | 39.00 | 36.25 | 40.88 | 47.50 | NA | 21.88 | 26.50 | 33.00 |
| HR/ PERSONNEL OFFICER (SCALE I) | 61.00 | 63.00 | 61.88 | 63.00 | 44.75 | 25.63 | 22.25 | 29.88 |
| MARKETING OFFICER (SCALE I) | 53.00 | 44.88 | 53.75 | 53.75 | 21.13 | 29.88 | 22.13 | NA |
IBPS SO 2019 Prelims Cut off (Overall)
| Category | Cut Off |
| General (Gen) | 91.88 |
| Scheduled Caste | 83.25 |
| Scheduled Tribe | 73 |
| OBC | 89.50 |
| Visually Impaired | 74 |
| Hearing Impaired | 52 |
IBPS SO 2018 Prelims cut off (Overall)
| Category | Prelims Cut Off Marks |
| General | 89.88 |
| SC | 81.25 |
| ST | 70 |
| OBC | 87.50 |
| VI | 70 |
| HI | 49 |
| ID | 48.25 |
| OC | 83.38 |
Candidates who qualify IBPS SO prelims are allowed to appear in main exam and thereafter interview.