SSC CGL
SSC CG: The Staff Selection Commission (SSC) will conduct SSC CGL examination for recruitment group “B” and group “C” posts in various departments of the government. The Combined graduate level examination is organized on an annual basis. Interested candidates need to apply for the SSC CGL exam to be eligible for recruitment in the mentioned posts. The exam is one of the most popular recruitment exams in the country.
Every year lakhs of aspirants take this exam but only a few get through it. Therefore, proper planning and preparation are required to crack the exam. Through this post, aspirants will get information on the application form, the exam pattern, syllabus, eligibility criteria, and other aspects of it in a simplified manner. To know such details on the SSC CGL Examination, candidates are suggested to go through the complete article.
Eligibility Criteria for SSC CGL
- Age Limit: Varies from post to post.
- For the post of Assistant Audit Officer/ Assistant Accounts Officer: A candidate must hold a bachelor’s degree from a recognized university.
- Note: Chartered Accountant/ Cost & Management Accountant/ Company Secretary and the candidates with a Masters’ degree in Commerce/ Business Studies/ Business Administration (Finance)/ Business Economics can also apply.
- For the post of Junior Statistical Officer: A candidate must possess a Bachelor’s Degree in any subject from a recognized University/ Institute with at least 60% Marks in Mathematics in class 12th or a Bachelor’s Degree in any subject with Statistics as one of the subjects at degree level.
- For other posts: A candidate must hold a bachelor’s degree or its equivalent from a recognized University.
- Appearing Candidates: Candidates appearing in the final year are also eligible to apply for the exam. However, their degree must have been completed before 1st January.
SSC CGL Application Form
Candidates can apply for the SSC CGL only via online mode. To apply, candidates need to visit the official website of the SSC to fill the application form for the same. The details in the form must be filled carefully. Aspirants first need to register themselves before filling the application form (those who have previously given any of the exam conducted by SSC can use old registration ID and password to fill the form).Candidates will also need to upload the scanned photograph and signature while filling the form. They’ll also have to pay a requisite amount of application fee (except female candidates) to submit the form successfully. Applications received without the fee payment will be rejected.
Application Fee
Candidates need to pay Rs. 100/- payable through SBI Challan/ SBI Net Banking or by using Visa, MasterCard or Maestro Credit/ Debit card. The application fee is exempted for all Women candidates and candidates belonging to SC/ST and Ex-Servicemen eligible for reservation.
SSC CGL Exam Pattern
The SSC CGL Exam will be divided into the following Four Tiers –
Tier-I: The Tier-I exam will be a computer-based exam. It will contain 100 questions of 200 marks. For every right answer, candidates will be granted +2 marks whereas; in case of wrong answer 0.5 marks will be deducted. Candidates will be given one hour (60 minutes) to finish the test. VH/OH candidates will get extra 20 minutes.
Subject | Total Questions | Total Marks |
General Intelligence & Reasoning | 25 | 50 |
General Awareness | 25 | 50 |
Quantitative Aptitude | 25 | 50 |
English Comprehension | 25 | 50 |
Total | 100 | 200 |
Tier-II: This will also be a computer-based exam where 120 minutes will be given to the candidates to finish the test. There will be 4 Papers and it is mandatory for the candidates to appear in Paper-I & II. Paper-III will be for candidates who want to apply for JSO post. Paper-IV will be for only those candidates who are shortlisted in Tier-I for the posts of Assistant Audit Officer/ Assistant Accounts Officer.
Paper | Subject | Total Questions | Total Marks |
Paper-I | Quantitative Ability | 100 | 200 |
Paper-II | English Language & Comprehension | 200 | 200 |
Paper-III | Statistics | 100 | 200 |
Paper-IV | General Studies (Finance and Economic) | 100 | 200 |
Total | – | 500 | 800 |
Tier-III: This will be a pen and paper based exam where subjective questions on essay writing/precise writing/letter writing/application writing will be asked. It will carry 100 Marks.
Tier-IV: This exam will be a skill-based exam solely reserved for certain posts for example-
For the post of Tax Assistants (Central Excise & Income Tax) Data Entry Speed Test (DEST) at 8,000 (eight thousand) Key Depression per hour on Computer will be required.
The “Data Entry Speed Test” Skill Test will be conducted for a passage of about 2000 (two thousand) key depressions for a duration of 15 (fifteen) minutes.
The Computer Proficiency Test will comprise Word Processing, Spread Sheets and Generation of Slides.
SSC CGL Syllabus
Aspirants need to study for the exam as per the syllabus prescribed by the authority. For reference, candidates can check the syllabus mentioned below-
Syllabus for Tier I
- General Intelligence & Reasoning: Number series, non-verbal series, space visualization, spatial orientation, problem-solving, analysis, decision making, etc.
- General Awareness: Questions relating to Environment, India and its neighboring countries, Indian History, Culture, Geography, Economic Scene, General Policy & Scientific Research.
- Quantitative Aptitude: Simplification, Percentage, Averages, Interest, Ratio & Proportion, Square roots, Profit and Loss, Mixture and Allegation, Time and distance, Time & Work, Triangle, Quadrilaterals, etc.
- English Comprehension: Topics to test candidates’ ability to understand correct English, his/ her basic comprehension and writing ability, Grammar etc.
Syllabus for Tier II
- Quantitative Ability: Simplification, Percentage, Ratio & Proportion, Profit & Loss, Time & Work, Square roots, Averages, Interest, etc.
- English Language & Comprehension: Synonyms, antonyms, fill in the blanks, spelling/ detecting misspelled words, idioms & phrases, one-word substitution etc.
- Statistics: Probability Theory, Statistical Inference, Central Tendency, Dispersion, Sampling Theory, etc.
- General Studies (Finance & Economics): Demand and Supply, Fundamental principles and basic concept of Accounting, Production, and cost, Indian Economy, etc.
Preparation Strategies for SSC CGL Exam
- Regular Practice: Make a habit practicing previous year paper and mock test every day to improve your speed and accuracy. Solve previous year papers as there are many questions which are repeated.
- Build a Proper Study Plan: Follow a proper strategy and a time table for all the sections of question paper.
- Practice Important Topics: Students can look into the chapter-wise analysis mentioned above and focus on the important topics first.
- Focus on your weak areas: First try to focus on you weak areas and spend more time improving them. Devote more time to your weak areas and less time to your strong areas.
- Read the complete question first: Students are required to avoid the mistake of reading incomplete questions and arriving at incorrect answer eventually. Read the questions carefully and check what is being asked.
- Rule of Elimination: Use method of elimination in confusing options and try to get answers by it.
- Avoid any guess works: Guesswork may lead you to wrong answers and will increase negative marking. Also, don’t waste much time on one question and move onto the next if you are not sure about the correct answer.
- Time Management: Give more time to sections that you are stronger in. This will ensure that you can effectively use the time duration of the exam. Remember that there are no sectional time limits and no sectional cut offs. So your job is to simply maximize your score however you can.
- Try different strategy and select the best: Try different order of attempt patterns in your mock tests. Sometimes start with English Comprehension section first or sometime with Quantitative Aptitude section first or may be your toughest section first. See which strategy works best for you.