IBPS SO 2026 Preliminary Exam will be held on 29 August 2026 and the Mains Exam on 1 November 2026, as per the IBPS Exam Calendar 2026–27 released by the Institute of Banking Personnel Selection (IBPS).

The official notification is expected in June–July 2026, while vacancies will be declared in the detailed advertisement.

Selection process: Prelims (qualifying) → Mains (Professional Knowledge) → Interview, with final merit calculated as Mains 80% + Interview 20%.

Official website: https://www.ibps.in

IBPS SO (Specialist Officer) recruitment is a centralized exam conducted by IBPS to recruit domain specialists (Scale I officers) in Public Sector Banks.

Unlike PO or Clerk exams:

• Focuses on professional/domain knowledge
• Recruits for specialist roles
• Offers structured domain growth
• Has lower applicant pool compared to PO

1. IT Officer (Scale I)
2. Agricultural Field Officer (AFO)
3. Law Officer
4. HR/Personnel Officer
5. Marketing Officer
6. Rajbhasha Adhikari

• Bank of Baroda
• Bank of India
• Bank of Maharashtra
• Canara Bank
• Central Bank of India
• Indian Bank
• Indian Overseas Bank
• Punjab National Bank
• Punjab & Sind Bank
• UCO Bank
• Union Bank of India

📌 Vacancies will be declared in the detailed notification.

As of now:

❗ IBPS has NOT declared vacancy numbers for the 2026 cycle.

Based on previous trends:

• Total vacancies generally range between 800–1200 posts
• AFO and Marketing usually have higher numbers
• HR and Rajbhasha typically have limited seats

Update vacancy section immediately once official notification PDF releases.

Stage 1 – Preliminary Exam (qualifying)
Stage 2 – Mains Exam (Professional Knowledge)
Stage 3 – Interview

• Mains: 80%
• Interview: 20%

Prelims marks are NOT counted in final ranking.

Interview Marks: 100
Minimum qualifying:

• General: 40%
• Reserved categories: 35%

Negative marking: 0.25 marks per wrong answer.

Sectional cut-off applies.

• DBMS (Normalization, SQL queries)
• Networking (OSI model, TCP/IP)
• Operating Systems
• OOP Concepts
• Data Structures
• Software Engineering
• Cyber Security Basics

• Agronomy
• Soil Science
• Animal Husbandry
• Agricultural Schemes
• Dairy & Horticulture

• Banking Laws
• SARFAESI Act
• NI Act
• Consumer Protection Act
• Company Law Basics

• HRM
• Industrial Relations
• Labour Laws
• Performance Management
• Compensation

• Marketing Mix
• Branding
• Sales Strategy
• Consumer Behaviour
• Digital Marketing

• Hindi Grammar
• Translation
• Essay & Letter Writing

Based on previous IBPS SO cycles, the application fee structure is expected to remain:

✔ Fee is payable online only.
✔ Once paid, fee is non-refundable.
✔ Bank transaction charges (if any) are borne by candidate.

Final confirmation will be in the official notification.

• Minimum: 20 Years
• Maximum: 30 Years

Exact cut-off date for age calculation will be mentioned in notification.

1️⃣ Visit official website ibps.in
2️⃣ Click on IBPS SO 2026 Apply Online
3️⃣ Register with email & mobile number
4️⃣ Fill personal, educational & post preference details
5️⃣ Upload:

• Photograph
• Signature
• Left thumb impression
• Handwritten declaration
  6️⃣ Pay application fee online
  7️⃣ Submit and download confirmation page

📌 Ensure educational qualification matches the post exactly.

• Scanned photograph
• Scanned signature
• Left thumb impression
• Handwritten declaration
• Valid ID proof
• Category certificate (if applicable)

After 5 years, salary can exceed ₹90,000 depending on promotion and location.

Best for: Engineers, MBAs, Agriculture grads, Law grads.

✔ Start Professional Knowledge from Day 1
✔ Divide preparation 60% PK + 40% Prelims
✔ Attempt weekly mock tests
✔ Revise short notes daily
✔ Prepare 30–40 domain interview questions

• Ignoring Professional Knowledge
• Studying only Prelims
• No mock practice
• Weak banking awareness
• Not revising domain fundamentals

1. When will IBPS SO 2026 notification release?
   → Expected June–July 2026.
2. What is IBPS SO 2026 exam date?
   → Prelims: 29 Aug 2026, Mains: 1 Nov 2026.
3. Is IBPS SO tougher than PO?
   → Domain-wise yes, overall competition lower.
4. Are Prelims marks counted?
   → No.
5. What is interview weightage?
   → 20%.
6. What is age limit?
   → 20–30 years.
7. Can freshers apply?
   → Yes (if eligible degree).
8. What is salary?
   → ₹70,000+ gross.
9. Is there negative marking?
   → Yes, 0.25 per wrong answer.
10. How many vacancies?
    → Not yet declared.
11. Is interview compulsory?
    → Yes.
12. What is probation period?
    → Usually 2 years.
13. Can engineers apply?
    → Yes (IT Officer).
14. Is sectional cut-off there?
    → Yes.
15. What is exam mode?
    → Online.
16. Which post has highest vacancy usually?
    → AFO / Marketing.
17. Is IBPS SO job transferable?
    → Yes, within bank norms.
18. Is it permanent job?
    → Yes.
19. Is coaching necessary?
    → Helpful but not mandatory.
20. Where to apply?
    → ibps.in