ABOUT EXAM
To crack IBPS SO HR, you need a mock test series that helps you understand the exam structure, identify your strengths and weaknesses, and boost your confidence. Smartkeeda’s IBPS SO HR Officer Mock Tests offer exactly that. Designed by subject experts with extensive research and analysis of the past years' papers, this test series replicates the official IBPS SO HR exam in terms of both difficulty level and exam interface. It is a series of 10 full-length mock tests that offer bilingual support for aspirants, allowing them to attempt the tests in both English and Hindi.
IBPS SO 2026 Exam Overview
The Institute of Banking Personnel Selection (IBPS) conducts the IBPS SO examination every year to recruit Specialist Officers. For the IBPS SO 2026 cycle, the official notification will be released as per the IBPS examination calendar. The IBPS SO 2026 exam will be conducted in two stages – Preliminary and Main – to select eligible candidates for various Specialist Officer posts such as:
• Agriculture Field Officer• Marketing Officer (Scale I)
• HR/Personnel Officer
• IT Officer Scale I
• Law Officer
• RajbhashaAdhikari Scale I
This year IBPS has introduced 1590+ vacancies for various posts of Specialist Officers. Only a handful of vacancies are available for this post as the post of SO involves really skilled and specialized officers excelling in their respective domain. Let's have a look at the post wise total number of vacancies for IBPS SO 2026 Exam.
• IT Officer (Scale-I)- 219
• HR/Personnel Officer (Scale-I)- 81
• Rajbhasha Adhikari (Scale-I)- 69
• Marketing Officer (Scale-I)- 302
• Law Officer (Scale-I)- 75
• Agriculture Officer (Scale-I)- 853
EXAM PATTERN
IBPS SO HR Exam Pattern
• The exam will be conducted in three phases: Preliminary, Mains and Interview Process.
• IBPS has introduced separate sectional timing for each sections in prelims exam. The IBPS SO HR preliminary examination has a total duration of 120 minutes and 40 minutes for each sections.
• A candidate must appear for the Prelims first and the selected students after the Preliminary Exam will be eligible to give the Mains Exam.
• Score of Preliminary Exam will not be taken into consideration for final allotment. Final selection will be based on on the Mains Exam and Interview Process.
• The Mains Examination will contain questions only from the Professional Knowledge Subjects.
There is negative marking of 0.25 marks for each wrong answer.
| Section | Subject | No. of Question | Marks | Exam Duration |
| 1 | English Comprehension | 50 | 25 | 40 mins |
| 2 | Quantitative Aptitude | 50 | 50 | 40 mins |
| 3 | Reasoning Ability | 50 | 50 | 40 mins |
| Total | 100 | 125 | 120 mins | |
| Name of Test | Number of Questions | Maximum Marks | Medium of Exam | Duration |
| Professional Knowledge | 60 | 60 | English & Hindi | 45 minutes |
Candidates who qualify the Mains Exam will be finally called for the Interview Process by IBPS. It is really important for candidates to fare well in the Interview Process as the final selection of a candidate is based on how he/she fares in this final round of the IBPS SO HR Recruitment Process.