BSSC Inter Level 2025: exam pattern, marks, negative marking, age limit

Every figure on this page is copied from an official document linked next to it, with the date we last checked it. Pattern, age limit and dates are from the Advt. No. 02/23 (A) (Second Inter Level Combined Competitive Examination) notification. Last verified: 24 October 2026.

At a glance

Selection stages: Preliminary Examination → Main Examination → Typing / Computer Test
First stage: Questions / Marks / Time: 150 / 600 / 135 min
Negative marking: 1 mark is deducted for each wrong answer. Each correct answer gets 4 marks.
Tentative vacancies: 26,426 (as on 13 February 2026)

Weekly live mock: Sunday, 8 November 2026, 10:00–12:00 IST · 50 questions in 60 minutes, one paper for everyone · Sit it in the Android app →

Exam pattern

Preliminary Examination

Applies to: All candidates (held when more than 40,000 applications are received)

General Knowledge (one paper)

Section	Questions	Marks each	Marks	Time (min)
General Studies; General Science and Mathematics; Mental Ability Test (one paper)	150	4	600	—
Total	150		600	135

Time allowed: 135 minutes. Negative marking: 1 mark is deducted for each wrong answer. Each correct answer gets 4 marks.

Objective multiple-choice questions in three parts: (a) General Studies, (b) General Science and Mathematics, (c) Mental Ability Test (Comprehension/Logic/Reasoning/Mental Ability). The notice gives 150 questions and 4 marks for each correct answer. It does not print the paper's total marks or the number of questions in each part.
Open-book exam: under rule 12 of the BSSC Examination Conduct Rules, 2010, the Preliminary examination is held with books. A candidate may bring three books, one for each part: General Studies, Mathematics and General Science. Only textbooks of NCERT, BSEB, ICSE and other boards are allowed. Guides, photocopies, handwritten notes and electronic devices are not. Candidates must write their name and roll number on the books, and nothing else may be written in them.
The medium is Hindi/English. If the Hindi and English questions differ, the English version is taken as correct. The written exam may be held online (computer based test) or offline.
Candidates equal to 5 times the category-wise vacancies are chosen for the Main examination. If the exam is held in more than one phase, results are prepared by normalisation. Candidates with equal marks are ranked by age (the older one first), then by name from A to Z. The notice does not say whether Preliminary marks count in the final merit.
Duly engaged contract employees get a weightage of up to 5 marks for each year of satisfactory contract service, at most 25 marks, only for the same post they served on under contract. It is given in both the Preliminary and the Main examination.

Main Examination

Applies to: Candidates chosen from the Preliminary examination (5 times the category-wise vacancies)

Main Examination (pattern to be announced)

The Commission will publish a separate advertisement for the Main examination and will then ask candidates for their order of post preference. This notice does not give the Main examination's papers, marks or time. Section 7 of the notice is headed 'Nature of the examination: objective'.

Typing / Computer Test

Applies to: Candidates who pass the Main examination

Typing / Computer Test

Candidates who pass the Main examination must take a typing/computer test. The Commission will give its details after the written examination. The notice does not say whether the test is qualifying only.

Source: Advt. No. 02/23 (A): Revised advertisement of the Second Inter Level Combined Competitive Examination, Bihar Staff Selection Commission (published 27 September 2025), with the corrigenda of 15 December 2025, 29 January 2026 and 13 February 2026 ↗ · Last verified: 24 October 2026 · Report an error

Free BSSC Inter Level mock tests in this official pattern →

Syllabus: subjects tested

The subjects in short, as the official syllabus lists them. The exam body's own notification is final.

General Studies: Questions on your surroundings and their application in society, especially about Bihar, India and its neighbours. Current affairs: scientific progress, national and international awards, Indian languages, books, scripts, capitals, currencies, sports and sportspersons, and important events. India and its neighbouring countries: the history of the neighbouring countries, India’s history, culture, geography and economic scene, the freedom movement, the main features of Indian agriculture and natural resources, the Constitution and polity, the country’s political system, Panchayati Raj, community development, Five-Year Plans, and Bihar’s contribution to the national movement.
General Science and Mathematics (Matric level): General Science: physics, chemistry, biology and geography. Mathematics: number system, computation of whole numbers, decimals and fractions, relationships between numbers, fundamental arithmetical operations, percentage, ratio and proportion, average, interest, and profit and loss.
Mental Ability Test: Comprehension, logic, reasoning and mental ability, both verbal and non-verbal: analogies, similarities and differences, spatial visualisation, problem solving, analysis, visual memory, discrimination, observation, relationship concepts, arithmetical reasoning, arithmetical number series, and coding and decoding.

Full syllabus, stage by stage → · Official website ↗

Age limit and qualification

Minimum age is 18 years. Maximum age: 37 years for unreserved men; 40 years for unreserved women and for Backward Class and Extremely Backward Class candidates (men and women); 42 years for SC and ST candidates (men and women). Candidates with disabilities of all categories get 10 more years on these limits. Candidates who were within the government's maximum age on 1 August 2015 and held the required qualification by that date are also eligible on age. The notice lists further relaxations, for example 5 years for Bihar government servants (who may take at most 5 attempts during their service), and 3 years plus the length of defence service for ex-servicemen, provided their actual age is not over 53. Date of birth is taken from the Matriculation or equivalent certificate. Age is counted as on 1 August 2025.

Posts	Requirement
All posts	Intermediate (10+2) or equivalent pass from a recognised institution by the last date of the online application, issued by an education board set up under the Government of India or a State Government, plus the minimum, technical and desirable qualification printed against the post in the notice.
Lower Division Clerk (most departments and district collectorates)	Intermediate (10+2) or equivalent, with knowledge of computer operation and computer typing. Some departments instead ask for typing on a typewriter and Hindi word processing on a computer, or Hindi and English typing; see the post's row in the notice.
Revenue Employee (Revenue and Land Reforms Department)	Intermediate (10+2) or equivalent.
Panchayat Secretary (Panchayati Raj Department)	Intermediate or an equivalent examination passed. Desirable: typing on computer and knowledge of MS Office.
Junior Field Investigator (Directorate of Economics and Statistics, Planning and Development Department)	Intermediate passed with one of Mathematics, Economics or Statistics.
Livestock Assistant (Animal and Fisheries Resources Department)	Intermediate (Biology) or equivalent (with Biology).
Filaria Inspector (Health Department)	Intermediate/10+2 (Science).
Laboratory Assistant (Rural Works Department)	Intermediate or 10+2 passed with Chemistry, Physics and Mathematics.
Jan Sevak Grade III (Sugarcane Industries Department)	Intermediate with Mathematics.
Assistant Instructor (Typing) and Typist-cum-Clerk (Cabinet Secretariat Department)	Intermediate or equivalent, with Hindi and English typing (Hindi and English computer typing for Typist-cum-Clerk).

Minimum qualifying marks in the written examination: 40% for the General category, 36.5% for Backward Class, 34% for Extremely Backward Class, and 32% for SC/ST, for women (all categories) and for persons with disabilities (all categories). Reservation is given only to permanent residents of Bihar; candidates from outside Bihar get no reservation benefit. The 35% horizontal reservation for women and the reservation for persons with benchmark disabilities apply only to Bihar domiciles. The notice also provides 10% for EWS and a 2% horizontal quota for grandchildren of freedom fighters.

Important dates

Event	Date	Source
Revised advertisement 02/23 (A) published	27 September 2025	official notice ↗
Online applications (last date extended four times from 27 November 2025)	15 October 2025 to 16 February 2026	official notice ↗
Last date to pay the online examination fee (extended from 25 November 2025)	13 February 2026	official notice ↗
Preliminary Examination	Date not yet announced. As of 24 October 2026 the Commission's notice board shows no exam date, admit card or answer key for Advt. 02/23 (A).	official notice ↗

Source: Tentative vacancies ↗ · Last verified: 24 October 2026 · Report an error

Practice questions by section

Free questions, each with its answer, in the subjects this exam tests. Every topic opens a list of question pages.

State GK

Bihar General Knowledge 378 questions

General Studies

Quantitative Aptitude

Reasoning

All practice questions by topic →

Free notes (PDF)

Notes for every topic in this exam’s syllabus, one PDF per subject: each lesson ends with a quick-revision box, and each PDF ends with a revision sheet. Written by an AI assistant and not reviewed by a subject-matter expert.

Quantitative Aptitude (89 pages, 1.1 MB)
Reasoning (74 pages, 954 KB)
General Awareness (208 pages, 2.3 MB)
Bihar GK (19 pages, 302 KB)

Notes for every subject →

BSSC Inter Level admit card, result and answer key: every notice →

Recent current affairs for this exam

All current affairs →

Prepare

Frequently asked questions

What are the selection stages of BSSC Inter Level?

Preliminary Examination → Main Examination → Typing / Computer Test, as per the Advt. No. 02/23 (A) (Second Inter Level Combined Competitive Examination) notification.

How many questions are in the BSSC Inter Level first stage?

Preliminary Examination: 150 questions for 600 marks in 135 minutes, as per the Advt. No. 02/23 (A) (Second Inter Level Combined Competitive Examination) notification.

Is there negative marking in BSSC Inter Level?

Preliminary Examination, as per the Advt. No. 02/23 (A) (Second Inter Level Combined Competitive Examination) notification: 1 mark is deducted for each wrong answer. Each correct answer gets 4 marks.

What is the age limit for BSSC Inter Level?

What are the minimum qualifying marks in BSSC Inter Level?

How many vacancies are there in BSSC Inter Level?

26,426 tentative vacancies for Advt. No. 02/23 (A) (Second Inter Level Combined Competitive Examination), as officially published on 13 February 2026.

When is the last date to apply for BSSC Inter Level?

Online applications (last date extended four times from 27 November 2025): 15 October 2025 to 16 February 2026 (now closed). As per the Advt. No. 02/23 (A) (Second Inter Level Combined Competitive Examination) notification.

Which subjects does the BSSC Inter Level exam test?

The official syllabus lists: General Studies; General Science and Mathematics (Matric level); Mental Ability Test.

How this page is made

These facts are transcribed from the official documents linked above and checked against them on the date shown. If anything here differs from the official notification, the official notification is right. Please tell us through the Contact page. See also our editorial standards. Contact · Editorial standards