• The West Bengal Public Service Commission (WBPSC) Miscellaneous Services Examination is conducted to recruit candidates for various posts in different departments of the West Bengal Government.
• Candidates generally require a bachelor’s degree from a recognised university. Knowledge of Bengali and other eligibility conditions may apply as specified in the official notification.
• The selection process typically consists of a Preliminary Examination, a Final Examination and a Personality Test, depending on the applicable recruitment rules and official notification.

Recruitment is made through this examination to the following posts, and to certain other posts as may be notified subsequently:

Scheme of Examination

The examination will be held in three successive stages, namely:

1. Preliminary Examination (Objective Type)
2. Final Examination (Conventional Type – Written)
3. Personality Test

Selection Flow

PRELIMINARY EXAMINATION — MCQ 200 Marks (Screening only)

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FINAL EXAMINATION — CONVENTIONAL (WRITTEN) 450 Marks

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PERSONALITY TEST 100 Marks

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FINAL MERIT LIST

Final Examination (450) + Personality Test (100) = 550 Marks

Preliminary Examination

The Preliminary Examination carries 200 marks. It consists of only one paper containing 100 Multiple Choice objective type questions carrying 2 marks each on General Studies (150 marks) and Arithmetic (50 marks), with a duration of 1 hour and 30 minutes.

The Preliminary Examination is a screening test for selection of candidates for admission to the Final Examination. The marks obtained by candidates in the Preliminary Examination will not be counted for the purpose of determining the final merit list. Only those candidates who are declared qualified at the Preliminary Examination in a year shall be eligible for admission to the M.S.R. (Final) Examination of that year.

Negative Marking

The official advertisement confirms negative marking for each wrong answer but does not state the rate. As per the Google AI Overview (14/10/2026), +2 marks are awarded for each correct answer and –0.5 mark is deducted for each wrong answer. The 75/25 question split also comes from the same source.

Final Examination

The Final Examination carries 450 marks. It consists of three papers of Conventional type questions, namely Paper-I: English, Paper-II: Bengali/Hindi/Urdu/Nepali/Santhali and Paper-III: General Studies and Arithmetic.

Full marks and time for each of Papers I & II are 150 with a duration of 1 hour and 30 minutes. Full marks for Paper-III are 150 [100 marks for General Studies (Group A) and 50 marks for Arithmetic (Group B)], the total time being 2 hours and 30 minutes.

Language of Answers

• Answers for Group-A (General Studies) should be given in English or in Bengali or in Nepali.
• Answers for Group-B (Arithmetic) should be given in English or in Bengali.
• All the answers for an individual group must be in one and the same language.

Examination Day

The examination of all the three papers (Paper-I, II & III) will be held on the same day.

Standard of Papers I & II

Papers I & II of the Final Examination will be of Higher Secondary (10 + 2) Examination standard of the West Bengal Council for Higher Secondary Education.

Personality Test

The Personality Test carries 100 marks. A limited number of candidates, selected merit-wise on the results of the Final Examination (Written), will be called to the Personality Test.

It is a Viva-Voce / Interview that evaluates the candidate’s general awareness, clarity of expression, interpersonal traits, and suitability for public service in West Bengal (as per the Google AI Overview).

Knowledge of Bengali will be tested at the time of the Personality Test for candidates whose mother tongue is other than Bengali/Nepali (see Qualifications).

Final Merit List

The Final Merit List will be prepared on the basis of the total marks obtained in all the three papers of the Final Examination and that obtained in the Personality Test taken together.

Exam Pattern Overview

Scheme and Syllabus

(a) General Studies (Preliminary and Final Examination): Questions will be set to test the General Knowledge of a candidate in different spheres.

(b) Arithmetic (Preliminary and Final Examination): Questions will be set on the basis of the syllabus of the Madhyamik Examination of the West Bengal Board of Secondary Education (WBBSE).

1. Preliminary Examination Syllabus

General Studies (150 Marks)

The syllabus covers:

• National and international current affairs
• Indian History and Indian National Movement
• Indian and West Bengal Geography
• Indian Polity and Constitution
• Indian Economy
• General Science (Basics)
• Culture and Sports of Bengal & India

Arithmetic (50 Marks)

Based on the Madhyamik Examination standard of the West Bengal Board of Secondary Education (WBBSE). Topics include:

• Number System
• HCF & LCM
• Fractions
• Simplification
• Percentages
• Profit & Loss
• Simple & Compound Interest
• Ratio & Proportion
• Averages
• Time & Work
• Time, Speed & Distance
• Boats & Streams
• Mensuration

2. Final Written Examination Syllabus (Descriptive)

Paper-I: English (150 Marks, 1.5 hours)

Questions may be asked on all or any of the following items:

1. Drafting of a report from points or materials supplied
2. Translation from Bengali/Hindi/Urdu/Nepali/Santhali, as the case may be, to English
3. Condensing of a prose passage (Summary / Precis)
4. Correct use of words, correction of sentences, use of common phrases, synonyms and antonyms

Paper-II: Bengali/Hindi/Urdu/Nepali/Santhali (150 Marks, 1.5 hours)

The regional language may be Bengali, Hindi, Urdu, Nepali or Santhali. Questions may be asked on all or any of the following items:

1. Drafting of a report from points or materials supplied
2. Translation from English to Bengali/Hindi/Urdu/Nepali/Santhali, as the case may be
3. Condensing of a prose passage
4. Grammar

Paper-III: General Studies and Arithmetic (150 Marks, 2.5 hours)

• Group A (General Studies) – 100 Marks: Conventional/descriptive questions covering the same GS scope as the Prelims.
• Group B (Arithmetic) – 50 Marks: Conventional/descriptive math problems based on the Madhyamik standard scope.

Qualifications

1. A degree from a recognized University or its equivalent.
2. Ability to read, write and speak in Bengali (not required for those candidates whose mother tongue is Nepali) – vide Finance Department’s Notification No. 1243-F(P) dated 02.03.2016.
3. Knowledge of Bengali will be tested for candidates whose mother tongue is other than Bengali/Nepali at the time of the Personality Test. Candidature of candidates with average and/or poor performance in the said Bengali test shall be liable to be cancelled.

Age Limit

Not below 20 years but not more than 39 years as per the notification.

Relaxation in Age Limit