STAFF SELECTION COMMSSION EXAMS

Usha Albuquerque & Nidhi Prasad

Staff Selection Commisson (SSC) is a Government of India organization that conducts recruitment examinations including the Combined Graduate Level Examination (CGLE) for recruitment of candidates for Group B and other posts in various Ministries and Departments of Government of India and in Subordinate Offices.

SSC CGL exam is conducted annually by SSC throughout India and huge amount of graduate candidates apply for the examination among which only a few are able to make their name on the final selection list.

SSC CGL 2017 to be conducted in four stages. The Tier I of SSC CGL 2017 is a computer based examination scheduled to be conducted from June 19 to July 2, 2017 at designated testing centers across the country. Candidates who qualify this stage will be allowed to appear in SSC CGL 2017 Tier II scheduled to be held in online mode from September 5 to 8, 2017. SSC CGL 2017 Tier III which is a descriptive exam will be held on November 12, 2017 and Tier IV in December for accessing candidate's skills as per the post applied.

SSC CGL 2017 will be conducted for approximately 4000 posts in Central Vigilance Commission, Intelligence Bureau, Ministry of Railway, Ministry of External Affairs, Controller General of Account, Central Secretariat Service, etc. Candidates have to qualify each stages of SSC CGL 2017 recruitment exam with high marks in order to secure high rank in merit list. The result of SSC CGL 2017 will be prepared after adding candidate score in SSC CGL 2017 Tier I, II and III. 

ELIGIBLITY
Candidate who is minimum of 18 years of age and graduation degree in any stream are eligible to apply for SSC CGL 2017. The application form of SSC CGL 2017 can be filled in online mode only from March 11 to April 15, 2017. Candidates are advised to read the SSC CGL 2017 notification carefully before online registration to ascertain their age and academic qualification required for different posts.

SSC CGL 2017 Important Dates
Event-Online registration of   application form begins
Date- March 11, 2017
 Event- Online registration of application form ends
Date- April 15, 2017
Event- Online Fee Payment
Date- March 11 to April 15, 2017
Event- Admit Card for SSC CGL 2017 Tier I Exam
Date- April-May, 2017
Event- SSC CGL 2017  Tier I Exam Date  
Date- June 9 to July 2, 2017
Event- SSC CGL 2017  Tier I Result
Date- July-August, 2017
Event- SSC CGL 2017 Tier II Exam Date
Date- September 5 to 8, 2017
Event- Tier II Result Dates
Date- September-October, 2017
Event- SSC CGL 2017 Tier III Exam Date
Date- November  12, 2017
Event- SSC CGL 2017  Tier IV Exam Date
Date- December, 2017
Exam Mode: Tier I & II - Online, Tier III - Offline

*SSC CGL 2017 Tier I Exam Pattern
Subjects- General Awareness, No. of MCQs (Each question carry 2 marks)- 25, Total Marks  of each-50, Negative Marking-0.50 for each wrong answer                       
Subjects- General Intelligence & Reasoning, No. of MCQs (Each question carry 2 marks)- 25, Total Marks  of each-50, Negative Marking-0.50 for each wrong answer                 
Subjects- English Comprehension, No. of MCQs (Each question carry 2 marks)- 25, Total Marks  of each-50, Negative Marking-0.50 for each wrong answer                                     50          
Subjects- Quantitative Aptitude, No. of MCQs (Each question carry 2 marks)- 25, Total Marks  of each-50, Negative Marking-0.50 for each wrong answer                                    
Total      100         200        

* SSC CGL 2017 Tier II Exam Pattern
Subjects- Paper I - Quantitative Ability, No. of  MCQs-(Each Question carries two marks), Total Marks of  each subject-200, Negative Marking-0.50 for each wrong answer 
Subjects- Paper II - Language & Comprehension, No. of  MCQs-200 (Each Question carries one marks), Total Marks of  each subject-200, Negative Marking-0.50 for each wrong answer       
Subjects- Paper III- Statistics (For  Statistical Investigator Post), No. of  MCQs-100 (Each Question carries one marks), Total Marks of  each subject-200, Negative Marking-0.50 for each wrong answer
Subjects Paper IV -Finance & Accounts and Economics & Governance (For Assistant Audit Officer in  C & AG), No. of  MCQs-100 (Each Question carries one marks), Total Marks of  each subject-200, Negative Marking-0.50 for each wrong answer                                

* Paper I & II - Compulsory for all candidates

(For details visit the SSC Website ssc.nic.in)
EXAM PREPARATION GUIDELINES

Key to success in any entrance exam: Practice. Improve speed. Clear the concepts. Exam preparation require dedication, preservance, hard work and best guidance. The competition for SSC is stiff as lakhs of students apply for them every year. A SWOT analysis is necessary before an exam.

Preparation Strategy (WORK HARD & WORK SMART)
*  Be selective about GK
*  Practice past years' papers
* English: Focus on one word substitution and   idioms & phrases.
*  Reasoning is the most scoring section.
The competition is fierce but once you practice in the right direction, the chances of your success is high. One must focus on 4 key points.
1. General Awareness
2. Aptitude
3. English Grammar
4. Reasoning Ability

General Awareness: This can be the one of the high scoring sections, if you have prepared it well. This Section has Questions and are generally asked in varied Topics Like General Science, Polity, Geography, Computers, Current Affairs etc.

As far as aptitude is concerned it requires practice. You can easily solve the questions of paper 1 ( tier- I) but for paper 2 you must have a good speed and accuracy. Try to solve previous years' papers and see what are your weak points and accordingly practice from any standard book. Take online test series to check your performance.

English paper contains 65-70% questions on grammar only. One should start learning key concepts in grammar like subject verb agreement, active passive voices, use of preposition, direct indirect speech, etc. idioms and phrases are also asked in the paper for about 10-15 marks. Test series are also helpful for English .

The questions of reasoning are very easy and by little or no practice (depending upon your reasoning ability) one can score 95% marks in this. One can just go through the previous year's papers to have an idea.

* The first thing one needs to do is study the whole syllabus and exam pattern of the examination.  Identify the topics and sections in the syllabus which are easy and which are tough. Note down weak topics and make plans and strategies to overcome it.
* Study regularly. Divide the preparation time on daily hours' basis Give more time to weaker areas. Plan your study time to manage a balanced preparation for all the sections and topics.
* Download previous year question papers and practice regularly.
*  Read Newspaper daily.

Jobs and posts one can get into with SSC Exam

SSC conducts examination and recruitment process to recruit manpower at all group B and all Non-technical posts at various Ministries/ Departments of Government of India. It offers jobs in the categories like:

*Clerical Services at the Armed Forces Headquarters/ Railway Board Secretariat
*  Assistant and Subordinate Officer posts in various Departments and Ministries
*  Central Excise Inspector, Income Tax Inspector, Assistant Enforcement Officers
*  Sub Inspector in CBI and other Police Organization
*  Divisional accountants, Auditor and Accountants in various Offices
*  Junior Engineer (Civil & Electrical) in CPWD
*  Statistical Investigator Grade IV
*  Tax Assistant in Central Board of Direct Tax (CBDT), Central Board of Excise and   Custom (CBEC) offices
*  Lower Division Clerks (LDC)at various Ministries / Departments

The SSC also allows the candidate to get promotion in different offices after getting selected over the course of time. It offers adequate opportunity to the candidates to grow positively. The posts in offer from SSC CGL examination are quite lucrative and carry a provision of growth in future for the candidates. The work in the different posts ranges from that of office executive work to that of field working.

Some of the top profile of jobs are:
*  Examiner:  Examiner posts, often regarded as Inspector, is generally recruited at  the Headquarters
* Assistant / Cypher in Ministry of External Affairs
* Sub Inspector in CBI
* Excise Inspector 

SOME KEY POINTS
*Effective guidance: In a cut-throat competition, how to study in effective way and what to study becomes important. For that, effective guidance is required. Continue consulting with your expert subject teachers.
*Be Assertive: Do a realistic review of where you stand and in which area improvement is required.
*Make a study plan: Map out a study plan. Budget your time realistically and take baby steps to achieve them.
*Practice Previous Years' Papers
*Time Management: Follow a study routine and remain focused. Take small breaks in between to keep your mind fresh.
*Be positive and confident. Your mental balance and ability to withstand stress will help you in achieving your goal
*Maintain your Health: While preparing for exams, aspirants should keep a balance between the preparation time and relaxation time. Follow healthy food habits and few exercises.
Work out a time schedule, seek guidance from your teachers, practice  test entrance papers and keep yourself free of stress.
(Usha Albuquerque is Director & Nidhi Prasad is Senior Counseling Psychologist at Careers Smart Pvt. Ltd e-mail : careerssmartonline@gmail.com)