WBCS Syllabus and Exam Pattern

Candidates will gain in-depth knowledge of the most recent revised WBCS syllabus and exam format from these articles.

WBCS Syllabus and Exam Pattern:The abbreviation for the West Bengal Civil Service is WBCS. The test is given each year by the West Bengal Public Service Commission (WBPSC). It is very much like UPSC. In WBCS, you will be posted anywhere in West Bengal, whereas in UPSC, you can be posted anywhere in India.

The WBCS exam has four groups: group A (executive), group B (WBPS), group C, and group D. To get into WBCS, you have to pass a 200-mark preliminary exam that includes questions about Indian politics, arithmetic, reasoning, history, and other topics. After clearing the preliminary examination, you will be shortlisted for the mains of 1200 marks. Then there will be a personality test of 200 marks. After passing all the above tests, you will be a West Bengal serviceman.

WBCS Syllabus and Exam Pattern 

Let’s have a look at the WBCS Syllabus and Exam Pattern in detail given below.

WBCS Exam Pattern 

There are three phases to the examination for the civil service in West Bengal.

• Phase 1:Preliminary Examination (MCQ or Multiple Choice Question)
• Phase 2: Main Exam (MCQ and Subjective)
• Phase 3:Personality Test (Interview)

WBCS Preliminary Exam Pattern 

The following are some significant points about the WBCS preliminary exam format:

• The test will have multiple-choice questions.
• The exam will be given in a pen-and-paper format.
• The preliminary exam will only have one paper. There will be eight sections on the exam question paper: composition in English (25 questions, 25 marks); Science in general (25 questions, 25 marks); national and international current events (25 questions, 25 marks); India’s history (25 questions, 25 marks); India’s geography, with a focus on West Bengal (25 questions, 25 marks); economy and politics of India (25 questions, 25 marks); (25 questions, 25 marks) Indian national movement and mental acuity in general (25 questions, 25 marks).
• There will be a total of 200 questions (each section with 25 questions) for a total of 200 marks, and the duration of the examination will be 150 minutes.
• There will be a one-third mark penalty for each wrong answer.
• Students are only admitted to the main exam after passing this screening test. The imprints acquired from this test won’t be added to the eventual outcome.

Candidates may check the table below to know about  WBCS Preliminary Exam Pattern:

WBCS Mains Exam Pattern 

Here are some key points about the WBCS main exam pattern:

• The exam will be MCQ and subjective in nature and will be conducted offline (pen-paper).
• The main exam consists of six compulsory papers and one optional subject consisting of two papers(only for candidates applying for group A and group B).
• There will be two papers on the optional subject of 200 marks each. Each compulsory or optional subject will carry 200 marks and will be 3 hours in duration.
• Out of 6 compulsory papers, four papers, i.e., (1) General Studies 1, (2) gneral studies 2, (3)The constitution of India and the Indian economy, including the role and function of the Reserve Bank of India, and (4) Arithmetic and Test of Reasoning will be MCQ types to be answered on OMR sheets, and the remaining two compulsory papers, i.e., Paper-I and Paper-II, will be conventional type written examinations.
• There will be no negative marking in the main exam.

Candidates may check the table below to know about  WBCS Main Exam Pattern:

Personality Test

Candidates will be admitted to the main examination based on their preliminary exam score, and you will be permitted to take the personality test based on your main exam score. A personality test will be required for all services and positions in groups A,B,C, and D each year for the number of candidates chosen based on merit on the main exam results.

The marks of the personality test for each group are defined below:

WBCS Syllabus 

Here is a look at the detailed syllabus for WBCS preliminary and WBCS mains given below:

WBCS Preliminary Syllabus 

WBCS Preliminary Syllabus in detail is given below.

1. English Composition

1. Synonyms and Antonyms
2. Homophones
3. Fill in the qualifying words
4. Idioms and Phrases
5. Vocabulary Test
6. Phrasal Verbs

2. General Science

1. General appreciation
2. Understanding of science
3. Matters of everyday observation
4. Experience as expected from an educated person not having made special studies of scientific disciplines

3. Current Events of National and International Importance

Important events that have an impact on India and its relations with the rest of the world

4. Indian History

1. Ancient
2. Medieval
3. Modern

5.Geography of India (with a focus on West Bengal).

1. Physical Geography
2. Social Geography
3. Economic Geography

6.Economy and Indian Polity 

1. Indian Constitution
2. Panchayati Raj
3. Constitutional Bodies, etc.

7. Indian National Movement

1. Growth of Nationalism
2. Attainment of Independence
3. Nature and character of Nineteenth-Century Resurgence

8. General Mental Ability

1. Logical Reasoning
2. Common Aptitude

WBCS Mains Syllabus 

WBCS Mains Syllabus in detail is given below.

1. Paper-I: Bengali/ Hindi/ Urdu/ Nepali/ Santali

1. Translation from English to Bengali/ Hindi/ Urdu/ Nepali/ Santali
2. Letter writing (within 150 words)
3. Composition
4. Precis Writing
5. Drafting of Report (within 200 words)

2. Paper-II: English

1. Translation from Bengali/ Hindi/ Urdu/ Nepali/ Santali to English
2. Letter writing (within 150 words)
3. Drafting of Report (within 200 words)
4. Precis Writing
5. Composition

3. Paper-III: General Studies – I

1. Indian History with an emphasis on National Movement
2. Geography of India with special reference to West Bengal

4. Paper-IV: General Studies-II

1. Science and Scientific & Technological advancement
2. Environment
3. General Knowledge
4. Current Affairs

5. Paper-V: Constitution and Economy of India

1. Constitution of India
2. Economy of India
3. Role and Functions of the Reserve Bank of India

6. Paper-VI: Arithmetic & Test of Reasoning

• Arithmetic:

Similar to Mathematics paper at the Madhyamik Examination of the Board of Secondary Education, West Bengal.

• Test of Reasoning:

Analytical Reasoning: Data Sufficiency Logical Reasoning: 

1. Logical Deduction
2. Forcefulness of the Arguments
3. Implication of sentences
4. Inferring from diagrams

Series: 

1. Analogy tests
2. Symbol Interpretation
3. Mathematical puzzles
4. Odd man out
5. Perception test
6. Non-verbal reasoning
7. Selecting correct sequence
8. Letter series
9. Number series
10. Inferring from Data

7. Paper-VII&VIII: Optional Papers(Only for Group A and B)

In accordance with the subject opted by candidates

Optional Subjects & Their Subject Code

• Bengali – 01
• Hindi – 02
• Sanskrit – 03
• English – 04
• French – 08
• Urdu – 09
• Santali – 10
• Anthropology – 14
• Botany – 15
• Chemistry – 16
• Economics – 20
• Electrical Engineering – 21
• Geography – 22
• Geology – 23
• Management – 27
• Mechanical Engineering – 28
• Medical Science – 29
• Philosophy – 30
• Psychology – 34
• Sociology – 35
• Statistics – 36
• Zoology – 37
• Pali – 05
• Arabic – 06
• Persian – 07
• Comparative Literature – 11
• Agriculture – 12
• Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Science – 13
• Civil Engineering – 17
• Commerce and Accountancy – 18
• Computer Science – 19
• History – 24
• Law – 25
• Mathematics – 26
• Physiology – 31
• Physics – 32
• Political Science – 33

FAQs

Q1. What is the syllabus for the WBCS Exam?

Ans:The WBCS syllabus and exam pattern for 2023 can both be found in the provided article.

Q2. Will the WBCS written tests be conducted in offline or online mode?
Ans:The WBCS written test will be conducted in offline mode.

Q3. What is the exam format for WBCS?

Ans.There are three phases to the examination for the civil service in West Bengal.

• Phase 1: Preliminary Examination (MCQ, or Multiple Choice Question)
• Phase 2: Main Exam (MCQ and Subjective)
• Phase 3: Personality Test (Interview)

Q5. Is the WBCS exam bilingual?
Ans.The tests, except for the Test of English and Bengali Language, will be available bilingually in English and Bengali.

Q6. Does the WBCS exam have negative marking?
Ans.Each question carries one mark, and there will be 0.25 marks deducted for every question attempted incorrectly by a candidate in the preliminary exam, and in the main exam there will be no negative marking.

Q8. Is there an interview for all the posts at WBCS?
Ans.Yes, the candidate will be invited to the interview stage if they qualify for the written exam (prelims and mains).

For any other WBCS related information ,visit the official site:-wbpsc.gov.in

Read More:-Click here to download WBCS previous year question paper in pdf format along with answer key.