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IBPS SO 2023 Memory Based Question Paper With Answer Key; Download PDF

Shristy Kandwal

Aug 28, 2026

IBPS SO 2023 was conducted for Specialist Officer posts including IT Officer, Agriculture Field Officer, Marketing Officer, Law Officer, HR/Personnel Officer and Rajbhasha Adhikari. The Prelims exam was held on December 30 and 31, 2023, followed by the Mains exam on January 28, 2024. IBPS SO 2023 memory-based question papers and answer keys for the Prelims and Mains exam are provided in this page below for practice.

IBPS SO 2023 Prelims was generally moderate, with Reasoning and Quantitative Aptitude requiring speed and accuracy. Mains difficulty varied by post, with Professional Knowledge being the key specialised section.

Note: IBS SO 2023 papers are memory-based and prepared from questions reported by candidates.

Practice IBPS SO Mock Tests

Full Length Test Link
IBPS SO Prelims Rajbhasha and Law Officer Full Test 01 Attempt Now
IBPS SO Prelims Agriculture and IT Officer Full Test 02 Attempt Now
IBPS SO Prelims Agri. & IT Officer Full Test 03 Attempt Now
IBPS SO Prelims RBA & Law Officer Full Test 04 Attempt Now
IBPS SO Prelims RBA & Law Officer Full Test 05 Attempt Now
IBPS SO Prelims Marketing Officer Full Test 06 Attempt Now
IBPS SO Prelims Agriculture Officer Full Test 07 Attempt Now
IBPS SO Prelims IT Officer Full Test 08 Attempt Now
IBPS SO Prelims Agri. & IT Officer Full Test 09 Attempt Now
IBPS SO Mains AFO Full Test 01 Attempt Now

IBPS SO 2023 Exam Highlights

IBPS SO 2023 was conducted as part of the Specialist Officer recruitment process for Scale I posts. The exam consisted of Prelims and Mains, with the Mains paper focusing on Professional Knowledge specific to the selected post.

Particulars Details
Exam Name IBPS Specialist Officer (SO)
Conducting Body Institute of Banking Personnel Selection (IBPS)
Recruitment Cycle CRP SPL-XIII
Posts IT Officer, AFO, Marketing Officer, Law Officer, HR/Personnel Officer, Rajbhasha Adhikari
Exam Stages Prelims & Mains
Exam Mode Online
Question Type Objective
Prelims Questions 150
Prelims Marks 125
Prelims Duration 120 Minutes
Mains Questions 60 for most posts
Mains Subject Professional Knowledge

IBPS SO 2023 Exam Pattern & Marking Scheme

IBPS SO 2023 included a Prelims stage with three sections, tailored to the specific Specialist Officer post, reflecting IBPS SO exam pattern . Following this, the Mains exam assessed professional knowledge pertinent to the chosen position.

Post Group Section Questions Marks Duration
IT Officer, AFO, HR/Personnel Officer, Marketing Officer Reasoning 50 50 40 Minutes
English Language 50 25 40 Minutes
Quantitative Aptitude 50 50 40 Minutes
Law Officer, Rajbhasha Adhikari Reasoning 50 50 40 Minutes
English Language 50 25 40 Minutes
General Awareness with Special Reference to Banking Industry 50 50 40 Minutes

IBPS SO 2023 Mains Pattern

Post Mains Paper Questions Marks Duration
IT Officer Professional Knowledge 60 60 45 Minutes
Agriculture Field Officer Professional Knowledge 60 60 45 Minutes
Marketing Officer Professional Knowledge 60 60 45 Minutes
Law Officer Professional Knowledge 60 60 45 Minutes
HR/Personnel Officer Professional Knowledge 60 60 45 Minutes
Rajbhasha Adhikari Professional Knowledge 45 Objective + 2 Descriptive 60 60 Minutes

A negative marking of 0.25 marks was applicable for incorrect objective answers in the exam.

IBPS SO Previous Year Papers 

IBPS SO 2023 Most Repeated Topics

IBPS SO 2023 question papers included questions from common Prelims sections, IBPS SO syllabus, and post-specific Professional Knowledge areas in Mains. The major topics covered across the papers are given below.

Section/Post Most Repeated Topics
Reasoning Ability Puzzles, Seating Arrangement, Syllogism, Inequality, Coding-Decoding, Blood Relations
English Language Reading Comprehension, Cloze Test, Error Detection, Para Jumbles, Vocabulary
Quantitative Aptitude Data Interpretation, Simplification, Number Series, Arithmetic, Quadratic Equations
General Awareness Banking Awareness, Current Affairs, Financial Awareness, Banking Terms
IT Officer Computer Networks, Operating Systems, DBMS, Data Structures, Computer Fundamentals
Agriculture Field Officer Agronomy, Agricultural Economics, Animal Husbandry, Soil Science, Crop Production
Marketing Officer Marketing Management, Consumer Behaviour, Market Research, Branding, Advertising
Law Officer Banking Laws, Companies Act, Negotiable Instruments Act, Legal Concepts
HR/Personnel Officer Human Resource Management, Recruitment, Training, Performance Management, Industrial Relations
Rajbhasha Adhikari Hindi Language, Grammar, Translation, Vocabulary and Official Language-related topics

How to Use IBPS SO Previous Year Question Papers Effectively

IBPS SO previous year question papers provide a year-wise view of the questions asked across the Prelims and post-specific Mains papers. IBPS SO previous year papers can be used to review question types, topic coverage, and professional knowledge areas.

  • Check question types: Identify the types of questions asked in each section.
  • Compare post-wise papers: Review the professional knowledge coverage for different Specialist Officer posts.
  • Track recurring topics: Note topics appearing across multiple IBPS SO exam cycles.
  • Review section coverage: Compare the distribution of questions across Prelims sections and Mains Professional Knowledge.
  • Analyze performance: Check correct and incorrect responses after completing a paper.

IBPS SO previous year question papers provide a year-wise collection of memory-based papers from different recruitment cycles. Comparing papers across years helps candidates understand changes in question types, section coverage, and post-specific professional knowledge requirements.

IBPS SO 2023 Question Paper FAQs

Ques: Was IBPS SO 2023 Prelims conducted for all Specialist Officer posts on the same pattern?

Ans: No. The Prelims pattern differed for different posts, particularly in the third section, which was Quantitative Aptitude for some posts and General Awareness with Special Reference to Banking Industry for others.

Ques: Did IBPS SO 2023 Mains have separate papers for each Specialist Officer post?

Ans: Yes. The Mains exam included separate Professional Knowledge papers based on the subject area of the selected post.

Ques: How difficult was the IBPS SO 2023 question paper?

Ans: The Prelims paper was generally moderate, while Mains difficulty varied across posts depending on the Professional Knowledge subject.

*The article might have information for the previous academic years, please refer the official website of the exam.
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