SSC CPO Exam Pattern & Syllabus
Last verified 07 Oct 2026
The SSC CPO exam pattern is set out below, with 0.25 mark deducted for each wrong answer in Paper-I and 0.50 mark in Paper-II.
SSC CPO exam pattern
| Stage | Subjects | Questions | Marks | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paper-I | General Intelligence & Reasoning, General Knowledge & General Awareness, Quantitative Aptitude, English Comprehension (25 questions each) | 100 | 100 | 1 hour |
| Paper-II | General Intelligence & Reasoning, General Knowledge & General Awareness, Quantitative Aptitude (20 questions / 40 marks each), English Comprehension (100 questions / 200 marks) | 160 | 320 | 2 hours |
Qualifying marks
UR 30%, OBC and EWS 25%, all other categories 20%.
Syllabus
General Intelligence and Reasoning
Analogies, similarities and differences, space visualisation, problem solving, analysis, judgement, decision making, visual memory, discrimination, observation, relationship concepts, arithmetical reasoning, verbal and figure classification, arithmetical number series, and non-verbal series. Coding and decoding, statement conclusion, and syllogistic reasoning also appear.
General Awareness
Current events, and matters of everyday observation and experience in their scientific aspect. Questions test knowledge of India and its neighbouring countries, especially History, Culture, Geography, Economic Scene, General Polity, Indian Constitution and Scientific Research.
Quantitative Aptitude / Numerical Ability
Whole numbers, decimals, fractions and relationships between numbers, percentage, ratio and proportion, square roots, averages, interest, profit and loss, discount, partnership, mixture and alligation, time and distance, time and work, algebra, geometry, mensuration, trigonometry, and data interpretation from bar diagrams, pie charts and frequency polygons.
English Language and Comprehension
Spot the error, fill in the blanks, synonyms and antonyms, spelling detection, idioms and phrases, one word substitution, improvement of sentences, active and passive voice, direct and indirect narration, shuffling of sentence parts, cloze passage and comprehension passage.
Normalisation of marks
Where the examination is held in multiple shifts, SSC normalises marks using a published formula and uses the normalised score for shortlisting.