| Conducting body | Reserve Bank of India Services Board (RBISB). Official website ↗ |
|---|---|
| Posts | Officer in Grade 'B' (DR) – General, Officer in Grade 'B' (DR) – Department of Economic and Policy Research (DEPR), Officer in Grade 'B' (DR) – Department of Statistics and Information Management (DSIM) |
| Qualification | General stream: graduation in any discipline (or equivalent technical/professional qualification) with at least 60% marks (50% for SC, ST and PwBD), or post-graduation in any discipline with at least 55% marks (pass marks for SC, ST and PwBD). DEPR requires a master's degree in economics/finance (or PGDM/MBA Finance) with at least 55% marks (50% for SC, ST and PwBD). DSIM requires a master's degree in statistics, mathematical statistics, mathematical economics, econometrics or data science/AI with at least 55% marks (50% for SC, ST and PwBD). |
| Age limit | 21–30 years on 1 April 2026 (in the 2026 DEPR/DSIM notification) (general category) |
| Domicile | Not required |
| Selection stages | Phase I online objective examination (200 marks in 120 minutes for General stream; qualifying for Phase II) → Phase II online examination: three papers of 100 marks each (300 marks total) → Psychometric assessment conducted by the Bank before the interview (no marks allotted, used by the interview panel) → Interview of 75 marks; final merit list combines Phase II (300 marks) and Interview (75 marks) |
| Latest notification | Recruitment of Officers in Grade 'B' (DR) – DEPR and DSIM, Panel Year 2026 (Advt. No. RBISB/DA/02/2026-27) · 29 vacancies |
Last checked . Sources
About RBI Grade B
The Reserve Bank of India Services Board (RBISB) recruits Officers in Grade 'B' (Direct Recruit) across three streams: General, DEPR (economics) and DSIM (statistics). Selection runs through an online Phase I exam, a mixed objective-and-descriptive Phase II exam (three papers of 100 marks each), a mandatory psychometric test and a 75-mark interview. The 2026 DEPR/DSIM notification (Advt. No. RBISB/DA/02/2026-27) advertised 29 vacancies (20 DEPR and 9 DSIM), while the General stream notification is issued separately on opportunities.rbi.org.in.
Eligibility
Age limit
General category: 21–30 years, counted on 1 April 2026 (in the 2026 DEPR/DSIM notification).
Age relaxation
- OBC: 3 years
- SC: 5 years
- ST: 5 years
- PwBD: 10 years
- Ex-servicemen: 5 years
- Candidates with an M.Phil. degree get 2 extra years (up to 32 years) and those with a Ph.D. degree get 4 extra years (up to 34 years).
- PwBD relaxation is 10 years for General/EWS, 13 years for OBC and 15 years for SC/ST.
- Staff candidates of RBI who meet the service condition receive age relaxation as set out in the advertisement.
Qualification
General stream: graduation in any discipline (or equivalent technical/professional qualification) with at least 60% marks (50% for SC, ST and PwBD), or post-graduation in any discipline with at least 55% marks (pass marks for SC, ST and PwBD). DEPR requires a master's degree in economics/finance (or PGDM/MBA Finance) with at least 55% marks (50% for SC, ST and PwBD). DSIM requires a master's degree in statistics, mathematical statistics, mathematical economics, econometrics or data science/AI with at least 55% marks (50% for SC, ST and PwBD).
Other conditions
- Attempts for General stream: 6 attempts for General/EWS candidates who have appeared in Phase I. No attempt cap applies to SC, ST, OBC and PwBD candidates within their age limit.
- Application fee and intimation charges: Rs 850 plus 18% GST for General/OBC/EWS and Rs 100 plus 18% GST for SC/ST/PwBD; RBI staff are exempt.
Selection process
- Phase I online objective examination (200 marks in 120 minutes for General stream; qualifying for Phase II)
- Phase II online examination: three papers of 100 marks each (300 marks total)
- Psychometric assessment conducted by the Bank before the interview (no marks allotted, used by the interview panel)
- Interview of 75 marks; final merit list combines Phase II (300 marks) and Interview (75 marks)
Exam pattern
Phase I (General stream, online objective)
Mode: Online (CBT) with sectional timing · Duration: 120 minutes · Negative marking: 1/4 of the marks assigned to a question is deducted for each wrong answer
| SUBJECT | QUESTIONS | MARKS |
|---|---|---|
| General Awareness | 80 | 80 |
| English Language | 30 | 30 |
| Quantitative Aptitude | 30 | 30 |
| Reasoning | 60 | 60 |
Phase II (General stream, online objective + descriptive)
Mode: Online objective and keyboard-typed descriptive answers
| SUBJECT | QUESTIONS | MARKS |
|---|---|---|
| Paper I: Economic and Social Issues (50% objective in 30 mins + 50% descriptive in 90 mins) | 100 | |
| Paper II: English ( Writing Skills — 3 descriptive questions typed on keyboard) | 3 | 100 |
| Paper III: Finance and Management (50% objective in 30 mins + 50% descriptive in 90 mins) | 100 |
Interview
| SUBJECT | MARKS |
|---|---|
| Psychometric test followed by personal interview | 75 |
RBI Grade B syllabus
Phase I: General Awareness, Reasoning, Quantitative Aptitude & English
- General Awareness (80 marks): RBI circulars, monetary policy, banking and financial awareness, Union Budget, Economic Survey, government schemes, static GK and current affairs
- Reasoning (60 marks): puzzles, seating arrangement, syllogism, input-output, data sufficiency, blood relations, coding-decoding and critical/analytical reasoning
- Quantitative Aptitude (30 marks): data interpretation, number series, quadratic equations, percentage, profit and loss, ratio, time and work, probability and mensuration
- English Language (30 marks): reading comprehension, cloze test, para jumbles, error detection, sentence rearrangement and vocabulary
Phase II Paper I: Economic and Social Issues (ESI)
- Growth and development, measurement of growth, national income and per capita income, poverty alleviation and employment generation in India, sustainable development and environmental issues
- Indian economy: economic history, changes in industrial and labour policy, monetary and fiscal policy since reforms of 1991, priorities in the Economic Survey and Union Budget, role of Indian banks and RBI
- Globalization: opening up of the Indian economy, balance of payments, export-import policy, international economic institutions (IMF, World Bank, WTO, regional blocks)
- Social structure in India: multiculturalism, demographic trends, urbanisation and migration, gender issues, social justice and positive discrimination, health and education
Phase II Paper II: English (Writing Skills)
- Essay writing on an economic, financial or social topic
- Précis writing of a comprehension passage
- Reading comprehension questions typed using the on-screen keyboard
Phase II Paper III: Finance and Management (FM)
- Financial system: regulators of banks and financial institutions, Reserve Bank of India functions and conduct of monetary policy, banking system in India, financial institutions (SIDBI, EXIM, NABARD, NHB, NaBFID)
- Financial markets: primary and secondary markets (forex, money, bond, equity), derivatives
- General finance topics: risk management in banking sector, basics of derivatives, global financial markets, financial inclusion, alternate sources of finance, corporate governance in banking, Union Budget, inflation and FinTech
- Fundamentals of management and organizational behaviour: introduction to management, evolution of management thought, planning, organizing, staffing, directing, controlling, leadership theories, motivation, emotional intelligence, interpersonal communications, conflict management and corporate governance/ethics
DEPR & DSIM streams (specialist papers)
- DEPR: Paper I objective economics (100 marks, 120 minutes), Paper II descriptive on Microeconomics and Macroeconomics (100 marks, 180 minutes), Paper III descriptive on Indian Economy, Statistics and Econometrics (100 marks, 180 minutes), and Paper IV English Writing Skills (100 marks, 90 minutes)
- DSIM: Paper I objective statistics (100 marks, 120 minutes), Paper II descriptive statistics (100 marks, 180 minutes) and Paper III English Writing Skills (100 marks, 90 minutes)
What they ask
In the General stream, Phase I is a 200-mark qualifying sprint where General Awareness alone carries 80 marks in 25 minutes, and you must clear every individual section cut-off as well as the aggregate cut-off. Phase II is what decides your final rank: Paper I (ESI) and Paper III (Finance and Management) split 100 marks evenly between a 30-minute objective test (with 2-mark and 1-mark questions) and a 90-minute descriptive test where you type four out of six answers (two 15-mark and two 10-mark questions) on the keyboard. Paper II is a 90-minute descriptive English paper.
How to prepare
- Give General Awareness the largest share of your Phase I study time: it carries 80 of the 200 marks and overlaps directly with Phase II Economic and Social Issues and Finance.
- Practise typing 400 to 600-word descriptive answers on a desktop keyboard under a 90-minute timer, because Phase II ESI, FM and English answers are all typed online.
- Read RBI's Annual Report, Financial Stability Report, Monetary Policy Statements, the Economic Survey and the Union Budget from the official sources.
- Do not ignore Quantitative Aptitude (30 marks) or Reasoning (60 marks) in Phase I—missing a single sectional cut-off eliminates you regardless of your GA score.
- Keep Phase I reasoning, quant and banking awareness sharp with daily topic-wise practice quizzes on the free Improvam app.
RBI Grade B is one of the exams in the Improvam app. Open it to start a practice quiz.
Open in the Improvam appHow to apply
- Open the Vacancies page on opportunities.rbi.org.in and select the active Officers in Grade 'B' (DR) advertisement.
- Register online, upload your photograph, signature, left thumb impression and handwritten declaration in the specified dimensions.
- Select your Phase I and Phase II examination centres and verify your stream and category details.
- Pay the application fee/intimation charges online and save the e-receipt and submitted application form.
RBI Grade B FAQs
21 to 30 years for general category candidates on the cut-off date stated in the notice. OBC candidates get 3 extra years, SC/ST candidates 5 years, M.Phil. holders 2 years and Ph.D. holders 4 years.
Sources
- RBISB Advertisement No. RBISB/DA/02/2026-27: Recruitment of Officers in Grade 'B' (DR) – DEPR and DSIM, Panel Year 2026 ↗ (official, checked )
- RBI Grade 'B' (DR) – DEPR/DSIM 2026 Appendix II (scheme of selection and syllabus) ↗ (official, checked )
- RBI Opportunities portal: current vacancies and notifications ↗ (official, checked )
Checked against official sources on . Rules change with each notification, so read the latest one before you apply.