OICL Exam Pattern Prelims

The OICL Prelims will be a total objective paper with only Multiple-Choice Questions (MCQ’s) asked in the exam. This test is primarily to filter the candidates for the Mains exam. The basic knowledge and the aptitude level will be checked and the students will be passed to the next level. The marks scored in the OICL Prelims will not be taken into consideration for the final result as the Prelims is just for screening and qualifying purposes.

Distribution of the marks of the OICL Prelims exam is given below:

• Exam duration: 1 hour
• Exam type: Objective/ MCQs
• Exam Mode: Online Computer Based Test (CBT)
• Maximum Marks: 100
• Sections of Prelims: English Language, Logical Reasoning, Quantitative Aptitude
• Sectional Cut-off: Yes Applicable. The candidate has to qualify every section
• Negative Marking: Yes, for every wrong answer 1/4th of the marks assigned will be deducted. If any question is left unanswered then no marks will be deducted for that.

There are some sections in both Prelims and Mains Exam which are the same. The syllabus of those particular sections is same and are as follows:

OICL Exam English Language or Verbal Ability Syllabus

This section of the paper will test the candidate’s basic knowledge about English language, grammar, and Comprehension skills. This will include familiarity with elementary English grammar and other simple topics related to the language.

OICL Exam Reasoning Ability or Logical Reasoning

This Critical reasoning exam is for testing the candidates’ ability to draw logical conclusions. This skill is important in everyday life also which makes it an inherent part of the Prelims exam. The subsections for the Logical Reasoning test are as follows:

OICL Exam Quantitative Aptitude or Mathematical Ability

This part of the paper consists of mathematics topics from primary and secondary level of school. This elementary level of mathematics and aptitude will test the candidate’s ability of problem solving and basic quantity calculation sums.

OICL Exam Pattern for Mains

The candidates who qualify the Prelims round are then allowed to give the OICL Mains exam. The competition is very high here because the Prelims-filtered candidates count is more than 20 times of the actual vacancies available. The candidates who clear this Mains exam get an opportunity to compete for the OICL posts. There are two sections of the Mains exam- Objective and Descriptive. The objective and the descriptive part will be based on various topics as mentioned below.

OICL Exam Descriptive Test

This section is also part of the OICL Mains Examination. This subjective part will require the candidate to write answers in essay form i.e. lengthy questions, this will help the authorities check the language application ability of the candidates. This unit is of 30 marks and is very important as it is a qualifying section. The descriptive portion of the exam will be checked only if the student obtains the qualifying marks in the Objective Section. In addition to this, it is mandatory for the student to get passing marks in this individual section else, they would not be able to clarify the overall Mains paper without this.

Tip- The aspiring students are advised to do reading and writing practice in English language so that they are able to write long answers in the exam. The candidates are also advised to do typing practice on the computer so that they don’t waste their precious time typing slowly on the exam day. Become computer-friendly before the big day and you are good to go!

• Exam duration : 2 hours for objective + 30 minutes for subjective/ descriptive
• Exam type : Objective + Descriptive
• Exam Mode: Online Computer Based Test (CBT)
• Maximum Marks: 200 marks
• Sections of Mains: English Language, Reasoning Ability, Quantitative Aptitude, General Awareness, Professional Knowledge.
• Sectional Cut-off: Yes Applicable. The candidate has to qualify every section
• Negative Marking: Yes, for every wrong answer 1/4th of the marks assigned will be deducted. If any question is left unanswered then no marks will be deducted for that.

The pattern of the OICL Mains exam is different for Generalists and for Specialist:

The syllabus for the sections like English Language, Reasoning Ability and Quantitative Aptitude is the same as it was for the OICL Prelims exam, as mentioned above. The syllabus for the rest of the sections i.e. General Awareness and Professional Knowledge are given below:

OICL General Knowledge

A good knowledge of general awareness has become important for every exam point of view. This part of the paper will test the candidates’ knowledge of the current affairs and basic familiarity with the social, economic and political situation in India and the world around. Keep yourself updated about the current affairs through good English newspapers and regularly watch informative news channels. This will even improve your reading, writing and understanding skills for the English paper as well.

OICL Professional Knowledge Section

This section of the Mains exam will test knowledge and understanding of specific subjects of the study. This part is important as it can give you edge over the other candidates if you learn the basic of the following subjects that are important from recruitment point of view:

OICL Personal Interview

The candidates qualifying the Mains exam will be called upon for the Personal Interview round. Here the candidates will be approximately three times more than the actual positions required to be filled. The selected candidates have to reach the assigned Exam Centre at the reporting time. The interview will be given the weightage of 20% of the total final marks.

No doubt, theoretical knowledge is important, but also what can never be neglected is the personality skills and communication expertise. This helps you in getting an edge over the other candidates. So prepare yourself well for the personal interview round, and showcase your knowledge with confidence.