About Staff Selection Commission Stenographer (SSC Stenographer)
SSC Stenographer is a national-level competitive examination conducted by the Staff Selection Commission (SSC) to recruit candidates for the post of stenographer Grades ‘C’ and ‘D’ in various ministries, departments, and organizations of the Government of India. A stenographer’s job involves taking dictations in shorthand and transcribing the same into a written or electronic format. Some of the popular posts for which candidates are recruited through the SSC STENOGRAPHER exam are:
◉ Stenographer Grade ‘C’ ◉ Stenographer Grade ‘D’ ◉ Personal Assistant (PA) ◉ Private Secretary (PS)
| Parameter | SSC Stenographer |
| Full form | Staff Selection Commission Stenographer |
| Conducted by | Staff Selection Commission |
| Level of exam | National level |
| Frequency of exam | Once a year |
| Mode of exam | Online |
| Exam stages | Computer-based test, skill test |
| Eligibility | 10+2 or equivalent |
| Age limit | 18-30 years |
| Application period | Usually in September-October |
| Exam date | Usually in December |
| Exam duration | 2 hours |
| Total marks | 200 |
| Negative marking | 0.25 marks were deducted for each wrong answer |
| Sections | General Intelligence and Reasoning, General Awareness, English Language and Comprehension |
| Skill test | Dictation and transcription |
| Language options | Hindi and English |
| Salary | Rs. 25,500 – Rs. 81,100 (approx.) |
| Official website | https://ssc.nic.in/ |
Eligibility criteria for SSC Stenographer-
| Parameter | Eligibility Criteria |
| Nationality | Indian, Nepalese, Bhutanese, or Tibetan refugees settled in India before 1st January 1962 |
| Age Limit | 18-30 years as of 1st August of the exam year |
| Educational Qualification | Passed 10+2 or equivalent from a recognized board or university |
| Skill Test | Possess stenography skill of 80 wpm in English or Hindi |
Note: The eligibility criteria are subject to change per the latest notification issued by the Staff Selection Commission.
Exam pattern for SSC Stenographer-for
- Computer-Based Test:
| Section | No. of Questions | Max. Marks | Duration |
| General Intelligence & Reasoning | 50 | 50 | 2 hours |
| General Awareness | 50 | 50 | |
| English Language and Comprehension | 100 | 100 | |
| Total | 200 | 200 |
The exam will be conducted in online mode.
The questions will be objective type (multiple choice questions). There will be a negative marking of 0.25 marks for each wrong answer. The exam duration is 2 hours.
- Skill Test:
Candidates who qualify in the CBT will be called for the Skill Test. The details of the Skill Test are as follows:
| Language | Shorthand Speed | Transcription Time |
| English | 80 wpm | 50 min. |
| Hindi | 80 wpm | 65 min. |
The skill test will be conducted to test the stenography skill of candidates. The test will be conducted on a computer.
The shorthand speed required for the test is 80 words per minute (wpm).
The transcription time allowed for English is 50 minutes and for Hindi, it is 65 minutes.
Note: The exam pattern is subject to change as per the latest notification issued by the Staff Selection Commission.
SELECTION PROCESS-
| Stage | Exam Mode | Description |
| Stage 1: Computer Based Test (CBT) | Online | 200 multiple-choice questions from General Intelligence & Reasoning, General Awareness, and English Language & Comprehension |
| Stage 2: Skill Test | Computer based | Candidates who qualify in the CBT will be called for the skill test. The test will be conducted to test the stenography skills of the candidates. The shorthand speed required for the test is 80 words per minute (wpm) for both English and Hindi, and the transcription time allowed is 50 minutes for English and 65 minutes for Hindi. |
| Stage 3: Merit List | – | A merit list will be prepared based on the marks obtained by candidates in the CBT. Candidates who clear the skill test will be considered for the final selection. |
| Stage 4: Document Verification | – | Candidates who are shortlisted for the final selection will have to produce the necessary documents to prove their eligibility. |
| Stage 5: Final Selection | – | The final selection will be made based on the merit list and document verification. |
Note: The selection process is subject to change as per the latest notification issued by the Staff Selection Commission.
SSC STENOGRAPHER EXAM SYLLABUS-
| Section | Subject | Topics |
| General Intelligence & Reasoning | Verbal Reasoning | Analogies, Similarities, and Differences, Space Visualization, Spatial Orientation, Problem-Solving, Analysis, Judgment, Decision Making, Visual Memory, Discrimination, Observation, Relationship Concepts, Arithmetical Reasoning, Verbal and Figure Classification, Arithmetical Number Series, Non-Verbal Series, etc. |
| Non-Verbal Reasoning | Non-Verbal Series, Mirror Images, Cubes and Dice, Grouping Identical Figures, Embedded Figures, etc. | |
| General Awareness | Current Events | National and International News, Sports News, Important Dates, Awards and Honors, Science and Technology, Indian Polity, Indian Economy, etc. |
| Static General Knowledge | Indian History, Geography, Culture, Environment, Basic Computer Knowledge, etc. | |
| English Language & Comprehension | Vocabulary | Synonyms, Antonyms, Homonyms, One Word Substitution, Spellings, Idioms, and Phrases etc. |
| Grammar | Parts of Speech, Tenses, Voice, Narration, Sentence Structure, Articles, Comprehension, Fill in the Blanks, Error Detection, Sentence Rearrangement etc. |
SSC Stenographer General Intelligence and Reasoning Topic-Wise Syllabus
| Subject | Chapter | Topics | Sub-Topics |
| General Intelligence & Reasoning | Verbal Reasoning | Analogies | Semantic Analogy Symbolic/Number Analogy Figural Analogy |
| Similarities and Differences | Semantic Similarity Symbolic/Number Similarity Figural Similarity Differences | ||
| Space Visualization | Spatial Orientation Spatial Visualization Spatial Relations | ||
| Spatial Orientation | Awareness of location Direction Sense Sense of Distance | ||
| Problem Solving | Word Building Coding and Decoding Numerical Operations Symbolic Operations Trends and Patterns Space Orientation and Visualization Venn Diagrams Drawing Inferences | ||
| Analysis | Analysis of trends and patterns Comparison and Ranking Coding and Decoding Classification Series Analytical Reasoning | ||
| Judgment and Decision Making | Decision Making Problem Solving Judgment | ||
| Visual Memory | Memory of figures Images Structure Classification Relationship Visualization Memory | ||
| Discrimination | Discrimination between objects Discrimination between concepts Discrimination between similar and dissimilar figures | ||
| Observation | Observation and Relationship Concepts involving relationships Space Orientation Visualization |
| Subject | Chapter | Topics | Sub-Topics |
| Relationship Concepts | Analogies Semantic Relationships Symbolic/Number Relationships Figural Relationships | ||
| Arithmetical Reasoning | Number series Coding and Decoding Simple Arithmetic | ||
| Verbal Classification | Semantic Classification Symbolic/Number Classification Figural Classification | ||
| Figure Classification | Semantic Series Symbolic/Number Series Figural Series | ||
| Arithmetical Number Series | Addition Subtraction Multiplication Division Missing Term | ||
| General Intelligence & Reasoning | Non-Verbal Reasoning | Mirror Images | Identifying Mirror Images Mirror Images of Dotted Lines |
| Cubes and Dice | Identifying the Pattern of Cubes Identifying the Pattern of Dice | ||
| Grouping Identical Figures | Identifying Identical Figures Identifying Similar Figures Identifying Odd Figures | ||
| Embedded Figures | Identifying Embedded Figures Identifying Hidden Figures Identifying Complete Figures | ||
| Figure Classification | Identifying Geometrical Shapes Identifying Odd Pair Out Identifying Series of Figures | ||
| Drawing Inferences | Analyzing the Given Information | ||
| General Intelligence & Reasoning | Coding- Decoding | Coding and Decoding | Coding in Fictitious Language Decoding of the Fictitious Language |
| General Intelligence & Reasoning | Miscellaneous | Paper Folding and Cutting | Paper Folding Paper Cutting |
| Subject | Chapter | Topics | Sub-Topics |
| Rule Detection | Identifying the Pattern and Rules | ||
| Series | Completing the Given Series | ||
| Completion of Series | Identifying the Next Figure in the Series | ||
| Embedded Figures | Identifying the Embedded Figures | ||
| Critical Thinking | Analyzing the Given Information |
SSC STENOGRAPHER GENERAL AWARENESS TOPIC WISE SYLLABUS
| Subject | Chapter | Topics | Sub-Topics |
| General Awareness | History | Ancient History | Indus Valley Civilization Vedic Period Buddhism and Jainism Mauryan Empire Gupta Empire |
| Medieval History | Delhi Sultanate Mughal Empire Maratha Empire Vijayanagar Empire Bhakti Movement | ||
| Modern History | British Rule in India Revolt of 1857 Indian National Movement Partition of India Formation of the Constitution | ||
| General Awareness | Geography | Physical Geography | Earth and its composition Atmosphere Hydrosphere Lithosphere Biosphere |
| Indian Geography | Physiographic Divisions Rivers Soils Climate Natural Vegetation | ||
| World Geography | Continents and Oceans Mountains Plateaus Deserts Islands | ||
| General Awareness | Polity | Indian Constitution | Preamble Fundamental Rights Directive Principles of State Policy Union and its Territories Emergency Provisions |
| Government | Parliament President Prime Minister Cabinet Ministers Chief Ministers | ||
| Judiciary | Supreme Court High Courts District Courts Judicial Activism Judicial Reforms | ||
| General Awareness | Economics | Indian Economy | Planning Commission Five Year Plans National Income Poverty and Unemployment Agriculture and Rural Development |
| World Economy | World Bank International Monetary Fund World Trade Organization Foreign Trade Globalization | ||
| General Awareness | Science | Physics | Laws of Motion Work, Energy, and Power Gravitation Thermodynamics |
| Subject | Chapter | Topics | Sub-Topics |
| Electricity and Magnetism | |||
| Chemistry | Periodic Table Chemical Bonding Acids and Bases Organic Chemistry Environmental Chemistry | ||
| Biology | Cell Theory Genetics Human Anatomy Diseases and their Causes Evolution | ||
| General Awareness | Static GK | Books and Authors | Famous Books and their Authors |
| Awards and Honours | National and International Awards and their Winners | ||
| Sports | National and International Sports Famous Sports Personalities | ||
| Miscellaneous | Indian Culture Indian Art and Architecture National and International Days Current Affairs |
SSC STENOGRAPHER ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPREHENSION TOPIC WISE SYLLABUS
| Subject | Chapter | Topics | Sub-Topics |
| English Language & Comprehension | Vocabulary | Synonyms and Antonyms | Words and their Synonyms Words and their Antonyms |
| Homonyms | Words with multiple meanings Confusing Words | ||
| One-word Substitution | Sentences with One-word meanings | ||
| Idioms and Phrases | Expressions with figurative meanings | ||
| English Language & Comprehension | Grammar | Parts of Speech | Noun Pronoun Verb Adjective Adverb Preposition Conjunction Interjection |
| Tenses | Present Tense Past Tense Future Tense | ||
| Active and Passive Voice | Active Voice Passive Voice | ||
| Direct and Indirect Speech | Direct Speech Indirect Speech | ||
| Sentence Structure | Subject-verb agreement Sentence Types Sentence Correction | ||
| English Language & Comprehension | Reading Comprehension | Passage | Short Passages Long Passages |
| Question Types | Main Idea Inference Vocabulary Tone Author’s Purpose | ||
| Techniques | Skimming Scanning Critical Reading | ||
| English Language & Comprehension | Writing Ability | Essay Writing | Introduction Body Conclusion |
| Letter Writing | Formal Letters Informal Letters |
| Subject | Chapter | Topics | Sub-Topics |
| Precis Writing | Writing the essence of a passage in a concise manner | ||
| Paragraph Writing | Writing coherent and well- structured paragraphs | ||
| English Language & Comprehension | Spelling | Spellings of Commonly Misspelled Words | Words with silent letters Words with double letters Confusing Spellings |
| Spelling Rules | Rules for Adding Suffixes Rules for Doubling Letters Rules for Changing y to i | ||
| Spelling Practice | Spelling Worksheets Spelling Games |