RRB JE ME Syllabus, Exam Pattern, Eligibility

Four stages

1. CBT-I: screening, common to every post in the CEN
2. CBT-II: the paper that decides merit
3. Document Verification
4. Medical Examination

CBT-I: 100 questions, 100 marks, 90 minutes

CBT-I marks don't reach the final merit. They only shortlist for CBT-II, at 15 times the community-wise vacancy of your RRB. Scribe-eligible candidates get 120 minutes.

CBT-II: 150 questions, 150 marks, 120 minutes

Two thirds of CBT-II is the technical paper. The CEN calls the section split indicative. A virtual calculator is on screen in CBT-II only.

Negative marking and the qualifying bar

1/3 mark is deducted for each wrong answer, in both CBTs.

PwBD candidates may be relaxed by 2 marks if reserved vacancies would otherwise go unfilled.

The five exam groups

If you hold degrees mapped to different groups, you choose one group at registration, and the posts you opt for must be mapped to it. The choice is final.

CBT-I

Mathematics: number systems, BODMAS, decimals, fractions, LCM and HCF, ratio and proportion, percentages, mensuration, time and work, time and distance, simple and compound interest, profit and loss, algebra, geometry, trigonometry, elementary statistics, square root, age calculations, calendar and clock, pipes and cistern.

General Intelligence and Reasoning: analogies, alphabetical and number series, coding and decoding, mathematical operations, relationships, syllogism, jumbling, Venn diagram, data interpretation and sufficiency, conclusions and decision making, similarities and differences, analytical reasoning, classification, directions, statements with arguments and assumptions.

General Awareness: current affairs, Indian geography, culture and history including the freedom struggle, polity and constitution, economy, environmental issues, sports, scientific and technological developments.

General Science: Physics, Chemistry and Life Sciences up to 10th standard CBSE.

CBT-II: the 50 common marks

General Awareness as above. Physics and Chemistry up to 10th standard CBSE.

Basics of Computers and Applications: computer architecture; input, output and storage devices; networking; operating systems such as Windows, Unix and Linux; MS Office; data representation; internet and email; websites and browsers; computer virus.

Basics of Environment and Pollution Control: pollution and control strategies; air, water and noise pollution; waste management; global warming; acid rain; ozone depletion.

Technical Abilities: Mechanical and Allied Engineering (100 marks)

From Annexure VIII (D) of the CEN 04/2026 notification.

1. Engineering Mechanics: resolution of forces, equilibrium and equilibrant; parallelogram, triangle and polygon laws of forces and Lami's theorem; couple and moment of a couple; equilibrium of a rigid body under coplanar non-concurrent forces; static and dynamic friction; limiting angle of friction and angle of repose; resolution of forces with friction on horizontal and inclined planes; moment of inertia and radius of gyration of I, channel, T, L (equal and unequal), Z and simple built-up sections; Newton's laws of motion; motion of a projectile; D'Alembert's principle; conservation of energy and of momentum.
2. Material Science: mechanical properties of engineering materials: tensile and compressive strength, ductility, malleability, hardness, toughness, brittleness, impact strength, fatigue, creep resistance; classification of steels, mild steel and alloy steels; importance of heat treatment; annealing, normalizing, hardening, tempering, carburizing, nitriding and cyaniding.
3. Strength of Materials: stress, strain, the stress-strain diagram, factor of safety, thermal stresses, strain energy, proof resilience and modulus of resilience; shear force and bending moment diagrams for cantilever, simply supported, continuous and fixed beams; torsion in shafts and springs; thin cylindrical shells.
4. Machining: working principle of the lathe; types of lathe, engine lathe construction and specification; nomenclature of the single-point cutting tool, geometry, tool signature, functions of tool angles; turning, facing, taper turning, thread cutting, knurling, forming, drilling, boring, reaming, keyway cutting; cutting fluids, coolants and lubricants; introduction to shaper, slotter, planer, broaching, milling; manufacture of gears and the heat treatment applied to them.
5. Welding: classification of welding processes, advantages and limitations; principles and equipment of arc welding; choice of electrodes for different metals; oxy-acetylene gas welding, its equipment and procedures; soldering and brazing, types and applications of solders and fluxes; flame cutting processes, their advantages and limitations; welding defects, testing and inspection; modern methods (submerged, CO2, atomic-hydrogen and ultrasonic welding); MIG and TIG welding.
6. Grinding and Finishing Processes: principles of metal removal by grinding; natural and artificial abrasives; bonds and binding processes (vitrified, silicate, shellac, rubber); cylindrical, surface and tool-and-cutter grinding machines, construction and relative merits; centreless grinding, its advantages and limitations; work-holding devices, wheel maintenance, balancing of wheels, coolants; honing, lapping and super-finishing; electroplating and plating metals; hot dipping, galvanizing, tin coating, parkerising, anodizing; metal spraying by wire and powder process; organic coatings, oil-base paint, lacquer-base enamels, bituminous paints, rubber-base coating.
7. Metrology: linear measurement with slip gauges and dial indicators; angle measurement, bevel protractor, sine bar, angle slip gauges; mechanical, electrical, optical and pneumatic comparators; measurement of surface roughness by comparison, tracer instruments and interferometry; collimators, measuring microscope, interferometer; inspection of machine parts using shadow and profile projection.
8. Fluid Mechanics and Hydraulic Machinery: density, specific weight, specific gravity, viscosity, surface tension, compressibility, capillarity; Pascal's law, measurement of pressure, buoyancy; Reynolds number; pressure, potential and kinetic energy of liquids, total energy; conservation of mass, energy and momentum; velocity and discharge; Bernoulli's equation and its assumptions; venturi meter, pitot tube, current meters; working principle and construction of the centrifugal pump; manometric, volumetric, mechanical and overall efficiency; cavitation and its effect; jet and submersible pumps.
9. Industrial Management: job analysis, motivation and its theories, satisfaction, performance reward systems; production planning and control and its relation with other departments; routing, scheduling, dispatching; PERT and CPM; inventory control models, ABC analysis, safety stock, re-order level, economic order quantity, break-even analysis; stores layout, equipment and records; purchasing procedures and records, Bin card, Cardex; material handling: manual lifting, hoists, cranes, conveyors, trucks, fork trucks.
10. Thermal Engineering: laws of thermodynamics, conversion of heat into work and the reverse; laws of perfect gases; isochoric, isobaric, isothermal, hyperbolic, isentropic, polytropic and throttling processes; modes of heat transfer, thermal conductivity, convective heat transfer coefficient, the Stefan-Boltzmann law, overall heat transfer coefficient; air-standard cycles (Carnot, Otto and Diesel); construction and working of internal combustion engines, comparison of diesel and petrol engines, engine systems and performance; air compressors and their cycles; refrigeration cycles and the principle of a refrigeration plant.

Qualification

A three-year Diploma in Engineering, or a Bachelor's degree in Engineering or Technology, in a discipline mapped to an exam group. For Mechanical and Allied that's Mechanical, Production, Automobile, Manufacturing, Mechatronics, Industrial, Machining, Tools and Machining, and Tools and Die Making Engineering, and combinations of their sub-streams.

Depot Material Superintendent has its own three-year diploma requirement. Post-wise qualifications are in Annexure A of the CEN and differ between posts, so check the category numbers you plan to opt for.

You must hold the qualification by the closing date, 13 September 2026. If you're awaiting a final result, don't apply.

Age: as on 1 January 2027

18 to 33 years. Born not after 01.01.2009, and not before 02.01.1994 for UR/EWS, 02.01.1991 for OBC-NCL, or 02.01.1989 for SC/ST.

Relaxations don't add up: you get the largest one you qualify for. SC, ST, OBC-NCL and PwBD candidates applying against UR vacancies get no category relaxation (PwBD get the PwBD-UR relaxation only).

Nationality

A citizen of India or Nepal, a subject of Bhutan, or a person of Indian origin who migrated from one of the listed countries to settle permanently in India. All but Indian citizens need a certificate of eligibility from the Government of India.

Medical standards

Each post has a medical standard, listed in Annexure A. If you're found medically unfit you aren't offered another post. One paid medical appeal is allowed, and its result is final.

1. CBT-I: screening only, shortlisting at 15 times the vacancy.
2. CBT-II: decides merit.
3. Document Verification: shortlisting at 1:1 of your RRB's vacancies, on CBT-II merit and your options.
4. Medical Examination: against the standard for the post.

Merit Index

Candidates from different exam groups compete for the same posts, so raw marks are converted to a Merit Index first:

• 350 is given to the general-category qualifying mark, 40.
• 900 is given to the mean mark of the top 0.1% or top 10 candidates in that paper, whichever is larger.
• Everything else is scaled linearly between those two points.

So your score depends on how the strongest candidates in your exam group did. Multi-session marks are normalised across sessions first.

Ties

Equal marks go to the older candidate, then alphabetically by given name.

Allotment

Post and zone are allotted on merit, reservation and vacancy against your preferences. Once empanelled you lose consideration for any other post at the same pay level, so order your preferences with care.

Pay Level 6 of the 7th CPC matrix, starting at Rs 35,400. That applies to Junior Engineer and Depot Material Superintendent under CEN 04/2026, and to the Chemical and Metallurgical Assistant post added by Corrigendum 1.

Dearness Allowance, House Rent Allowance and Transport Allowance are added at the rates for your posting, plus the department's running and other allowances. These move with DA revisions and city class, so there's no fixed gross figure.

Fee and refund

You only get the refund if you sit CBT-I. Skip the exam and the whole fee is gone.

EBC here means Economically Backward Class. It isn't OBC or EWS, and it isn't the Extremely Backward Class certificate some states issue.

One RRB, one application

Apply on rrbapply.gov.in to a single RRB, with preferences for zones and posts within it. You can't change the RRB later.

Applying to more than one RRB, or twice to the same one, gets every application rejected, and can lead to debarment from future RRB and RRC exams. Posts you don't opt for are read as unwillingness.

Modification

A paid window runs 16 to 25 September 2026, at Rs 250 each time, non-refundable. It can't change the 'Create an Account' details (including mobile and email) or the chosen RRB.

Identity

Verify through DigiLocker or Aadhaar when creating the account. If you use another photo ID, expect much stricter checks at every later stage.

Cities and centres are allotted on feasibility, not preference, and you may have to travel to another city or state. Mock tests go up on the RRB websites before the CBT so you can get used to the interface. Physical calculators are banned in both CBTs.

CEN No. 04/2026, Junior Engineer and Depot Material Superintendent, published on the RRB websites on 13 August 2026.

The fee deadline two days after closing is only for applications already submitted.

Vacancies

The CEN notified 3,993 posts. Corrigendum 1 added 1 Junior Engineer / Electrical / TRS vacancy at RRB Secunderabad and 35 Chemical and Metallurgical Assistant vacancies across seven RRBs, making 4,029. The RRB-wise split in Annexure B is provisional and can change.

The city and date slip, e-call letter and travel authority (where applicable) are downloaded from your RRB's website. You're told by SMS and email when they're out.

Only the e-call letter is allowed into the centre. Phones, watches, earphones, Bluetooth devices, calculators, books, paper, pens, pencils, belts, bags, caps, wallets, cameras, water bottles and food are all banned. A pen is provided. There may be no cloakroom. Mehndi on your hands can block biometric capture.

Date, centre and shift changes are not entertained under any circumstances.

CBT results, answer keys and the final panel are published on the website of the RRB you applied to, linked from the RRB portal.

Your rank comes from the normalised mark converted to the Merit Index (350 to 900), not from the raw mark. Empanelment follows Document Verification and the medical exam; appointment also needs verification of certificates and antecedents.

There are two different bars.

The qualifying percentage is fixed in the CEN: UR and EWS 40%, OBC-NCL 30%, SC 30%, ST 25%, in each CBT. It makes your paper count; it doesn't shortlist you.

The shortlisting cut-off depends on merit and vacancies, so it differs by RRB, community and cycle. The same score can clear in one RRB and miss in another.

Each RRB publishes its actual cut-offs with the result on its own website, linked from the RRB portal.

1. Prepare from the CEN's technical syllabus, not your degree notes. Annexure VIII (D) is diploma-level workshop technology: tool signature, wheel bonds, electrode selection, sine bars, Bin cards.
2. Don't skip Industrial Management and Metrology. ABC analysis, EOQ, PERT and CPM, comparators and slip gauges are quick marks once learnt.
3. Treat CBT-I as a gate. It shortlists at 15 times the vacancy and counts for nothing after.
4. Mind the 1/3 penalty. Three wrong answers cancel one right one.
5. General Science is 30 marks in CBT-I, the same as Mathematics, and only to 10th standard. Engineers skip it and lose easy marks.
6. Choose your RRB on vacancies, not geography. Shortlisting is RRB-wise and you get one choice.
7. Order post preferences carefully. Once empanelled you lose every other post at the same level.
8. Use the mock tests on the RRB websites before the CBT.
9. Sit the exam even if under-prepared. The refund (Rs 400 of Rs 500, or the whole Rs 250) only goes to those who appear.

RRB portal (Indian Railways): rrb.indianrailways.gov.in

Application portal: rrbapply.gov.in

CEN No. 04/2026, full notification (PDF): JE and DMS, English

Corrigendum 1 to CEN 04/2026 (PDF): additional vacancies and the CMA exam group

Results, e-call letters and cut-offs appear on each RRB's own site. Use the board you applied to.

Which exam group does a mechanical candidate sit?

Mechanical and Allied Engineering, Exam Group 1. It covers ten disciplines, the widest of the five groups.

Is the technical paper degree level or diploma level?

Diploma level. Annexure VIII (D) is workshop technology: tool signatures, grinding wheel bonds, electrodes, slip gauges, Bin cards, stores layout.

What if I hold two qualifying degrees in different groups?

Choose one group at registration and opt for posts mapped to it. The choice is final.

Do CBT-I marks count towards the final merit?

No. CBT-I only shortlists for CBT-II.

Is there negative marking?

Yes, 1/3 of the question's marks, in both CBTs.

How much is the fee, and is any of it refunded?

Rs 500, with Rs 400 back if you sit CBT-I. Rs 250 for SC, ST, Ex-servicemen, PwBD, women, Transgender, Minority and EBC candidates, refunded in full if you sit. Bank charges are deducted.

Can I apply to more than one RRB?

No. Multiple applications are all rejected and can lead to debarment.

What is the age limit?

18 to 33 years as on 1 January 2027, with category relaxations. They don't add up.

How many vacancies are there?

3,993 in the CEN, plus 36 added by Corrigendum 1 (one JE/Electrical/TRS and 35 Chemical and Metallurgical Assistant), giving 4,029.

Is a calculator allowed?

No physical calculator. A virtual one is on screen in CBT-II only.