SSC JE CE Syllabus, Exam Pattern, Eligibility

Paper-II is 100 questions for 300 marks, three marks each. Paper-I is qualifying (Para 18.2): its normalised marks shortlist candidates category-wise for Paper-II.

Reasoning and General Awareness are common to all candidates; the technical Part is the one you chose on the form.

On screen

• The IS 456:2000 table and Steam Table under "Useful Data" next to Instructions, available throughout.
• A scientific calculator icon to the left of your photo, for the whole paper.
• No physical tables or calculators in the lab.

Normalisation and merit lists

Multi-shift marks are normalised under the procedure of 2 June 2025. Electrical and Mechanical marks are normalised against each other as separate shifts, as are IMD's Parts D, E and F. Paper-I normalised marks shortlist; only normalised Paper-II scores decide final merit. Separate lists are drawn for JE (Civil), JE (Electrical and Mechanical), Scientific Assistant (IMD) and JE (Telecom). Parts A to F run in one batch; Part-G (Telecom) separately.

Ties

1. Paper-I Part (i), Reasoning
2. Paper-I Part (ii), General Awareness
3. Date of birth, older first
4. Alphabetical order

There's no re-evaluation or re-checking (Para 13.20). The paid answer-key challenge is the only route.

From Para 14 of the 2026 notice. The standard of the questions in the engineering subjects is approximately that of a Diploma in Engineering. All questions are set in SI units.

Paper-I

Part (i): General Intelligence and Reasoning, 50 questions, 50 marks

Verbal and non-verbal. Analogies, similarities and differences, space visualization, problem solving, analysis, judgement, decision making, visual memory, discrimination, observation, relationship concepts, arithmetical reasoning, verbal and figure classification, arithmetical number series. Also questions testing the ability to deal with abstract ideas and symbols and their relationships, arithmetical computations and other analytical functions.

Part (ii): General Awareness, 50 questions, 50 marks

The environment around the candidate and its application to society; current events; matters of everyday observation and experience in their scientific aspect. Questions on India and its neighbouring countries, especially History, Culture, Geography, Economic Scene, General Polity and Scientific Research. The notice adds that these questions do not require a special study of any discipline.

Part-A: General Engineering (Civil and Structural), 100 questions, 100 marks

Engineering Mechanics; Solid Mechanics; Structural Analysis; Construction Materials and Management; Estimating, Costing and Valuation; Concrete Structures; Steel Structures; Surveying; Soil Mechanics (Geotechnical Engineering); Fluid Mechanics and Hydraulics; Hydrology and Irrigation Engineering; Environmental Engineering; Transportation (Traffic) Engineering.

Paper-II, Part-A: Civil and Structural Engineering, 100 questions, 300 marks

The same list in more detail:

Paper-I and Paper-II cover the same headings; Paper-II goes deeper, at 72 seconds a question against 36. Only the IS 456:2000 table is on screen; the IRC codes, Webster's method and the rest you must know.

Also on ssc.gov.in under Syllabus.

Age, on 1 August 2026

The 32-year limit applies at CPWD and the Directorate General of Lighthouses and Lightships; everywhere else it's 30. The crucial date comes from DoP&T OM No. 14017/70/87-Estt.(RR) of 14 July 1988.

No relaxation for children or dependants of ex-servicemen. Your date of birth must match your Matriculation certificate; a mismatch means rejection.

Qualification, on the closing date

With only a diploma and no experience, you can go to CPWD, CWPRS, NTRO, Brahmaputra Board, Farakka Barrage, CWC and the Ministry of Fisheries, but not BRO or MES. A degree covers everything. If you're selected for a post whose requirement you don't meet, your candidature is rejected and your next preference isn't considered (Para 18.8).

Nationality

An Indian citizen, a subject of Nepal or Bhutan, or a person of Indian origin who migrated from Pakistan, Burma, Sri Lanka, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Zambia, Malawi, Zaire, Ethiopia or Vietnam to settle permanently. The last group needs a Government of India eligibility certificate.

1. Paper-I, 200 marks, qualifying. Normalised marks shortlist candidates category-wise for Paper-II.
2. Paper-II, 300 marks, technical Part only. Final merit is on normalised Paper-II scores.
3. Document verification, any medical or physical requirement of the post, and appointment.

Minimum qualifying marks are 30 per cent UR, 25 per cent OBC and EWS, 20 per cent others, in both papers. Select lists are drawn post by post on post preference cum normalised Paper-II marks; civil candidates are only ranked against civil candidates.

Allotment is final

Allotment is on merit cum preference of post, department and office, and isn't changed afterwards (Para 18.8). Selected for a higher preference and fail its medical, physical or qualification standard? You're out, and lower preferences aren't considered. Rank only what you can actually clear.

Other rules

• No waiting or reserve list. SSC uses a sliding mechanism, set out in its notices of 3 March 2026 and 8 April 2026.
• If you apply for more than one post, you must sit each exam.
• Reserved candidates selected on their own merit without relaxed standards go against unreserved or their own category's vacancies, whichever is better. Anyone using a relaxed standard (age, experience, qualification or extended zone) counts against reserved posts.
• Malpractice means cancellation and debarment from SSC exams, plus any legal action.

BRO only

1. Physical Efficiency Test (Schedule-I): a one-mile run in 10 minutes at the GREF Centre, Pune. No marks; you just have to pass.
2. Physical and medical standards (Schedules II and III), written for extreme remote, high altitude, difficult and hilly areas. A medical board nominated by HQ DGBR examines you, with specialist referrals to a Military Hospital.

₹35,400 is basic pay. DA, HRA by city class, transport allowance and departmental allowances are added; NPS and CGHS are deducted. The notice gives no take-home figure.

An ex-serviceman already re-employed regularly in a central Group 'C' or 'D' post using ESM reservation can't claim ESM reservation or the fee concession again.

Several of these organisations post civil engineers to field sites. BRO in particular sets its medical standards for remote, high-altitude service. Since an allotted post isn't changed, look at where an organisation sends people before ranking it high.

Online only at ssc.gov.in. Toll-free helpline for the form: 180 030 930 63.

Fee

₹100, online only (BHIM UPI, net banking, or Visa, MasterCard, Maestro or RuPay debit card). Women, SC, ST, PwBD and eligible Ex-Servicemen pay nothing. If the fee doesn't reach SSC, your form shows 'Incomplete'; check the status after paying.

Get these right

• Technical Part: for JE (Civil), Part-A, General Engineering (Civil and Structural), which you sit in Paper-I and as the whole of Paper-II.
• Three centre preferences in one region. No changes later.
• Date of birth exactly as on your Matriculation certificate. It can never be changed.
• The correction window, 28 to 30 September 2026, is charged. After that nothing can be changed.
• Applying for more than one post means sitting each exam.

Dates are under important dates.

The other organisations in the notice recruit other streams: DGQA-Naval (electrical and mechanical), the Department of Telecommunications (JE Telecom) and the India Meteorological Department (Scientific Assistant).

The notice gives 1,748 tentative vacancies in all; post-wise and category-wise figures appear under Tentative Vacancy on ssc.gov.in. SSC doesn't collect state-wise or zone-wise vacancies; ask the department if you need those.

Both papers are computer based at centres under SSC's nine regional and sub-regional offices: Central (Bihar, Uttar Pradesh), Eastern, Karnataka-Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, North Eastern, Northern, North Western, Southern and Western. Centre lists and codes are in Para 12.1 of the notice.

You give three centres in one region, in order. No change later. SSC can add or cancel centres and move candidates.

Each paper is 2 hours, or 2 hours 40 minutes for candidates eligible for a scribe. Paper-I is expected in October or November 2026 and Paper-II in December 2026, each with its own city slip and admit card.

Age is reckoned on 1 August 2026; qualifications on the closing date. The fee deadline is a day after the form deadline. Both exam dates are tentative, and changes are posted only on ssc.gov.in (Para 13.19).

Last cycle, for comparison: Paper-I in November 2025, Paper-I answer key on 19 December 2025, tentative vacancies on 26 February 2026, Paper-I result on 6 March 2026, Paper-II city slip and admit card on 23 and 27 March 2026, and Paper-II answer key on 16 April 2026. The JE exam appears each year in the SSC examination calendar.

Each paper has its own city intimation slip and then an Admission Certificate, downloaded from your regional office website (listed in Para 12.1 of the notice). Both are announced on the ssc.gov.in notice board. Only candidates who qualify in Paper-I get a Paper-II admit card, and an 'Incomplete' form gets none.

Scribe candidates get 2 hours 40 minutes per paper. Claim it on the application; SSC also has a One Time Registration for Scribe on its website.

Results, cut-offs and select lists are published on ssc.gov.in and the regional websites. Paper-I results come out roughly three to four months after the paper, as they did in March 2026 for the 2025 cycle.

Answer keys

Tentative keys go up after each paper with your response sheet. Challenges are online only, ₹50 per question, non-refundable, under SSC's Challenge / Objection Management System guidelines of 10 April 2026. Final keys are published with the marks after the result. No re-evaluation.

The notice's 1,748 is tentative; final post-wise vacancies under Tentative Vacancy are revised by corrigenda. SSC also publishes scores of non-recommended willing candidates for other employers.

SSC publishes category-wise cut-offs with each result write-up, for Paper-I and for the final result, on ssc.gov.in. Nothing is published in advance. They're normalised scores, so don't compare them directly with a raw score from the answer key.

The 30, 25 and 20 per cent minimums are only a floor; the real cut-off is set by the last candidate selected against the final vacancies. Civil candidates compete only with civil candidates.

• Guess differently in each paper. An educated guess is usually worth it in Paper-I. In Paper-II, leave what you don't know.
• Don't coast through Paper-I. The Paper-II shortlist is on merit, not just a pass, and Reasoning then General Awareness break ties at the end. Those 100 marks need no engineering.
• Learn the console. Take SSC's mock on the real platform when it's announced, and find "Useful Data" and the calculator icon before the day.
• Know the codes that aren't on screen: IRC pavement design, Webster's signal design, IS 800 for steel. Concrete can be set on both limit state and working stress.
• Cover every heading. Environmental engineering alone has water and wastewater, air pollution and solid waste; estimating and costing is a full topic in Paper-II.
• Work in SI units; all questions use them.
• Fix your preference order before applying. Don't list BRO or MES on a diploma without experience, or BRO first unless you're sure of the run and the medical.
• Download your response sheet while the answer-key window is open.

SSC posts released papers under Previous Year Question Papers on ssc.gov.in, and uploads each candidate's response sheet with the tentative answer key after every paper (Paper-I keys came out in December last cycle, Paper-II in April). A mock test on the real platform is announced shortly before each paper.

Older papers predate the current pattern: Paper-II is now 100 questions for 300 marks with a one-mark penalty and an on-screen calculator.

• Staff Selection Commission, notice board and regional office links
• Notice of Junior Engineer Examination, 2026 and Addendum of 10 September 2026
• Tentative Vacancy
• Scheme of Examination and Syllabus
• Examination Calendar
• Previous Year Question Papers
• Normalization Method
• Toll-free helpline for the application form: 180 030 930 63

Does Paper-I count towards the final merit?

No, it's qualifying. It shortlists for Paper-II and breaks ties. Final merit is on Paper-II.

How much is deducted for a wrong answer?

0.25 in Paper-I, a full mark in Paper-II (on a three-mark question).

What are the minimum qualifying marks?

30 per cent UR, 25 per cent OBC and EWS, 20 per cent others, in both papers.

Can I carry a calculator or code table?

No. A scientific calculator, the IS 456:2000 table and the Steam Table are on screen.

What is the fee?

₹100. Women, SC, ST, PwBD and eligible ex-servicemen pay nothing.

On what date is my age reckoned?

1 August 2026. Qualifications are reckoned on the closing date.

What is the age limit?

30, or 32 at CPWD and DGLL, with 5 years' relaxation for SC and ST, 3 for OBC, 3 for ex-servicemen after deducting service, and 10, 13 or 15 for PwBD.

Do I need a degree, or is a diploma enough?

Depends on the organisation. CPWD, CWPRS, NTRO and Brahmaputra Board take a diploma alone; MES and BRO need a degree or diploma plus two years' experience; DGLL a degree or diploma plus three years.

Can I change my centre or date of birth?

No. Other fields only in the paid correction window, 28 to 30 September 2026.

Can I ask for a re-check?

No. The only route is the answer-key challenge at ₹50 a question.

Is there a waiting list?

No. SSC uses a sliding mechanism instead.

Is there a physical test?

Only for BRO: a one-mile run in 10 minutes and a medical board.