UPSC or Union Public service commission is an authority that organizes the EPFO exam. The employment provident fund organization, the Ministry of Labour & employment offers an amazing opportunity to all the graduates that want to join the government sector. This EPFO post is non-ministerial and falls in group B category central service.
Different vacancies keep on coming for EPFO. One can get a chance to join this job after clearing the EPFO exam and other formalities. The EPO exam is an offline test that includes a written exam and an interview round. One can be an enforcement officer or accounts officer through EPFO recruitment. The EPFO officer is responsible for working in the field and enforces the norms. On the other hand, the accounts officer sits in the office and performs various work related to their job.
Eligibility criteria for EPFO exam
There are certain eligibility criteria to give EPFO exam. This includes the following:
Age limit: When it comes to minimum age criteria, there is no minimum age as such, but yes the maximum age to give this EPFO exam is 30 years. On the other hand, UPSC offers some age relaxation to EPFO employees, ex-servicemen, SC and ST candidates which include,
- 5 years of age relaxation is offered to SC/ST candidates
- 3 years age relaxation is offered to OBC candidates
- 5 years age relaxation is offered to EPFO employees
- 5 years age relaxation is offered to commission and ex-servicemen officers
- 5 years age relaxation is offered to U.T and central government servants
- 10 years age relaxation is offered to Physically handicapped
The candidates who have a bachelor degree in any of the stream from a recognized Indian university, they are eligible to give EPFO exam. Or the candidates with integrated 5 years degree in law, bachelor law degree, masters in B.A, Chartered account, company secretary, etc can also apply for this post.
What is the application process for the EPFO exam?
The EPFO exam application process involves 2 stages. These stages are divided into two halves for registration
Part I
- Visit the official website of UPSC
- Click on the option where you can find the EPFO recruitment application form online for enforcement officer post or account officer post.
- It opens up a new page called registration Part- 1
- Enter your details like the name as mentioned on your Class X or XII mark sheet
- Enter your phone number, e-mail ID, and address
- Marital status
- ID proof and your ID number
- Enter educational qualifications
- Nationality
- Mother’s and Father’s name
- Gender
- Category
- DOB
After entering all these details, click on the “Save” option and continue
Soon after this, you will be asked to verify your details, click on the option of “I agree”. This will complete your Registration Part-I.
Immediately your registration ID will get generated. Make sure you pen down it somewhere. An e-mail is also shared on the candidate’s registered e-mail id stating the important registration details.
Part II of registration
- Once the details are entered, choose your payment mode and make a quick payment of the application fees for the EPFO exam.
- Here you will be asked to upload the scanned copy of the signature and photograph
- Choose your examination center as per your choice and submit the EPFO form
EPFO exam fees
If the candidate is not comfortable in making an online payment, then he/she can make the payment in cash to its nearest State bank of India branch and get an online challan from them. But if in case you want to make the online payment, you can do it by paying through debit or credit cards or net banking.
EPFO exam syllabus
The EPFO exam includes the following topics in its syllabus
- English
- Struggle in Indian freedom
- Indian economy and polity
- Developmental issues and current events
- Accounting principles
- Labour laws and industrial relations
- Computer applications and general science
- Quantitative aptitude and mental ability
- Indian social security
Pattern of EPFO exam
The EPFO exam conducted by the union public service commission involves two exams. This includes a written exam and an interview session. The written exam is highly scoring and the students who qualify for this exam, are only called for the interview round. The written exam helps in screening the non-serious candidates.
The written exam is of 100 marks and holds 75% weightage. On the other hand, the interview round also has 100 marks but has 25% weightage. A candidate is given 2 hours for a written test. All questions are allotted equal marks. The exam includes multiple-choice questions, where one has to choose only one option to give the correct answer.
You can choose either English or Hindi language to give the exam. Negative marking is done for incorrect or wrong answers. If a candidate chooses a wrong answer, then 1/3rd marks are deducted for it. If you leave the question unanswered, then there will be no such deduction.
EPFO admit card
The candidate can get his/her EPFO admit card from the official website of UPSC. You can download it from the website by entering the application number, registration ID, or roll number. Below are some of the steps that you can follow for downloading the EPFO admit card.
- Visit the upsc.gov.in official website
- Click on its option of “admit card”
- Choose the exam, accounts officer/enforcement officer
- Click on the download option
- Click on the “I agree” option after reading the instructions
- One can download the EPFO admit card using the roll number, registration number, or application number.
- This will allow you to have a look at your EPFO e-admit card. You can easily download it in PDF format.
Career prospects
If you qualify for the EPFO exam and become an enforcement officer, then you will get the 7th pay commission. Yes, an account officer or enforcement officer gets the salary under 8 Levels in the pay matrix according to the 7th pay commission. Apart from this salary, you can also get HRA, DA, etc. The candidate can enjoy various allowances and perks.
The duties of an account officer or enforcement officer can be looking after the enforcement, recovery, cash administration, legal issues, accounts, etc.
How to prepare for the EPFO exam
To crack the EPFO exam, you need to be well-prepared. You can start by preparing things topic-wise. Start by sorting the topics and give enough time to every topic. This is the best way of cracking a competitive exam. Have a look at the previous year’s EPFO question papers. This helps in enhancing the ability of your understanding as to how you much learned about its topics and subjects.
Make sure you revise everything on time. Before the last week of the exam, you should only be engaged in revising. Try giving mock tests online, this helps in boosting the confidence to solve questions and helps in deciding whether you can answer a question or not.
Practicing mock tests can make a candidate more confident on the final day paper. Keep in mind, being confident and motivated is the key. Never think of giving up. Keep on trying and give your best while preparing for the EPFO exam, because it is the only chance that can help you fulfill your dreams and can offer you a white-collar job.
Rahul Kumar is a passionate educator, writer, and subject matter expert in the field of education and professional development. As an author on CoursesXpert, Rahul Kumar’s articles cover a wide range of topics, from various courses, educational and career guidance.
