Everything You Need To Know: How To Crack SSC CHSL Exam

By Divya

Updated: Wednesday, July 15, 2026, 0:09 [IST]

The CHSL Exam is conducted by SSC every year in various centers across India. Candidates who wish to apply for SSC CHSL exam this year, need to know all about the SSC CHSL 2017 Notification so that they do not miss any essential information.

About SSC exam:

The SSC Combined Higher Secondary (10+2) Level (SSC CHSL) is a nationwide exam conducted for recruitment to the posts of lower division clerk (LDC), data entry operator (DEO), postal assistants/sorting assistants (PA / SA) in various Central government departments and ministries. This year, registrations for SSC CHSL2017-18 close on December 18, 2017.

SSC CHSL Eligibility Criteria:

Candidate must have passed Class12 or equivalent examination from a recognized board or university
Candidate should be 18-27 years of age as on August 1, 2018.
Age relaxation is provided for various categories as per government regulations
For data entry operator's post in the Office of Comptroller and Auditor General of India (C&AG): Candidate should have cleared Class 12 in science stream with mathematics as a subject from a recognized board or equivalent.

SSC CHSL: Post wise vacancy details:

This year more than 3,000 vacancies have been announced for various posts. The following table shows the post-wise vacancy details. These numbers are tentatives.

Name of the post	No. of vacancies
Lower Division Clerk (LDC)/ Junior Secretariat Assistant (JSA)	898
Postal Assistant (PO)/ Sorting Assistant (SA)	2359
Data Entry Officer (DEO)	2
Data Entry Officer (DEO) Grade 'A'	Nil
Total	3259

Selection process for SSC CHSL:

The selection is done in the following three phases:

•Computer-based examination (Tier-I)

•Descriptive paper (Tier-II)

•Typing test/ skill test (Tier-III)

Exam pattern & Syllabus for SSC CHSL:

This examination will consist of objective type - multiple choice questions. The questions will be set both in English and Hindi for part-II, III and IV.
There will be negative marking of 0.50 marks for each wrong answer.

Tier-I exam pattern and syllabus: Objective computer-based examination

Part	Subject	Number of questions	Maximum marks	Time Duration
I	English Language (Basic Knowledge)	25	50	60 min
II	General Intelligence	25	50	60 min
III	Quantitative Aptitude (Basic Arithmetic Skill)	25	50	60 min
IV	General Awareness	25	50	60 min

I. English language:

Spot the error, cloze passage
Reading comprehension
Fill in the blanks
Synonyms/homonyms, antonyms
Spellings/ detecting misspelled words
Idioms and phrases
One word substitution
Improvement of sentences
Active/passive voice of verbs
Conversion into direct/indirect narration
Shuffling of sentence parts
Shuffling of sentences in a passage

II. General Awareness:

Questions are structured to test the candidate's general awareness of the environment and its application to society.History

Culture
Geography
Economic Scene
General policy
Scientific research

III. Quantitative Aptitude:

Arithmetic
Number systems
Percentages, profit, and loss, discount, partnership business
Ratio and proportion
Averages mixtures and allegation
Simple and compound interest
Time and distance
Time and work
Algebra
Geometry
Mensuration
Trigonometry
Statistical charts

IV. General Intelligence: Includes questions of both verbal and non-verbal type.

Semantic analogy, semantic classification
Symbolic operations, symbolic/ number analogy
Trends, figural analogy, space orientation
Venn diagrams, symbolic/number classification
Drawing inferences, figural classification
Figural pattern - folding and completion
Semantic series, number series, figural series, embedded figures
Critical thinking, problem-solving, word building
Emotional intelligence, social intelligence
Coding and decoding

Tier-II exam pattern and syllabus: Descriptive examination

The paper has been introduced to assess the writing skills of the candidates as it is necessary for government recruitment. The minimum qualifying marks in Tier-II will be 33 %. The performance in Tier II will be included for preparing merit.

It can be taken in either Hindi or English. Paper will comprise an essay (200-250 words) and,
Tier-II Paper will be a descriptive test of 100 marks.
It will be conducted in pen and paper mode.The duration of the test will be 80 minutes
Letter/application of approximately 150-200 words

Tier-III exam pattern and syllabus: Typing/skill test

Tier-III of the examination is a skill test/ typing test which is qualifying in nature. It is conducted for those candidates who qualify for the computer-based examination (Tier-I) and descriptive paper (Tier-II).

Data entry speed of 8,000 (eight thousand) key depressions per hour on Computer for DEO
For post of data entry operator in the Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (C&AG): A speed Test of not less than 15,000 key depressions per hour for data entry work to be ascertained through speed test on computer
Typing test will be conducted in English or Hindi and candidates while applying for the examination will have to their choice/ option for skill test medium in the application form.

Application fee for SSC CHSL:

Fee payable: Rs.100/-
Fee can be paid through SBI Challan/ SBI Net Banking or by using Visa/ Master-card/ Maestro Credit/ Debit card

Pay scale for SSC CHSL:

For Lower division clerk (LDC)/junior secretariat assistant (JSA):

Pay scale -1: (Rs.5,200 - 20,200)
Grade pay: Rs.1,900 (pre-revised)

For Postal assistant (PA)/sorting assistant (SA):

Pay band -1: (Rs.5,200 - 20,200)
Grade pay: Rs.2,400 (pre-revised)

For Data entry operator (DEO):

Pay band -1: (Rs.5,200 - 20,200),
Grade pay: Rs.2,400 (pre-revised)

For Data entry operator, Grade 'A'

Pay band -1: (Rs.5,200 - 20,200)
Grade pay: Rs.2,400 (pre-revised)

SSC CHSL- Important dates to remember:

Notification	Date
Registration Begins	November 18, 2017
Registrayion Ends	December 18, 2017
SSC CHSL Tier I Exam	March 4, 2018- March 26, 2018
SSC CHSL Tier II Exam	July 8, 2018

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