NABARD Grade A (Assistant Manager) Exam Pattern 2026
The full NABARD Grade A (Assistant Manager) exam pattern for 2026 — 3 stages, with the sections, question count, marks, duration and negative marking for each, as set by National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD). Then take a free NABARD Grade A (Assistant Manager) mock in the real pattern below.
Phase I — Preliminary Examination (qualifying, online objective)
- Mode
- Online computer-based test (CBT), conducted at IBPS-managed centres across India
- Sections
- Reasoning · English Language · Computer Knowledge · General Awareness · Quantitative Aptitude · Decision Making · Economic & Social Issues (with focus on Rural India) · Agriculture & Rural Development (with focus on Rural India) — 8 sections in total
- Questions
- 200 multiple-choice questions across all 8 sections combined (sectional question counts: Reasoning 20, English 30-40, Computer Knowledge 20, General Awareness 20, Quantitative Aptitude 20, Decision Making 10, ESI 40, ARD 40)
- Marks
- 200 marks (1 mark per question)
- Duration
- 120 minutes composite (no separate sectional timing)
- Negative marking
- 1/4 mark deducted per wrong answer (0.25 marks per wrong question)
Phase I is qualifying only — marks do NOT carry forward to merit. Candidates must clear both sectional cutoffs and overall cutoff (typically released category-wise). Approximately 20-25 times the vacancies are shortlisted from Phase I for Phase II. For Specialist streams the same Phase I paper is used — the differentiation begins in Phase II Paper II.
Phase II — Mains (merit-counting): Paper I + Paper II
- Mode
- Online — Paper I is objective; Paper II is descriptive with on-screen typing
- Sections
- Paper I (objective, 100 marks, 90 minutes): General English (essay, precis, comprehension blended with objective items) for General stream OR an objective paper on the Specialist discipline. Paper II (descriptive, 100 marks, 90 minutes): Economic & Social Issues + Agriculture & Rural Development (ESI + ARD) for General stream OR a descriptive paper on the Specialist discipline. From the 2022 cycle onwards NABARD has used a blended Paper I covering General English (descriptive) and a Paper II covering ESI+ARD for the General stream.
- Questions
- Paper I — descriptive English questions (essay 40 marks + precis 20 marks + reading comprehension 20 marks + business/office correspondence 20 marks, indicative weights). Paper II — 6-8 descriptive questions on ESI and ARD topics, attempt as per internal choice instructions.
- Marks
- 200 marks total across Phase II (Paper I 100 + Paper II 100)
- Duration
- 90 minutes per paper, both papers conducted on the same day or adjacent days
- Negative marking
- Not applicable (descriptive)
Phase II marks DO count towards final merit. Candidates are shortlisted from Phase II for the interview at approximately 3 times the vacancies per stream. For Specialist streams Paper II is a discipline-specific descriptive paper — Finance candidates write on financial markets, banking, accounting and risk; Statistics candidates write on statistical theory, sampling and econometrics; IT candidates write on systems, networks and databases. Always reference the year's notification for the exact descriptive paper structure.
Phase III — Personal Interview
- Mode
- Offline, panel interview at NABARD Head Office (Mumbai) or designated regional offices
- Sections
- Wide-ranging personal interview covering academic background, work experience, current affairs (especially rural and agricultural economy), NABARD's mandate and schemes, RBI-NABARD relationship, motivation for joining NABARD
- Questions
- Conversational — typically 25-40 minutes with a 4-6 member panel chaired by senior NABARD officer or external expert
- Marks
- 25 marks (some cycles use 50 marks — refer notification)
- Duration
- 25-40 minutes per candidate
- Negative marking
- Not applicable
Final merit list = Phase II Paper I + Paper II + Interview marks (Phase I marks are NOT added). Document verification happens before or alongside the interview. Final allocation of stream, posting and grade follows the merit list and category-wise vacancy distribution.
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