SEBI Grade A 2026 Pattern Phase 1 & 2: Subjects, Marks, Papers & Duration

The SEBI Grade A pattern consists of 3 stages: Phase 1, Phase 2, and interview, where you must clear each stage to move to the next one.

Understanding the SEBI Grade A exam pattern is key to successfully preparing for the SEBI Grade A exam. It gives you a clear idea of the number of papers, subjects in each phase, marking scheme, exam mode, language, and time duration.

I’ve broken down the updated SEBI Grade A 2026 exam pattern and syllabus based on the official notification below. Understanding this will help you focus your efforts in the right direction.

SEBI Grade A 2026 Pattern

As mentioned above, the selection procedure of the SEBI Grade A exam is:

1. Phase 1 (Pre)
2. Phase 2 (Mains)
3. Phase 3 (Interview)

Let’s start with understanding the phase 1 pattern.

Before knowing the pattern, we would suggest visiting the SEBI Grade A Eligibility for more information, such as age relaxation, nationality, and number of attempts. 

SEBI Grade A 2026 Pattern for Phase 1 

The SEBI Grade A Phase 1 (Prelims) exam is qualifying in nature and serves as a screening test to shortlist candidates for the next rounds of the examination. 

Here is the detailed SEBI Grade A Phase 1 exam pattern:

* GA including some questions related to the Financial Sector of easy to moderate difficulty level.

Phase 1 consists of 2 papers, which we have explained below in detail.

Paper 1 of SEBI Grade A Phase 1

The SEBI Grade A Phase 1 exam acts as a screening test to shortlist candidates for the next stages. It’s a qualifying exam, so your performance here determines if you move forward in the selection process.

You’ll find 20 questions from each of the four subjects, as shown below.

1. General Awareness
2. English Language
3. Quantitative Aptitude
4. Test of Reasoning

We’ve summarized the details for you below.

Paper 2 of SEBI Grade A Phase 1

Paper 2 of SEBI Grade A Phase 1 (general stream) carries 100 marks, and you’ll have 40 minutes to complete it.

It includes 50 multiple-choice questions (2 marks each) on the following subjects:

1. Commerce & Accountancy
2. Management
3. Finance
4. Costing
5. Companies Act
6. Economics

We’ve summarized the details for you below.

Now that you have understood the SEBI Grade A preliminary stage pattern, let’s take a look at some other important details of the SEBI Grade A Phase 1 pattern.

SEBI Grade A 2026 Pattern: Additional Details of Phase 1

Below, I have mentioned some additoinal details of the SEBI Assistant Manager Phase 1 pattern:

Mode 

• The SEBI Grade A Assistant Manager Phase 1 exam happens online, where you answer questions directly on a computer screen.

Structure

• SEBI Grade A Prelims exam consists of objective-type questions.

Nature

• SEBI Grade A Phase 1 is a qualifying exam.
• The marks you score here only decide if you move to Phase 2; they don’t count toward your final selection.

Language

• Question papers for both Paper 1 and Paper 2 are available in both Hindi and English, except for the English language test. 

Number of Questions

• Paper 1 and Paper 2 consist of 80 and 50 questions, respectively. 

Marks

The total marks for the SEBI Grade A Phase 1 exam are 200.

• Paper 1 consists of 100 marks, where each question is worth 1.25 marks.
• Paper 2 consists of 100 marks, where each question is worth 2 marks.

Cut-Off Marks

Fixed cut-offs are set for Paper 1 and Paper 2. 

• The cut-off for Paper 1 is a minimum of 30%, i.e., 30 marks out of 100, while for Paper 2, it is a minimum of 40%, i.e., 40 marks out of 100.

To qualify for Phase 2, you need at least

• 30 marks in Paper 1
• 40 marks in Paper 2
• 80 marks in overall combining both papers.

Important Note: There are no sectional cut-offs.

Negative Marking 

• Each wrong answer results in a 1/4th negative marking.
  • For Paper 1, 0.3125 marks are deducted
  • For Paper 2, 0.5 marks are deducted.

Don’t worry—leaving a question unanswered won’t cost you any marks!

Duration

• You get 60 minutes to complete Paper 1 and 40 minutes for Paper 2.

The above details have been summarised below.

SEBI Grade A 2026 Pattern for Phase 2

As per the official notification, here is the SEBI Grade A Phase 2 (Mains) pattern:

Similar to the Phase 1 exam, the Phase 2 exam also consists of 2 papers.

Paper 1 of SEBI Grade A Phase 2 

Phase 2’s Paper 1 includes descriptive English questions. You’ll have 60 minutes to complete this 100-mark paper.

It comprises 3 questions: essay, precis, and reading comprehension. 

Paper 2 of SEBI Grade A Phase 2

SEBI Grade A Phase 2 Paper 2 for the general stream comprises 100 marks, and 90 minutes are given to complete the paper. 

It includes 100 multiple-choice questions on the following subjects:

1. Commerce & Accountancy
2. Management
3. Finance
4. Costing
5. Companies Act
6. Economics

The above details have been summarised below.

Now that you have understood the SEBI Grade A Phase 2 exam pattern, let’s take a look at some other important details. 

SEBI Grade A 2026 Pattern: Additional Details of Phase 2

Here are some aditional details of the SEBI Assistant Manager Phase 2 exam:

Mode 

• The SEBI Grade A Phase 2 exam is conducted online.
  • For Paper 1, you answer descriptive questions by typing your answers using the keyboard.
  • For Paper 2, candidates answer objective questions by selecting answers on the screen.

Language

• The Phase 2 exam is offered in Hindi and English languages, except for the descriptive English, which is solely in English.

Marks

The total marks for the SEBI Grade A Phase 2 exam are 200.

• Paper 1 consists of 100 marks, where Essay consists of 30 marks, Precis consists of 30 marks, and Reading Comprehension consists of 40 marks.
• Paper 2 consists of 100 marks, where each question is worth 1 mark.

Cut-Off Marks

You must score a minimum of 30% in Paper 1, i.e., 30 marks out of 100, and a minimum of 40%, i.e., 40 marks out of 100 in Paper 2. 

To qualify for the interview, you must score at least 50% overall in Phase 2, which means securing 100 out of 200 marks.

We calculate the aggregate marks by assigning a weightage of ⅓ to Paper 1 and ⅔ to Paper 2.

• For example, if you score 90 in Paper 1 and 60 in Paper 2, we calculate your aggregate marks as follows:
  • For Paper 1, you take 1/3rd of the marks, which is (1/3) * 90 = 30 marks.
  • For Paper 2, you take 2/3rd of the marks, which is (2/3) * 60 = 40 marks.
• Now, add these weighted marks to get aggregate marks:
  • 1/3rd marks of Paper 1 + 2/3rd marks of Paper 2, i.e., 70 marks out of 100.

Negative Marking

• There is no negative marking for descriptive English.
• For Paper 2, there is 1/4th negative marking, i.e., 0.50 marks are deducted for each incorrect answer.
• No marks are deducted if a candidate leaves a question unanswered.

Duration

• Candidates get 60 minutes to complete Paper 1 and 90 minutes for Paper 2.

The above details have been summarised below.

Important Note: 

• Typically, the number of candidates shortlisted for Phase 3 is approximately three times the number of available vacancies.

SEBI Grade A 2026 Interview Pattern

Candidates are shortlisted for interview based on their Phase 2 marks only (aggregated sum of 2 papers). 

Here is the SEBI Grade A interview pattern:

• Mode: The interview is conducted in person at various exam centers.
• Language: You can take the interview in Hindi or English.
• Number of Questions: The number of questions varies depending on the panel.
• Marks: The interview marks are not mentioned in the official SEBI Grade A notification.
• Weightage: The weightage of marks obtained in Phase 2 is 85%, while marks obtained in the interview are given a weightage of 15%.
• Duration: The interview typically lasts between 20 and 45 minutes. 

Important Note: There is no Psychometric Test.

The above details have been summarised below.

Final Selection as SEBI Grade A Officer

The final selection is based on the aggregate marks obtained in Phase 2 (Papers 1 and 2) and the interview.

To calculate the final aggregate marks, let’s take the same example of a student who scored 140 marks out of 200 in Phase 2 of SEBI Grade A.

Normalize it to 100 marks for easy calculation, making it 70 marks out of 100. Now, apply the Paper 2 weightage of 85% to this score, which is 85% of 70 equals 59.5 marks. 

Let’s assume the student scores 6 marks during the interview, bringing the total to 59.5 + 6 = 65.5 marks. 

So, the final aggregate marks for the student are 65.5.

For more details on the exam syllabus, go to the link: SEBI Grade A Syllabus. 

Changes in Pattern of SEBI Grade A Exam

Below, we have explained the changes in the SEBI Grade A exam pattern.

SEBI Grade A Phase 1 Pattern Change 

Here is the Phase 1 pattern of 2018:

• The SEBI Grade A Phase 1 used to have 5 subjects: General Awareness, English Language, Quantitative Aptitude, Test of Reasoning, and Awareness about Securities Market.
• Candidates were given 2 hours to complete the paper, consisting of 200 marks.
• Candidates must secure at least 40% marks in each paper to qualify for Phase 2.

Changes Introduced in 2020

In 2020, SEBI introduced 1 additional paper in the Phase 1 exam and made some changes to the existing paper.

Changes to Paper 1

• SEBI removed the Securities Market subject from Paper 1.
• It reduced the total marks to 100 and the duration to 1 hour.
• Candidates were required to score 30% marks in Paper 1. 

Introduction of Paper 2

Paper 2 worth 100 marks, was introduced and 40 minutes were given to complete the paper. It included  50 multiple-choice questions (2 marks each) on Commerce, Accountancy, Management, Finance, Costing, Companies Act, and Economics.

Candidates were required to score at least 40% marks in Paper 2. 

SEBI Grade A Phase 2 Pattern Change 

Here is the Phase 2 pattern in 2018.

• The SEBI Grade A Phase 2 exam had 3 papers:
  • Paper 1: Securities Market 
  • Paper 2: Descriptive English
  • Paper 3: Economic & Social Issues and Finance & Management
• Each paper was worth 100 marks, making it a total of 300 marks paper.
• Candidates were given 40 minutes (each) for Paper 1 and 3 and 60 minutes for Paper 2.
• Candidates had to secure at least 40% marks in each paper to qualify for the interview. 
• Candidates also had to score a minimum of 30% in Paper 1, a minimum of 40% in Paper 2, and aggregate cut-off marks of 50%.

Changes Introduced in 2020

In 2020, SEBI reduced the number of papers from 3 to 2.

• SEBI removed Paper 1 i.e., Securities Market. 
• It made Descriptive English as Paper 1 and kept the same marks and duration. 
• It introduced changes to Paper 3 and made it Paper 2. It kept the same marks and duration. Multiple choice questions were asked in Paper 2 from Commerce, Accountancy, Management, Finance, Costing, Companies Act, and Economics.

Changes Introduced in 2024

In 2024, SEBI changed the Phase 2 Paper 2 duration from 40 minutes to 90 minutes and number of questions from 60 to 100.

SEBI Grade A Exam Comparison with Other Competitive Exams

Below, I have shared the exam pattern of SEBI Grade A with the exam pattern of other competitive exams:

SEBI Grade A Vs NABARD Grade A Exam Pattern

SEBI Grade A Vs RBI Grade B Exam Pattern

SEBI Grade A Vs IRDAI Grade A Exam Pattern

Conclusion

Understanding the latest SEBI Grade A 2026 pattern gives a roadmap for your preparation. By familiarizing yourself with the latest selection procedure of the SEBI Grade A exam, you can:

• Strategically compare the exam format to your strengths and background
• Pinpoint areas that need extra focus
• Select the most effective study materials
• Focus on the high-weightage sections

Ultimately, it can help you craft a tailored SEBI Grade A Preparation Strategy that maximizes your chances of cracking the exam.