Difference Between Office Assistant and Officer in IBPS RRB
IBPS RRB stands for Institute of banking personnel selection Regional Rural banks. The IBPS department recruits the candidates for various posts in the banking sector. The IBPS has published the notice for IBPS RRB Exam 2025 and the total number of vacancies is 16560 for the posts of IBPS RRB officers and IBPS RRB office assistant.
The Department conducts IBPS Exam online for two groups. Group A is Officers (Scale- I, II, III) and Group B is Office Assistant (Multipurpose). Which is better job IBPS RRB Office Assistant OR Officer?
IBPS RRB Office Assistant Vs Officer Job Profile difference
The Job profile for Office Assistant varies from Officers. The role and responsibilities of Office assistant are as follow: The job profile consists of clerical functions and coordination with other departments in the organization and the individual must be multitasking.
The IBPS RRB office assistant would be the starting designation in the hierarchy of lower level management and would be a supporting hand in various functions of the bank.
The Job profile for Officer varies as there are three scales for the same. Officer Scale I is the post of general bank officer which is manager trainee post and after two years of the probation period, the candidate will be further promoted to assistant manager.
Officer Scale-II post is manager level post. The candidates recruited for this post are a specialist in Information technology, chartered accountant, law officer, treasury manager, marketing officer, agricultural officer. The probation period is 2 years and should have minimum one-year experience.
Officer Scale III post is a senior manager level post. The person should have experience of at least 5 years either in banking or relevant sector.
Work Structure Difference Between IBPS RRB Office Assistant Vs Officer
The office assistant has the distinctive roles that may undertake on appointment vary from opening accounts, cash collection and an even job like cheque verification etc. These all work is clerical works which are being performed by Group B candidates.
The other duties of office assistant include responding to emails, a collection of documents from employees and assist with administration work. On the other hand, the officers in IBPS RRB have higher management level and they have roles according to that.
The first Officer scale I, the post of manager trainee which handles the events at the manager level. The scale II is the post for manager level post. The candidates perform have special roles and perform special duties in the specific field.
The scale III officer deals with the senior manager level post wherein the candidate needs to handles the events at senior management level. Hope now you better understand Difference between Office Assistant and Officer Scale I in RRB.
Salary Difference Between IBPS RRB Assistant Vs RRB Officer Scale I, II, III
There is a huge difference in the IBPS RRB salary structure of the two groups that is group A and group B. The starting salary of group A that is officers for scale I range from Rs.29000 to Rs.33000. This is the in hand salary. The salary keeps on increasing with the increasing work experience.
| IBPS RRB Post | In Hand Salary |
| IBPS RRB Office Assistant (Multipurpose) | Rs. 15,000 – 19,000 |
| IBPS RRB Officer Scale – I | Rs. 29,000 – 33,000 |
| IBPS RRB Officer Scale-II | Rs. 33,000 – 39,000 |
| IBPS RRB Officer Scale – III | Rs. 38,000 – 44,000 |
The salary structure for Scale I officer is Rs. 29,000 to Rs. 33,000 and this is the in hand salary. The scale II officer is having the salary range from Rs. 33,000 to Rs. 39,000 and this is also the in hand salary. The scale III officer is having the salary range from Rs. 38,000 to Rs. 44,000 and this is the in hand salary.
The salary ranges for the office assistant that is group B candidates range from Rs. 15,000 to Rs. 19,000 and this is the in hand salary of the candidate.
Career, Promotion and benefits difference
As it is well known that IBPS RRB Office Assistant is the starting point of job in any Bank. That means there are plenty of opportunities that a candidate would get to get promoted to an officer cadre. The job security is much higher compared to private sector banks.
Being part of Regional Rural Bank at this stage would open various growth opportunities – both within and outside the organization. Conclusively a person who joins as a Scale-I officer can move to become Scale-II and III officers through promotion.
There are also exchange programs in which RRB employees are deputed to work in different government departments. So that they can share their expertise for effective implementation of various schemes.
At this time many of the current CEOs and MDs of various government-owned banks began their career as a junior officer. With experience and performance on their side, they moved up the ladder. Consequently, candidates can reach the top post as long as their commitment to serve and motivation to excel remains alive.
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Benefits:
- Officer Scale-I or General Bank Officer post is a management trainee post in RRBs or Gramin Banks. For IBPS RRB Officer salary combines along with 100% DA for new recruits. The probation period will be for two years, and after its successful completion, the management trainee will be promoted to Assistant Manager.
- Officer Scale-II post is also a managerial level post. Candidates recruited in the specialist category come to RRB into this post. Hence, an officer coming in at Scale-II can be information technology officer, chartered accountant, law officer, treasury manager, marketing officer, agricultural officer.
For Office Scale-II the DA for 100% is provided along with salary. Being similar to officer Scale-I, Officer Scale-II will also have to go through a probation period of two years. - Officer Scale-III is a senior managerial post in RRBs. It requires an experience of at least five years of work experience either in banking or relevant sector.
For new recruits of Office Scale – III, 100% DA is provided to the candidate. - The new recruitment for office assistant post is also having the 100% DA along with salary.
Difference Between IBPS Office Assistant and Officer Exam Pattern
The Exam pattern for an office assistant for prelim exam includes reasoning and numerical ability along with the number of questions in both sections is 40 each and total time is 45 min for both and total marks are 80. Check Complete IBPS RRB Exam Pattern and Syllabus in detail here.
IBPS RRB Preliminary Office Assistant (Multipurpose) Pattern
| (Objective) Test Name | Medium of Exam | Qns. | Marks | Duration |
| IBPS RRB Reasoning Syllabus Paper | Hindi/English | 40 | 40 | 45 Min. |
| IBPS RRB Numerical Ability Syllabus Paper | Hindi/English | 40 | 40 | |
| Total | 80 | 80 |
For mains, reasoning ability, general awareness/ financial awareness, numerical ability, English language, Hindi language paper, computer knowledge, are the topics covered and number of questions in each section is 40 and total questions is 200 and marks allotted for reasoning and numerical ability is 50 each and 40 for rest of the section and total marks is 200 and total time duration is 2 hours.
IBPS RRB Office Assistant (Multipurpose) Mains Exam Pattern
| (Objective) Test Name | Qns. | Marks | Duration |
| IBPS RRB Reasoning Syllabus Paper | 40 | 50 | 2 hours |
| IBPS RRB General Awareness Syllabus Paper | 40 | 40 | |
| IBPS RRB Numerical Ability Syllabus Paper | 40 | 50 | |
| RRB English Language Paper | 40 | 40 | |
| RRB Hindi Language Paper (हिंदी) | 40 | 40 | |
| RRB Computer Knowledge Paper | 40 | 20 | |
| Total | 200 | 200 |
The officer category pattern differs only in the subject or topics covered. The number of questions and number of marks for the prelim exam is 80 and 80 respectively and time duration is 45 min and for mains exam, the number of marks and question is 200 each and time duration is 2 hours.
The subject in prelims that is different is quantitative aptitude which is included in the prelim exam. For scale I the main exam topics are same as the office assistant.
Officer Scale I Mains Exam Pattern
| (Objective) Test Name | Qns. | Marks | Duration |
| IBPS RRB Reasoning Paper | 40 | 50 | 2 hours |
| IBPS RRB General Awareness Paper | 40 | 40 | |
| IBPS RRB Numerical Ability Paper | 40 | 50 | |
| RRB English Language Syllabus Paper | 40 | 40 | |
| Hindi Language Syllabus Paper (हिंदी) | 40 | 40 | |
| RRB Computer Knowledge Paper | 40 | 20 | |
| Total | 200 | 200 |
For scale II the different topics covered are Quantitative aptitude and data interpretation, professional knowledge test. For scale III the different topics covered are Quantitative Aptitude.
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Recruitment Eligibility Criteria difference
Check Complete IBPS RRB Exam Eligibility Criteria for all posts in details here.
- The difference lies in the education qualification only.
- The office assistant must have a graduation degree in any discipline from recognized university and proficiency of local language and knowledge of computers is required.
- The officer scale I should have graduation degree in any discipline with proficiency in local language and computer knowledge is the must.
- For scale II officer the candidate should have the degree in banking, finance sectors, information technology, computer science, law, economics, and agriculture sector. The two-year experience is also required in respective fields.
- For scale III officers should have the degree with 50% marks and preferences is as mentioned for scale II officers and should have 5 years’ experience as an officer in the bank or financial institutions.
The age criteria also differ. It is as follows:
- Officer Scale I = 18 – 30 Years
- Officer Scale II = 21 – 32 Years
- Officer Scale III = 21 – 40 Years
- Office Assistant (Multipurpose) = 18 – 28 Years
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Similarity in both posts
The similarity lies in the fact that the candidates applying for respective posts have to undergo the online tests which are conducted in two phases that are prelim and mains and then the selection is from the merit list that is prepared considering the mains marks.
The basic requirement for both the posts are similar that is a graduation degree, proficiency in local language and computers knowledge. The similarity does not lie in the work structure or salary structure. But both the posts are for the recruitment of the human resources in the bank sector only.
IBPS RRB Office Assistant Vs IBPS RRB Officer Scale I, II, III – Final Advice for Selection
As per the above details mentioned, the candidates should go through the details of eligibility criteria first as it’s the deciding factor whether a candidate is eligible to appear for the same post or not. The candidates having all the necessary skills required should apply for respective fields.
For instance, if a candidate is having the degree in IT along with two-year experience should try to apply for Scale II officer post. The candidates can apply for various scale posts as well but separately with separate fees applicable but the candidate would be selected on one scale only.
If you have any more questions or doubts about Difference between IBPS RRB Office Assistant and Officers you can ask me in comment section given below.