If you wish to work for the government, you can find employment in the Central Government or the State Government. Alternatively, you can work for different Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs) like the Indian Oil Corporation Ltd. etc.
Find out what it is like to be Working for the Government.
Working for the Central/Union Government
Being employed by the Central Government means that you can be posted anywhere in India and might have to work for different Government departments during the course of your career.
There are different types of jobs in the Central Government:
Group ‘A’ Jobs:
Group ‘A’ Jobs include posts and services that involve a lot of administrative duties such as IAS, IFS, IPS etc. These are the most sought after posts in the Government administration.
Recruitments into these posts and services are carried out by the UPSC (Union Public Service Commission) through direct recruitment and various competitive examinations. The most popular examination conducted annually by the UPSC is the ‘Civil Services Examination’ for administrative posts such as IAS, IFS, IPS among others.
The UPSC also conducts competitive examinations for technical posts and services required in different departments of the Central Government, including the Central Engineering Services, the Indian Economic Services etc. Visit the following website for further details: http://www.upsc.gov.in/.
Group ‘B’, ‘C’ and ‘D’ Jobs:
Group B, C and D jobs comprise of posts and services that do not include a lot of administrative duties but focus on executive and routine tasks such as the posts of Assistants, Sub – Inspectors etc.
Recruitments into these posts and services are carried out by the SSC (Staff Selection Commission) through direct recruitment and various competitive examinations. The most popular examination conducted annually by the SSC is the ‘Combined Graduate Level Examination’ for vacant Group B, C and D posts in different departments of the Central Government.
The SSC is also responsible for recruiting candidates into vacant middle and lower – level posts in the different departments of the Central Government through direct recruitment methods like Written Examinations, and Interviews.
Working for a State Government
Apart from working for the Central Government, you can also take up a job under a particular State’s Government. Unlike a Central Government job in which you can be posted anywhere in the country, you will work within a State for the rest of your life in a State Government job.
A majority of the applicants keep State Government jobs as a backup in case they do not make it through the UPSC/SSC examinations as State exams are comparatively less competitive.
Most State Government jobs are middle – level and lower – level posts as the top posts are filled by IAS/IPS officers who are recruited by the Central Government. However, with experience and merit, you can move up the ladder and even take up the top most administrative positions, including posts reserved for the IAS and IPS.
All State Governments have their own ‘Public Service Commissions’ which are responsible for conducting recruitments into various Group A, B, C and D posts through competitive examinations and direct recruitment methods like Written Tests, Skill Tests and Interviews. These State Government posts can be both, technical and non – technical in nature.
The most popular competitive examination conducted by State Public Service Commissions is the state’s annual ‘Civil Services Exam’ which is responsible for recruiting State Civil Service officers who will work under IAS and IPS officers. Examples of such exams are the ‘Punjab Civil Services Exam’, the ‘Gujarat Civil Services Exam’ etc.
Contrary to popular perception, you do not need to be a resident of a state to apply for a job in that State’s Government (for most cases). However, you will be required to have some basic knowledge about the culture, language and customs of that state.
Click here for further information on State Civil Services.
Working for a Public Sector Enterprise (PSU)
As Public Sector Enterprises like Indian Oil, Bharat Petroleum, ONGC etc. are owned either fully or majorly by the Government, working for any such organization can also be considered as working for the Government.
These jobs include technical posts like Engineer, Accountant etc. as well as administrative positions. A majority of jobs in PSUs are executive in nature and you are expected to follow established standards and procedures.
Most of the PSUs recruit candidates as and when vacancies arise. They normally do so through competitive examinations for the vacant posts but also follow methods of direct recruitment such as interview and skill tests. Some PSUs also recruit candidates on the basis of their scores in the GATE examination.
Additionally, PSUs also fill a significant chunk of their vacancies by recruiting candidates directly from premier institutions of the country such as the IITs and the IIMs.
Working in a PSU provides employees with a stable and secure job along with opportunities to succeed and move up the ladder. You will be eligible to receive many monetary benefits like other Government employees and will also be eligible to take up top – level positions in the PSU with time, provided you have the right experience and skill.
