Rajasthan APO exam pattern & paper structure

To secure a position as an Assistant Prosecution Officer (APO), candidates must successfully clear a two-tier evaluation process designed by the Rajasthan Public Service Commission (RPSC). The selection structure ensures a comprehensive assessment of both legal knowledge and language capabilities.

Stage 1: Preliminary Examination (Screening Stage)

The Preliminary test serves exclusively as a screening mechanism to filter candidates for the next phase. Marks obtained here will not influence the final merit list ranking.

• Question Format: Objective-type multiple-choice questions (MCQs).
• Weightage Split: The paper is systematically divided into two core subject areas:
  • Law Subjects: Comprises 70% of the exam's overall weightage.
  • Language Skills: Comprises 30% of the overall weightage (split evenly between Hindi and English).

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Prelims Exam Layout

Test Section	Subjects Covered	Maximum Possible Marks	Allotted Time
Part A	Core Law Topics	70 Marks	2 Hours
Part B	Language Proficiency • General Hindi (15 Marks) • General English (15 Marks)	30 Marks	Included above

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Stage 2: Main Examination (Merit Stage)

Candidates shortlisted from the Prelims advance to the Main Examination. Performance in this written phase serves as the fundamental criteria for preparing the final selection merit list.

• Exam Format: Descriptive written papers.
• Qualifying Benchmarks: Candidates must hit a minimum threshold of 40% marks in each individual paper to stay in the running.
• Category Relaxations: In accordance with state guidelines, candidates belonging to Scheduled Caste (SC) and Scheduled Tribe (ST) categories receive a 5% relaxation (requiring a minimum of 35% per paper).

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Mains Exam Layout

Exam Paper	Subject Focus	Maximum Possible Marks	Allotted Time
Paper I	Advanced Law Subjects	300 Marks	3 Hours
Paper II	Language Skills • General Hindi (50 Marks) • General English (50 Marks)	100 Marks	2 Hours

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Final Step: Document Verification (DV)

Achieving the required cut-off scores across both descriptive papers qualifies a candidate for the final appointment list, contingent upon passing a rigorous verification phase where academic degrees, age records, and category certificates are officially validated.