TNPSC · Group 2 & 2A

TNPSC Group 2 exam pattern: stages, marks and selection

By the PrepMatic team · Updated 8 Oct 2026 · 7 min read

The TNPSC Group 2 exam pattern has two stages: a common prelims of 200 questions for 300 marks that only screens candidates, and a separate mains for Group II and Group IIA. In the 2025 scheme (Notification No. 11/2025) there is no interview. Each mains has two papers. Paper I is a Tamil Eligibility Test that you must pass with 40 out of 100. Paper II decides your rank on its own: a 300-mark descriptive General Studies paper for Group II, or a 200-question computer-based objective test for Group IIA.

Group 2 exam pattern at a glance

Stage 1: the preliminary exam

• Marks and time: 300 marks in 3 hours, objective, answered on an OMR sheet.
• Qualifying marks: at least 90 out of 300, the same for all communities.
• Role: the prelims is a screening test only. Your prelims marks are not counted in the final order of merit.
• Language: the General Studies questions are set in Tamil and English.

Reaching 90 does not guarantee a place in the mains. TNPSC calls about ten times the number of vacancies to the mains, separately for Group II and Group IIA and within each reservation group, and it also admits everyone who ties with the last candidate on the line. If a reservation group has 20 vacancies, about 200 candidates go through. The real cut-off is whatever the 200th candidate scored, and it depends on how the whole field performed, not on 90. The unit split of each part is in the Group 2 syllabus.

Stage 2: the main exam

Both groups sit the same Paper I. Paper II is different.

Group II mains

Group IIA mains

• Paper II is evaluated only if you score at least 40 in Paper I. Paper I marks are not counted for rank, so it is a pass-or-fail gate.
• Appearing in both papers is compulsory. If you miss either, you are not considered, even if your other marks qualify.
• Differently abled candidates can be exempted from Paper I, but they must claim this in the online application. Later claims are not accepted.
• In the 2025 notification, Group II Paper II was held at seven centres (Chennai, Coimbatore, Madurai, Tiruchirappalli, Tirunelveli, Salem and Vellore). Paper I and the Group IIA Paper II used a much longer list of district centres.
• In the 2025 cycle TNPSC announced the mains date with the prelims results, not in advance, so keep your mains preparation going while you wait.

Group II Paper II: how the 300 marks are built

That is 24 answers and about 3,600 words in 3 hours. Every unit except Unit II appears in both Part A and Part C, so you cannot drop a whole unit without losing marks in two places. Unit V (60 marks) is a fifth of the paper. How to practise for this format is in Group 2 mains preparation.

How the rank list is made

1. Shortlist for mains: about 1:10 per reservation group, from prelims marks.
2. Paper I: pass with 40 or you are out.
3. Rank: the merit list is drawn from Paper II marks alone. If candidates tie, the one with the higher educational qualification ranks first, then the older candidate, then the one whose application came earlier.
4. On-screen certificate verification: 1:3 for General and 1:2 for reserved categories (Forester: 1:10).
5. Physical certificate verification and counselling: 1:3 for General and 1:1.5 for reserved categories, and you are called to counselling in rank order.

Two special rules. A candidate already selected for a Group II post is not considered for Group IIA and cannot attend Group IIA counselling. The Forester post adds a Physical Standards Test and an Endurance Test (a 25 km walk for men and 16 km for women and third gender candidates, in four hours, at Chennai).

The Group 2 vs Group 2A guide explains how this affects which posts to aim for.

Marking and answer rules

• Prelims OMR: each question has options A to D and an option [E] for "answer not known". The notification states a deduction for blank answers, not for wrong ones: 0.5 mark is cut for each question left completely blank. The full rule is on the TNPSC marking scheme page.
• Group IIA Paper II: you answer on a computer with a mouse, one question at a time, with five options on screen, and you can mark questions for review, skip, and change answers until the time ends. The notification words the blank-answer deduction for OMR sheets, so read the latest instructions for how unanswered questions are treated on screen. TNPSC offers a practice CBT on its website.
• Descriptive papers: use a black ink pen only. Answering partly in Tamil and partly in English can get the booklet invalidated, apart from technical words that cannot be translated and cases the notification expressly permits.

What the 2026 notification is reported to say

News sites report Notification No. 07/2026, dated 11 August 2026, for 821 vacancies (41 in Group II and 780 in Group IIA), with prelims reportedly on 1 November 2026. We have not confirmed the official document, and this page's pattern is the 2025 scheme. Confirm on tnpsc.gov.in that the 2026 scheme matches before you rely on it. For how the schedule fits a year, see the TNPSC annual planner guide.

Practising this pattern with PrepMatic

PrepMatic's full-length mocks follow the real paper's pattern, so you can rehearse the prelims format, and you can build shorter custom mocks by choosing subjects, number of questions, duration and difficulty. That also lets you approximate the Group IIA Paper II mix of General Studies and reasoning. The free assessment (about 15 untimed questions) shows your weakest subjects first. If you choose Tamil as your exam language, questions are in Tamil. PrepMatic is objective-only, so it has no practice for the descriptive Group II Paper II or the Tamil Eligibility Test.

Frequently asked questions

Is there an interview in TNPSC Group 2?

No. In the 2025 notification, the final rank for both Group II and Group IIA is based only on Main Paper II marks. Articles that mention a Group 2 interview describe an older scheme.

Is the Group 2A mains descriptive?

No. Group IIA Paper II is a computer-based objective test of 200 questions and 300 marks. Only the Tamil Eligibility Test, which is qualifying, is descriptive.

Do prelims marks count for the final Group 2 rank?

No. The prelims only decides who is admitted to the mains. The rank comes from Paper II of the mains.

What are the minimum qualifying marks in Group 2?

Prelims: 90 out of 300. Mains Paper I: 40 out of 100. Mains Paper II: 90 out of 300. These are minimums for all communities. The shortlisting cut-off depends on how the whole field scores, so aim well above them.

Is there negative marking in the Group 2 prelims?

TNPSC states no deduction for wrong answers in the notification, but 0.5 mark is deducted for each question left blank on the OMR sheet. Shade a bubble for every question, using [E] if you cannot answer.

Official sources

• TNPSC Group II and IIA Notification No. 11/2025 (PDF): paras 5 and 6 and Annexure IV give the scheme and exam-hall rules.
• TNPSC OMR guidelines: the Commission's video and instructions for objective papers.
• TNPSC official website: notifications, the CBT practice test and results.

Confirm every figure in the latest notification before you plan around it.

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