Government Job Glossary: 26 Terms Every Aspirant Should Know
Recruitment notices in India use a fixed vocabulary that nobody explains. This glossary covers the terms you will meet between the notification and the appointment letter.
Notification stage
Notification or advertisement
The official document announcing a recruitment. It is the only binding source for eligibility, dates and fees. New ones are listed under latest government job notifications.
Crucial date
The date on which your age and qualification are judged. It is fixed in the notification and is not the day you apply.
Age relaxation
Extra years added to the upper age limit for reserved categories, ex-servicemen and some other groups.
Corrigendum
A correction or change issued after the notification, often altering dates or vacancy numbers.
Correction window
A short period after applications close when you can edit certain fields in a submitted form.
Exam stage
Admit card or hall ticket
The document that lets you enter the exam hall. It carries your roll number, centre, shift and reporting time. See admit card releases.
CBT
Computer-based test, taken on a terminal at an exam centre.
Tier or stage
One step of a multi-step exam, such as Tier 1 and Tier 2, or prelims and mains.
Negative marking
Marks deducted for each wrong answer.
Response sheet
The record of the options you marked, released after a computer-based test.
Provisional answer key
The first version of the correct answers, open to objections for a few days. Tracked under answer keys.
Final answer key
The corrected key issued after objections. Results are prepared from it.
Normalisation
A statistical adjustment that puts scores from different shifts on one scale.
Result stage
Cut-off
The minimum marks needed to qualify, set separately for each category and often each post.
Merit list
The ranked list of selected or shortlisted candidates. Published with other results and merit lists.
Waiting or reserve list
Candidates just below the last selected rank, used if selected candidates do not join.
Skill test or typing test
A qualifying practical test for clerical, data entry and stenographer posts.
PET and PST
Physical efficiency test and physical standard test, used in police, defence and some railway recruitments.
Document verification
The stage where your original certificates are checked against your application.
Categories and certificates
UR, OBC, SC, ST, EWS
Unreserved, Other Backward Classes, Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Economically Weaker Sections.
NCL
Non-creamy layer, the status an OBC candidate must hold to claim reservation.
PwBD
Persons with benchmark disabilities.
NOC
No-objection certificate, required from candidates who already work in government.
Admissions
Counselling
The process that allots seats after an entrance exam, through registration, choice filling and rounds of allotment. Schedules appear under admission and counselling updates.
Choice filling and locking
Listing colleges and courses in order of preference, then confirming the list.
Mop-up round
A later round of counselling for seats left vacant.