SSC CGLE as a career option

SSC is the abbreviation of Staff Selection Commission which holds the Combined Graduation Level (CGL) examination for recruiting candidates for 30 different posts in various ministries or departments. This is a prestigious exam for which many aspirants appear.

Reasons for the large draw of candidates:

Fresh graduates can apply for and acquire secure government jobs.
Since there are numerous jobs, the chances of securing a job are quite high.
These jobs come with attractive salaries and handsome perks.

If you are interested in securing one of these jobs, it is important for you to know all about them and what their demands are. Given below is a brief write-up of each job and its related aspects:

Assistant Audit Officer (AAO):This post is a Group B gazetted (non-ministerial) post. This is the only gazetted post; all other posts offered are non-gazetted ones. This is primarily a desk job but involves travel when you go for auditing/inspection. The job involves conducting audits regarding financial matters, performance and compliance. An AAO normally assists a senior audit officer and an audit officer, and is empowered to take decisions at their level, put up to their seniors. This job comes under the Indian Audits and Accounts Department which has branches in 27 states. You may be posted in any of these states according to your merit / preference.

Salary:The starting basic salary for this job is ₹ 47600 (at level-8), over which you are also entitle to DA, HRA and TA.

Career path:An AAO may generally get promoted to the rank of Audit Officer in about 6-10 years and within the next 2-4 years, may be promoted as a Senior Audit Officer, and likely retire at Level-12 or 13.
Assistant Section Officer (Central Secretariat Service): This is a Group B, non-gazetted post. This is also a desk job, with an ASO normally posted within several ministries in Delhi. This is a clerical job which involve beings report making, taking notes, drafting reports and sending them to the Section Officer and the Under Secretary.

Salary:As per recommendations of the 7th Pay Commission, this post falls under the 4600 grade pay i.e., Level-7.

Career path:Though the promotion period isn't fixed, the first promotion is at the level of Section Officer, followed by Under Secretary, Deputy Secretary and Director. You can appear for and qualify in departmental exams within 5-7 years to move up the career ladder, otherwise, the normal promotion period is after 10 years of service.
Assistant, Central Vigilance Commission:This is a Group 'B' non-gazetted post. A clerical job, this professional primarily updates case files, has liaisons with various departments and sources and sorts information, keeps records etc. This job falls under the purview of the Central Vigilance Commission which undertakes vigilance monitoring activities for central government organizations.

Salary: The salary falls under pay band II (₹. 9300- 34800/-) with a grade pay of ₹ 4600/- for this post.

Career path:Within 7-8 years of joining this department as Assistant, you stand a chance to get promoted as a Section Officer, and then as an Under Secretary, a Deputy Secretary then Director.
Assistant, Intelligence Bureau:This is a Group B office post under the Ministry of Home Affairs. This is largely a desk job, but at times, it may also involve some travel. Though you will have to work in the capacity of an investigating officer, a lot of your work will be computer or desk-related. Tasks here include drafting, noting, making reports and forwarding files to higher authorities. This job will be stationed at Delhi's Investigation Bureau, Department of Intelligence Bureau.

Salary:The salary grade pay begins at₹4600 (Level-7).

Career path:After 5 -7 years of service you become eligible to take departmental exams else after 10 years, you will be promoted as Section Officer. After which the designations are Secretary, Deputy Secretary and Director.
Assistant, Ministry of Railways: This is a Group B post under the Indian Railways, one of the largest railway networks in the world. The posting is usually at Rail Bhavan, New Delhi, but at times you may posted in other railway offices as well for administrative work. This is a clerical post and your responsibilities would include filing, making reports and documentation work for higher authorities.

Salary:The salary falls under pay band II with a grade pay of ₹ 4600 per month. You also get a lot of travel benefits. You also entitled to three AC Tier 2 passes for yourself and your family, for just 1/3rd the total ticket price. You also receive a handsome yearly bonus. You also get to stay at Railway holiday homes across the country at highly discounted prices when you travel.

Career path:After working for about 7-8 years as an Assistant, you will be promoted as Section Officer. After another 5-6 years, up on clearing the departmental exam, you may be promoted as Deputy Secretary and will retire as a Director.
Assistant, Ministry of External Affairs: This is a Group B officer post. It is an extremely coveted post which only top rankers can acquire, and includes maximum incentives. You will need to join the Jawaharlal Nehru Bhawan, Delhi.

This is an assistant level post and your job satisfactions depend on your designation. As a general assistant, you will be allotted clerical work which includes correspondence, filing of MoUs between nations, and planning. You will also be required to coordinate between various Consulates and head quarters. If you are posted as a cypher, you will need to code and decode information for which the ministry will impart necessary training.

This is the only SSC CGL post which earns you a posting in foreign countries.

Salary:Though mainly the posting is in Delhi, transfers to all India MEA offices across the world are likely. The pay scale begins at a grade pay of ₹4600 per month. You can expect a salary of around ₹ 68,000/- per month, initially. However, if you are posted abroad, your will be paid in the currency of that country, and your salary will be directly proportional to the standard of living of that place. Apart from this, you will also receive may other benefits.

Career path:By appearing and clearing a department exam, you stand a chance to be promoted as Section Officer within the first 4-5 years. Otherwise, the promotion is extended with those who have take about 10-14 years of service, according to seniority. Within 7-8 years of joining this department as an Assistant, you can be promoted as Section Officer, and then as an Under Secretary, Deputy Secretary and Director. Usually, Assistants get three promotions and they retire as Deputy Director or Director.
Assistant, Armed Forces Head Quarters (AFHQ):This is a Group B posting. You are posted as a civilian and are not expected to be in combat. This is a desk job in the Armed Forces Head Quarters in Delhi and under the purview of the Ministry of Defence. This job involves tracking cases, making reports, handling files and making notes and drafts.

Salary: The grade pay is ₹ 4600. You also have access to military canteens across the country, from where you can buy items at highly subsidized rates.

Career path:You can be promoted as Section Officer in 4-6 years, though there is no certainty of this as it depends on the number of vacancies present. After this, you may be promoted as Deputy Director, then as Joint Director, Director and finally as Principal Director.
Assistant, Other Ministries: This yet another desk job in one of the other ministries such as the Department of Parliamentary Affairs, the Election Commission, Central Information Commission etc. This job is mainly clerical in nature and involves filing, drafting mails etc.

Salary: The basic grade as per the 7th Pay Commission is₹4600 per month.

Career path:There are no departmental exams to clear, so you will have to stay at the level of an assistant for a minimum of 10 years before you get your first promotion. Promotions and growth prospects are very slow in this group.
Central Excise Inspector, Central Board of Excise and Customs:This is a Group B non-gazetted post. Your work profile will change according to the place of your posting which may be at a port, a custom house, a range or a division. So, you may do clerical work if you are posted at the headquarters but if you are out in the field, you will be expected to involve yourself in the monitoring and sealing of goods, apart from various other tasks.

Salary: The pay grade for this designation starts at ₹4600 per month.

Career path: After completing 8 years in this post, you are likely to be promoted to the post of Superintendent, followed by Assistant Commissioner and later to other higher designations.
Preventive Officer Inspector, Central Board of Excise and Customs:This is a Group B non-gazetted (non-ministerial) post. You may be involved with field work or desk work, depending on the nature of your posting. Desk work includes filing, managing correspondence, noting and drafting etc. Field work includes preventing smuggling activities, monitoring timely payment of customs duties, auctioning confiscated goods, and assessing customs duty on goods. Posting is at airports and seaports, and you working in shifts and wearing a white uniforms is mandatory.

Salary:The pay grade begins at ₹4600 per month. The starting basic pay is approximately ₹44,900 per month (Level-7).

Career path:At the end of 8-10years of service and after passing departmental exam, you may be promoted as Superintendent or to other higher posts. Note: One has to clear the confirmation exam after 2 years to become permanent.
Examiner Inspector, Central Board of Excise and Customs:This Group B office post is a highly sought-after post. Lesser number of positions open up for this role, and the cut-off for this is very high. You will be posted in one of the 6 coastal offices. Once selected, you will have to undergo training at zonal headquarters. This is a non-uniformed job, and clearing a confirmation exam after 2 years to become permanent is essential.

You may be posted on the field or in an office. On the field, you will have to examine cargo and goods and take samples and levy duty on them. You may also have to confiscate goods, check their market value, and auction them if necessary.

Clerical jobs involve handling correspondence, note sheets and reports etc. You may also be expected to assume the role of a Preventive Officer as and when necessary.

Salary: The pay grade pay begins at₹ 4600.

Career path:After 3 years of service, you stand a chance to get promoted to the post of Appraiser, which is subsequently followed by the posts of Assistant Commissioner, Deputy Commissioner and Commissioner.
Assistant Enforcement Officer, Directorate of Enforcement, Department of Revenue:This is a Group B office post. The Revenue Department chiefly deals with the prevention of money laundering, forgery cases, etc. Field work, like being part of a raid squad, is as much a part of your duties as your responsibilities in the capacity of a clerk.

Salary:Here too, the salary grade pay is ₹ 4600.

Career path:The first promotion you can hope to receive is that of Enforcement Officer, though it is not granted after a fixed period. This promotion is followed by the designation of Assistant Director of Enforcement, and subsequent higher level posts.
Sub-Inspector, Central Bureau of Investigation: This is a Group B (non-gazetted) post under the Central Bureau of Investigation. Chiefly a field job, it is extremely challenging and quite similar to that of the state police. You will be part of a team that will help solve criminal cases, most often those that the police are unable to crack. Physical training is also given. If you are posted at a desk job, you will have a lot of paper work and documentation to manage. The work involved is mostly clerical and administrative in function. All candidates must be physically fit for this post, and this is a mandatory.

Salary:The starting grade pay is ₹. 4200 (Level-6).

Career path:After serving for five years, you will be eligible for promotion to the rank of Inspector. After another 10-12 years of service, you will be designated as Deputy Superintendent and within the next 5-7 years, you could be elevated to the rank of a Superintendent.
Inspector of Post:This is a Group-B non-gazetted post. As an Inspector in the postal department, you will have the responsibility of managing two divisions in a district. You will need to keep track of 60-70 post offices that fall under these two divisions. Your key responsibilities include selling postal insurance to people and creating awareness about the many post office schemes available to the public. In short, your main duty is to promote existing business of the Indian Post and acquire new businesses. Your work will therefore be a blend of clerical and administrative work.

Salary: The starting grade pay is ₹ 4200 per month which translates into a total salary of around 51,000/- per month.

Career path:From the post of Inspector, the next promotion as Assistant Superintendent, followed by Postal Superintendent and finally, as Senior Superintendent.
Statistical Investigator,Ministry of Statistics & Program Implementation (MOSPI):Group B, non-gazetted, non-ministerial post. You will join as Junior Statistical Officer (JSO). To bag this post, you need to clear one paper extra in addition to clearing the SSC CGL exam. The job here requires a number of field trips.

As JSO, you will collect and compile data such as GDP, WPI, CGI etc., process it and then present it to the government. Your desk work will include data entry and analysis, drafting documents and dispatching them, and conducting surveys.

80% of the selected candidates are posted at MOSPI offices and the remaining are placed in various ministries or departments with the union government.

Salary: The starting grade pays for this position begins at ₹ 4200 per month.

Career path: From Statistical Investigator, you are likely to be elevated to the level of Senior Statistical Investigator, a Group B, gazetted position, within the next 5-8 years. Later, you career progression may be that of Assistant Commissioner, Deputy Director and Joint Director.
Inspector (Narcotics), Central Bureau of Narcotics (CBN):This is a Group B officer post under the CBN with its headquarters at Gwalior. You can be posted anywhere in India for this role. An Inspector of the Narcotics Division keeps track of opium, poppy cultivation all over India to ensure that it is not illegally traded. For this, you will need to conduct periodic inspections and raids on various companies, and monitor the export and import of banned drugs. Preventing the smuggling of goods will also be a part of your responsibilities.

Salary: The salary grade for this job starts at ₹4200.

Career path:The next level after Inspector is that of Superintendent of Narcotics, followed by Assistant Narcotics Commissioner, Deputy Narcotics Commissioner and Narcotics Commissioner.
Sub-Inspector, Central Bureau of Narcotics:This is a GroupC post. In all aspects, this position is similar to that of the Inspector of Central Bureau of Narcotics, except that it involves a lot of field work. You will be placed in charge of a division and your tasks include keeping an eye on the production of opium and other psychotropic drugs, collection of samples from factories and medical shops, and more. You will have to work as part of a team and extend all assistance to your seniors in conducting raids. You are trained to understand the various laws of this department and work in the field to eradicate the menace of narcotics and drugs.

Salary:The grade pay for this job begins at ₹ 4200.

Career path:After completing 5-6 years of service, you will be eligible for promotion to the post of Inspector, provided you have a good track record. Five to seven years hence, you are likely to be promoted as a Superintendent. If you are an outstanding officer, your rise to the position of Assistant Narcotics Commissioner is ensured.
Sub-Inspector, National Investigation Agency:This is a Group B post. You will need to work in the National Investigation Agency and your job profile will chiefly revolve around working with law enforcement officials to prevent the occurrence of any form of terrorism. This is mainly a field job where you will be required to assist your seniors in various investigations.

Salary: The grade pay scale here begins at ₹ 4200.

Career path:After completing 4-5 years in the role of a Sub-Inspector, there is a likelihood of you being promoted to the rank of Inspector, followed by that of a Superintendent, an Assistant Commissioner and finally, a Commissioner.
Inspector of Income Tax, Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT): This is a Group C post under the CBDT. This is an executive post and not an assistant post.

You may be asked to join the raid team for field work or you may be placed in the core income tax team, where your task will include comprising the processing of IT records of companies and individuals, and handling refund claims, etc. So, this job could well be a combination of both field and desk work.

Salary:The salary grade for this job begins at ₹4600.

Career path:You may be elevated to the position of Income Tax Officer (ITO) after about 5 years of service. After this, your career path will move you higher to the rank of Assistant Commissioner of Income Tax, Deputy Commissioner of Income Tax, Joint Commissioner of Income Tax, Additional Commissioner of Income Tax and lastly, Commissioner of Income Tax.
Divisional Accountant, Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG): This is a Group B officer post and is a pan-India job. You may be posted anywhere in India. You may work in the PWD, Irrigation office, Public Health Office or any other state government office (also called division). Your work would include checking and passing various bills raised by the division you are working in. Chiefly, your work will include audits of expenses of projects executed by a particular state government. The project reports you make will be read by the seniors in the CAG office. This is mainly a desk job with minimum travel.

Salary: The starting salary grade is ₹4200.

Career path: Your first promotion will be as Divisional Account Officer II, followed by the Divisional Account Officer I, and finally, Senior Divisional Account Officer.
Auditor (Offices under CAG, CGDA and C&AG): This is a Group C post under the Govt. Of India. You will be selected to work in one of the three departments: CAG (Controller General of Accounts), CGDA (Controller General of Defence Accounts)and C&AG (Comptroller & Auditor General of India). In this role, you will be responsible for auditing the expenses of various state departments, defence forces and the country's general accounts.

Salary: This desk job has a starting salary grade of ₹ 2800 (Level-5).

Career path:After three years as an Auditor, you have a chance to be promoted as a Senior Auditor. Two years later, after passing the mandatory departmental exam, you will be eligible for promotion as Assistant Audit Officer.
Accountant/Junior Accountant,(Offices under C&AG, CGA and Others): This is a Group C officer post. Your job profile under both the offices will be similar, though the posts are different. Both these jobs are clerical in nature, and entail passing bills, tracking office expenses and salary allowances, handling pension accounts and group pensions, etc.

Salary: The grade pay here is ₹2800.

Career path: After completing three years as an Accountant or Junior Accountant, you may be elevated as a Senior Accountant, followed by Assistant Accountant Officer, after clearing the AAO exam. The next posting would be as Principal Accounts Officer, which is usually 15 years after AAO exam and lastly, as Senior Accounts Officer.
Senior Secretariat Assistant: This is a Group C post. This job falls under the purview of Central government offices or ministries not including CSCS cadres. Primarily a desk job, it is a blend of clerical and administrative work. It involves a lot of verification of statements, and compliance to facts, maintaining files and replying to the RTI, among other duties.

Salary: The initial salary grade here is₹ 2400 (Level-4).

Career path: About 5-7 years after working in this capacity, you may be promoted as Sectional Officer. In the 6-7 years following this, you are likely to be promoted as Under Secretary, and finally, as Director.
Tax Assistant (CBDT/CBEC):These are Group C postings. Your duties in this capacity do not change from that of clerical grade officer. As an employee of the CBDT (Central Board of Direct Taxes), you are liable to be posted to either the tax or non-tax assessment division. Your duties will include:

Verifying and modifying tax data of businesses or individuals;

Assessment of the income tax of an individual or a partnership firm or a company and feeding that data in the computer;

Diary and dispatch, noting and drafting;

Occassionally being a part of the RAID team

In the CBEC (Central Board of Excise and Customs), similar work is done by the tax assistant but here, you might have to assist your superiors in administrative tasks. You may also get posted as personal assistant to Commissioners and Joint/Additional Commissioner.

Salary:The salary grade here is ₹ 2400.

Career path: By the end of the first three years of workingin this capacity, you are ready for promotion to Senior Tax Assistant, followed by Excise Inspector, Superintendent/Appraiser, Assistant Commissioner, Deputy Commissioner, Joint Commissioner and lastly, as Additional Commissioner of Income Tax.
Compiler: This job falls under the purview of the Registrar General of India, Department of Census, Ministry of Home Affairs. The role of a compiler entails duties such as collating and analyzing data and providing relevant information. Report making is another important duty here.

Salary: The initial salary grade for this job is ₹ 2400.

Career path:There isn't a specific promotion schedule here but generally, the first promotion takes 7-8 years. From compiler, you move up the ranks and are elevated as Director of your specific department.

These are the specific departments that the SSC CGL exams give to entry to, and their posts, pay scales and scope of advancement. You have multiple options to choose from for advancing on your desired career path. Wish you the best in your endeavours!