PFRDA Grade A Syllabus 2025 and Assistant Manager Exam Pattern

The Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) conducts the Grade A (Assistant Manager) exam for various streams, including General, Information Technology, Finance & Accounts, Research (Economics), Legal, and Official Language (Rajbhasha). The selection process consists of two phases: Phase I (online screening examination) and Phase II (online examination), followed by an interview. Both phases contain two papers, each assessing different aspects of a candidate’s knowledge and skills. Understanding the exam pattern and syllabus is crucial for effective preparation.

PFRDA Grade A Syllabus 2025 and Exam Pattern

The PFRDA Grade A Assistant Manager exam is a comprehensive test of a candidate’s knowledge, skills, and aptitude. The syllabus is vast and varies across streams, requiring focused preparation. The exam is conducted in two phases: Phase I (Preliminary) and Phase II (Mains), followed by an interview. Aspirants must understand the exam pattern, prioritize key topics, and practice extensively to excel in both phases.

PFRDA Grade A Exam Pattern 2025

The PFRDA Grade A Exam 2025 follows a three-stage selection process, including Phase I (Online Screening), Phase II (Online Examination), and Phase III (Interview). Both Phase I and Phase II consist of two papers: Paper 1, which covers general aptitude subjects, and Paper 2, which is stream-specific.

PFRDA Assistant Manager Exam Pattern Phase I

Paper 1 in Phase I includes English, Reasoning, Quantitative Aptitude, and General Awareness, while Paper 2 tests domain-specific knowledge based on the candidate’s chosen stream.

PFRDA Assistant Manager Exam Pattern Phase II

Phase II follows a similar structure, but Paper 1 is a descriptive English test, and Paper 2 again assesses stream-specific subjects.

The final selection is based on Phase II scores and interview performance, making it crucial for candidates to perform well in both written exams and the interview round.

PFRDA Assistant Manager Syllabus 2025

The PFRDA Grade A syllabus 2025 is divided into general subjects and stream-specific topics. Candidates should prepare thoroughly for both the general and specialized subjects, as Paper 2 carries significant weight in the overall selection process.

PFRDA Grade A 2025 General Syllabus

The general syllabus, applicable to all candidates, includes English Language, Quantitative Aptitude, Reasoning Ability, and General Awareness with a focus on financial and pension-related topics.

PFRDA Grade A Syllabus for Professional Knowledge

The stream-specific syllabus varies for different fields like General, Legal, Finance & Accounts, IT, Research (Economics), and Official Language (Rajbhasha). The General Stream covers areas such as Economics, Finance, Costing, Commerce, Management, and Pension Sector Knowledge. The Legal, IT, and Finance streams focus on subject-specific regulations, technical knowledge, and financial laws.

1. General Stream (Common Syllabus for Both Phases)

A. Commerce & Accountancy

• Accounting as a financial information system.
• Accounting Standards: Depreciation, Inventories, Revenue Recognition, Fixed Assets, Foreign Exchange Transactions, Investments.
• Cash Flow Statement, Fund Flow Statement, Financial Statement Analysis, Ratio Analysis.
• Share Capital Transactions: Bonus Shares, Right Shares, Employees Stock Option, Buy-Back of Securities.
• Preparation and Presentation of Company Final Accounts.

B. Management

• Management Processes: Planning, Organization, Staffing, Directing, Controlling.
• Leadership: Tasks, Styles, Theories, Successful vs. Effective Leader.
• Human Resource Development: Concept, Goals, Motivation, Morale, Incentives.
• Communication: Process, Channels, Barriers, Role of IT.

C. Finance

• Financial System: Role of Regulatory Bodies.
• Financial Markets: Primary and Secondary Markets (Forex, Money, Bond, Equity).
• Derivatives: Forward, Futures, Swap.
• Financial Inclusion, Alternate Sources of Finance, Public-Private Partnership.
• Taxation: Direct and Indirect Taxes, GST, Fiscal Policy, FRBM Act.
• Inflation: Definition, Trends, Consequences, Remedies (WPI, CPI).

D. Costing

• Cost and Management Accounting: Objectives, Scope.
• Methods of Costing: Unit Costing, Job Costing, Batch Costing, Contract Costing, Process Costing.
• Cost Control: Standard Costing, Marginal Costing, Budgetary Control.
• Lean System and Innovation: JIT, Kaizen, Six Sigma, Business Process Re-engineering.

E. Companies Act

• Companies Act, 2013: Chapters III, IV, VIII, X, XI, XII, XXVII.

F. Economics

• Demand and Supply, Market Structures, National Income.
• Classical & Keynesian Approach: Output, Employment, Consumption, Investment, Multiplier, Accelerator.
• IS-LM Model, Inflation, Phillips Curve, Business Cycles.
• Balance of Payments, Foreign Exchange Markets, Monetary and Fiscal Policy.

G. Pension Sector

• Status of Pension Sector in India.
• Types of Retirement Schemes: Features, National Pension System (NPS), Atal Pension Yojana (APY).
• Annuity Plans, Basics of Investment.

2. Information Technology Stream (Common for Both Phases)

• Database Concepts: ER Model, Relational Model, Normal Forms, Transactions, Concurrency Control. File Organization, Indexing (B and B+ Trees).
• SQL Queries: Select, View, Truncate, Delete, Update, Alter, Joins, Aggregate Functions, Nested Queries.
• Programming Concepts (Java/C/C++): Program Control, OOPS Concepts, Inheritance, Exception Handling.
• Data Analytics Languages (Python/R): Regex, Dataframes, File Management, Data Mining, Charts, Graphs.
• Algorithms for Problem Solving: Tree and Graph Traversals, Sorting, Searching, Design Techniques (Greedy, Dynamic Programming).
• Networking Concepts: ISO/OSI Stack, TCP/IP, LAN Technologies, Application Layer Protocols, Firewalls.
• Information & Cyber Security: Cyber Attacks, Network Security, Authentication, CIA (Confidentiality, Integrity, Availability).
• Data Warehousing: Data Extraction, Transformation, Loading, Metadata, Data Cube, Data Mart.
• Shell Programming: Shell Scripting Basics, UNIX Commands.

3. Research (Economics) Stream (Common Syllabus for Both Phases)

• Economics: Demand and Supply, Market Structures, National Income, IS-LM Model, Inflation, Business Cycles. Monetary and Fiscal Policy, Banking Functions, Public Goods, Taxation, Foreign Trade.
• Statistics and Econometrics: Measures of Central Tendency, Correlation, Sampling Methods, Hypothesis Testing, Regression Analysis.
• Financial Institutions and Markets: Asymmetric Information, Market Efficiency, Money and Capital Markets, Role of International Financial Institutions.

4. Legal Stream (Common Syllabus for Both Phases)

• Acts and Laws: PFRDA Act, 2013; IRDAI Act, 1999; SEBI Act, 1992. Constitution of India: Preamble, Fundamental Rights, Directive Principles.
• Law of Contracts: Indian Contract Act, 1872; Partnership Act, 1932; Specific Relief Act, 1963.
• Criminal Law: Indian Penal Code, 1860; Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973.
• Evidence and Civil Procedure: Indian Evidence Act, 1872; Code of Civil Procedure, 1908.
• Corporate Law: Companies Act, 2013; Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016.

5. Finance and Accounts Stream (Common for Both Phases)

• Financial Statements: Trial Balance, Balance Sheet, Cash Flow Statement, Income Statement.
• Financial Analysis: Ratio Analysis, Break-Even Analysis, IND AS, Auditing Standards.
• Cost and Management Accounting: Marginal Costing, Cost Volume Profit Analysis, Capital Budgeting.
• Taxation: Income Tax Act, GST, Direct and Indirect Taxes.
• Financial Markets: Primary and Secondary Markets, Derivatives, Financial Inclusion.

6. Official Language (Rajbhasha) Stream (Common for Both Phases)

• भारत सरकार की राजभाषा नीतत (Official Language Policy of the Govt. of India) सेसंबंधित प्रश्न
• हिन्दी सेअंग्रेजी अनुवाद [शब्द / वाक्ांश / वाक् / Terms / Phrases / Sentences]
• अंग्रेजी सेहिन्दी अनुवाद [शब्द / वाक्ांश / वाक् / Terms / Phrases / Sentences]
• हिन्दी सेअंग्रेजी – ववधिक शब्दावली (Legal Terminology)
• अंग्रेजी सेहिन्दी – ववधिक शब्दावली (Legal Terminology)
• हिन्दी सेअंग्रेजी – पेंशन / प्रशासतनक / बकैंकंग / प ंजी बाजार / अर्थशास्त्र/ सामाजजक सुरक्षा शब्दावली (Pension / Administrative / Banking / Capital Market / Economics / Social Security Terminology)
• अंग्रेजी सेहिन्दी – पेंशन / प्रशासतनक / बकैंकंग / प ंजी बाजार / अर्थशास्त्र / सामाजजक सुरक्षा शब्दावली (Pension / Administrative / Banking / Capital Market / Economics / Social Security Terminology)