PFRDA Grade A Study Plan 2026, Download Free PDF
Start your PFRDA Grade A Paper 2 preparation with a detailed strategic study plan and level up your exam preparation for the upcoming exam scheduled to be held on 15th October 2026.
Your Complete Paper 2 Preparation Guide
Complete Coverage
Follow a well-structured daily plan that ensures full syllabus coverage for paper, without feeling overwhelmed.
Track & Stay on Target
Use the interactive Excel Sheet to monitor your daily progress, maintain consistency, and stay on top of your preparation goals.
Made for Every Aspirant
Whether you're starting from scratch or giving it another shot, the plan adapts to your pace and helps you move forward confidently.
PFRDA Grade A Exam Pattern and Syllabus
The PFRDA Grade A Exam Pattern and Syllabus 2026 have undergone important changes, especially in General Stream Paper 2. The syllabus now includes topics such as the PFRDA Act, 2013, Union Budget and Economic Survey, Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, Media, and Marketing & Communication. In Phase 1, Paper 1 now has 90 questions instead of 80, while the exam duration remains 60 minutes.
What has been changed in the PFRDA Grade A exam pattern 2026?
The PFRDA Grade A exam pattern 2026 has been revised mainly in Phase 1 Paper 1 and the stream structure. The number of questions in Paper 1 has increased from 80 to 90, with Reasoning now having 30 questions instead of 20, while the total marks and duration remain unchanged.
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What is the PFRDA Grade A Phase 1 exam pattern?
Phase 1 is an online Screening Examination consisting of two papers. Paper 1 is common to all streams, while Paper 2 tests the stream-specific syllabus. Both papers carry 100 marks.
What is the PFRDA Grade A Phase 1 Paper 1 pattern?
Phase 1 Paper 1 is common to all streams and contains questions from English Language, Quantitative Aptitude, Test of Reasoning and General Awareness. In 2026, the total number of questions has increased from 80 to 90, while the duration remains 60 minutes. The entire increase comes from the Reasoning section, which now contains 30 questions instead of 20.
| Section | Questions | Marks |
|---|---|---|
| English Language | 20 | 25 |
| Quantitative Aptitude | 20 | 25 |
| Test of Reasoning | 30 | 25 |
| General Awareness | 20 | 25 |
| Total | 90 | 100 |
The paper carries 0.25 negative marking for every incorrect answer. Candidates have to meet both the paper wise and aggregate cutoffs. The aggregate cutoff is decided by PFRDA based on the number of vacancies and candidate performance.
What is the PFRDA Grade A phase 1 paper 2 exam pattern?
Paper 2 is stream-specific and focuses on professional knowledge in your chosen stream. This paper evaluates your understanding of specialized subjects related to your career domain.
| Streams / Subject | Maximum Marks | No. of Questions |
|---|---|---|
| General Stream: MCQs on subjects Commerce, Accountancy, Management, Finance, Costing, Companies Act, Economics, and Pension Sector | 100 | 50 |
| Specialized Streams: MCQs on subjects related to Research, Actuary and Official Language (Rajbhasha) | 100 | 50 |
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What is the PFRDA Grade A phase 2 exam pattern?
In the PFRDA Grade A Phase 2 exam, negative marking of 1/4th marks applies only to Paper 2 for wrong answers. Paper 1 (descriptive English) is evaluated only for candidates who qualify in Paper 2. This ensures that only those with good stream knowledge are assessed for their writing skills.
| Papers | Streams/ Subject | Maximum Marks | No. of Questions | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paper 1 | All Streams: English (Descriptive Test) to test the drafting skills {Precis/Essay/Comprehension} | 100 | 3 | 60 minutes |
| Paper 2 | General Stream: MCQs on subjects Commerce, Accountancy, Management, Finance, Costing, Companies Act, Economics and Pension Sector. | 100 | 50 | 40 minutes |
| Paper 2 | MCQs on Specialised subjects related to stream: Information Technology, Finance and Accounts Research (Economics), Legal and Official Language (Rajbhasha) | 100 | 50 | 40 minutes |
What are the topics covered under PFRDA Grade A syllabus?
For the professional knowledge, the stream wise PFRDA Grade A syllabus is common for both phases. Similarly, the syllabus for Paper 1 of Phase 1 is common for all streams. Check out the detailed syllabus below:
What are the major changes in the PFRDA Grade A Paper 2 syllabus of General Stream?
The PFRDA Grade A General Stream Paper 2 syllabus has been significantly expanded in 2026. While the earlier syllabus covered seven major areas Commerce & Accountancy, Management, Finance, Costing, Companies Act, Economics, and Pension Sector the revised syllabus adds five new areas: PFRDA Act, 2013 & amendments, Union Budget & Economic Survey, Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning, Media, and Marketing & Communication. The existing seven subjects continue to remain part of the syllabus, so candidates preparing from the previous syllabus can retain their preparation while adding these new areas.
What is the PFRDA Grade A syllabus for the English section?
Check out the PFRDA Grade A English Syllabus below:
- Reading comprehension
- Vocabulary
- Cloze test
- Fillers
- Sentence rearrangement
- Error detection
- Phrase replacement
- Sentence improvement
What is the PFRDA Grade A syllabus for the Reasoning section?
Check out the PFRDA Grade A Reasoning Syllabus below:
- Blood Relation
- Puzzles
- Seating Arrangement
- Direction & distance
- Input output
- Coding decoding
- Syllogism
- Alphanumeric series
- Inequality
What is the syllabus for the Quantitative Aptitude section?
Check out the PFRDA Grade A Quantitative Aptitude Syllabus below:
- Data Interpretation (Bar Graph, Line Chart, Tabular, Caselet, Radar/Web, Pie Chart)
- Inequalities (Quadratic Equations)
- Number Series
- Approximation and Simplification
- Data Sufficiency
- Miscellaneous - Arithmetic Problems (HCF and LCM, Profit and Loss, SI & CI, Problem on Ages, Work and Time, Speed Distance and Time, Probability, Mensuration, Permutation and Combination, Average, Ratio and Proportion, Partnership, Problems on Boats and Stream, Problems on Trains, Mixture and Allegation, Pipes and Cisterns.
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What is the PFRDA Grade A syllabus for General Awareness section?
Check out the PFRDA Grade A General Awareness Syllabus below:
- Current affairs
- Questions related to Finance Sector
- Awards & honours
- Summits & conferences
- Index
- Economic affairs
What is the PFRDA Grade A Paper 2 syllabus for General Stream?
The General Stream Paper 2 syllabus is common to both Phase I and Phase II. It covers a wide range of subjects related to commerce, finance, economics, management, pension and other areas mentioned in the official syllabus.
| Section | Major Topics |
|---|---|
| A PFRDA Act | PFRDA Act, 2013 and amendments |
| B Union Budget & Economic Survey | Budget concepts, approach, broad trends, and Economic Survey |
| C Commerce & Accountancy | Accounting system, Accounting Standards, depreciation, inventories, revenue recognition, fixed assets, foreign exchange transactions, investments, cash flow, fund flow, financial statement analysis, ratio analysis, share capital, bonus shares, rights shares, ESOP, buy-back, and company final accounts |
| D Management | Nature and scope of management, management processes, planning, organisation, staffing, directing, controlling, leadership, HRD, motivation, morale, incentives, and communication |
| E Finance | Financial system, regulatory bodies, financial markets, derivatives, financial inclusion, alternate sources of finance, PPP, taxation, GST, Finance Commission, fiscal policy, FRBM, and inflation |
| F Costing | Cost and management accounting, methods of costing, standard costing, marginal costing, budgeting, JIT, Kaizen, 5S, TPM, Six Sigma, and BPR |
| G Companies Act | Companies Act, 2013: Chapters III, IV, VIII, X, XI, XII, and XXVII |
| H Economics | Demand and supply, market structures, national income, classical and Keynesian approaches, consumption, investment, multiplier, accelerator, money, IS LM, inflation, Phillips Curve, business cycles, BoP, forex, monetary and fiscal policy, and NBFCs |
| I Pension Sector | Pension sector in India, retirement schemes, NPS, Atal Pension Yojana, annuity plans, and basics of investment |
| J Artificial Intelligence/ML | Machine Learning, supervised and unsupervised learning, data preprocessing, model evaluation, NLP, sentiment analysis, overfitting, underfitting, LLMs, Agentic AI, Responsible AI, cross-validation, and reinforcement learning |
| K Media | Micro-targeting, consumer behaviour, media convergence, VR/AR, digital divide, audience reception, cultural representation, digital entertainment platforms, social media algorithms, market trends, global practices, and negotiation skills |
| L Marketing & Communication | Marketing management, marketing research, marketing planning and strategies, marketing types, product management, pricing, distribution, promotion mix, sales, brand management, digital marketing, financial literacy, active listening, body language, verbal clarity, written etiquette, conflict resolution, feedback, public speaking, emotional intelligence, verbal tone, and pitch |
