Post: Sub-Engineer (सब-इन्जिनियर), Nepal Engineering Service, Civil Group. Level: राजपत्र अनंकित प्रथम श्रेणी (प्राविधिक), Non-gazetted 1st Class (Technical). Qualification: Diploma in Civil Engineering (or equivalent).
The standard entry route for diploma engineers into government service — district offices, municipalities, road and irrigation divisions.
Exam pattern
| Stage | Paper | Format | Marks | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Written (first phase) | First Paper — Part I: General Awareness & General Aptitude Test | Objective (MCQ), 25 × 2 marks | 50 | 45 min* |
| Written (first phase) | First Paper — Part II: Job Based Knowledge | Objective (MCQ), 25 × 2 marks | 50 | (same sitting) |
| Final | Interview | Oral — general, subject matter, skill & attitude | — | — |
* 45 minutes per the 2079 examination paper; confirm against the current PSC notice. Interview marks and the exact pass criteria were not captured from an official source — verify on psc.gov.np before relying on them.
Part II (Job Based Knowledge) is drawn from the 13-section technical syllabus below.
Technical syllabus — 13 sections
1. Surveying
General: classifications, principles, selection of method; scales, plans and maps; field-book and level-book entries. Levelling: methods, instruments and accessories, principles. Plane tabling: equipment, methods, two- and three-point problems. Theodolite and traverse surveying: types of theodolites, temporary adjustments, fundamental lines, stadia tacheometry, trigonometric levelling, checks in closed traverse. Contouring: characteristics, locating and plotting contours. Setting out: small buildings, simple curves.
2. Construction Materials
Stone: formation and availability in Nepal, laying and construction methods. Cement: types, ingredients, properties, manufacture, storage and transport, admixtures. Clay and clay products: brick types, manufacture, laying bonds. Paints and varnishes: types, selection, preparation, use. Bitumen: types, selection, use.
3. Mechanics of Materials & Structures
Internal effects of loading; ultimate strength and working stress; shear force and bending moment — relation between them, and SFD/BMD for statically determinate beams under various loadings; simple strut theory.
4. Hydraulics
Fluid properties: mass, weight, specific weight, density, specific volume, specific gravity, viscosity. Pressure and Pascal’s law. Hydro-kinematics and hydro-dynamics: energy of flowing liquid (elevation, kinetic, potential, internal). Discharge measurement: weirs and notches, discharge formulas. Pipe flow vs open-channel flow.
5. Soil Mechanics
Soil types and classification; three-phase system; unit weights — bulk, saturated, submerged and dry density; relationships between specific gravity, void ratio, porosity, degree of saturation, air voids and density index. Effective stress (Terzaghi); Darcy’s law; factors affecting permeability. Compaction: influencing factors, optimum moisture content, dry density vs moisture content. Shear strength: Mohr–Coulomb theory, cohesion and angle of internal friction. Earth pressures: active and passive, lateral earth pressure theory, Rankine’s theory. Foundations: Terzaghi’s bearing capacity formulas and application.
6. Structural Design
RC sections in bending: under-, over- and balanced-reinforced sections; analysis of singly and doubly reinforced rectangular sections. Shear and bond: shear resistance, types of shear reinforcement and their design, anchorage length. Axially loaded RC columns: short and long columns, design of rectangular sections. Drafting: beams, one-way and two-way slabs, columns.
7. Building Construction Technology
Foundations: subsoil exploration; shallow vs deep foundations — types and suitability; shoring and dewatering; simple brick/stone masonry foundation design. Walls: types and functions, thickness selection, height–length relation, scaffolding. Damp proofing: sources of dampness, remedial measures. Concrete technology: constituents, aggregate grading, concrete mixes, water–cement ratio, factors affecting strength, formwork, curing. Woodwork: door/window frames and shutters, timber upper floors, stair design and construction. Flooring and finishing: floor finishes, plastering.
8. Water Supply & Sanitation Engineering
Objectives of water supply; sources and selection — gravity and artesian springs, shallow and deep wells, infiltration galleries. Gravity water supply: design period, daily demand, storage tank capacity, pipe selection, pipeline design and hydraulic grade line. Sewer design: sewage quantity; maximum, minimum and self-cleansing velocity. Excreta disposal for unsewered areas: pit latrines, septic tank design.
9. Irrigation Engineering
Advantages and disadvantages of irrigation; crop seasons and principal crops; base period; flow-irrigation canals — losses and minimisation, limiting velocities, canal section design by Manning’s formula; need and location of spillways; headworks for small canals.
10. Highway Engineering
Transportation systems and road history; road classification in Nepal; alignment requirements; geometric design — cross-section elements, camber, horizontal curve radius, super-elevation, sight distances, gradient, Nepal Road Standard; drainage systems; pavement structure — subgrade, sub-base, base and surface courses; road machinery — earth-moving and compacting machines; construction technology; bridges (T-beam, timber); maintenance types; tracks and trails.
11. Estimating & Costing
Main items of work; units of measurement and payment; standard estimate formats of government offices; rate analysis — norms of the Ministry of Works and Transport and district rates; specifications interpretation; valuation methods; standard formats used by commercial banks and NIDC.
12. Construction Management
Organisation: need for organisation, responsibilities of a civil overseer, owner–contractor–engineer relations. Site management: site plan, labour organisation and efficiency, accident prevention. Contract procedure: contract types, departmental works and day-work, tender and tender notice, earnest money and security deposit, pre-tender preparation, agreement, conditions of contract, construction supervision. Accounts: administrative approval and technical sanction, standard government account formats, muster roll, completion report. Planning and control: construction schedule, equipment and material schedules, stages and operations, bar charts.
13. Hydropower Engineering
Historical development; installed capacity; power and energy calculation; firm and secondary energy; load and load curve; classification of hydropower projects; project layouts; components — headworks, settling basin, forebay, surge tank, penstock — types and design.
Practice quiz
100 original practice MCQs in 5 sets of 20, rotating through all 13 sections — with instant feedback. Start the Sub-Engineer practice quiz →
How to use this with our practice quizzes
- Quiz Sets 1–5 (100 questions) rotate through all 13 sections — 2 questions each from sections 1–7 and 1 each from sections 8–13 per set.
- Weight your revision toward Surveying, Soil Mechanics, Estimating & Costing and Highway Engineering — historically the heaviest sections in the job-knowledge paper.
- Part I (general awareness & aptitude) rewards daily current-affairs reading alongside technical prep.
Syllabus summary compiled from official PSC syllabus text. Always cross-check the current advertisement on psc.gov.np.