Which Subject to Choose in BPSC TRE 4.0? Vacancy vs Competition
Which Subject Should You Choose in BPSC TRE 4.0? Vacancy Against Competition
Your subject in TRE 4.0 carries 80 of the 150 questions at Class 6-8, 9-10 and 11-12, decides your merit score, and breaks ties. Once the fee is paid against a chosen post and subject, it cannot be changed without cancelling the payment, and a cancelled payment is never refunded.
So this is a one-time decision on a 32,388-post recruitment. Here is how to make it with numbers rather than hearsay.
Start with what you are allowed to choose
Before strategy, two hard limits.
- You may select only the subject in which you passed TET or STET. Cleared two? You still pick one, by your own choice.
- Your degree must match the subject group for that level. The Class 9-10 groups and the Class 11-12 post-graduate lists are specific, and a near-match is not a match.
For most candidates these two lines settle the question entirely. The strategy below only applies where you genuinely hold more than one valid option.
The biggest subjects are not automatically the best
Chemistry leads the recruitment with 3,695 posts. It also draws the largest field, because every B.Ed holder with a post-graduate degree in Chemistry across the state is looking at the same row.
What decides your chances is not the post count, it is the ratio between posts and qualified applicants. That ratio is usually kinder where the qualification route is narrow.
The quiet rows worth a second look
Computer Science deserves its own line. It is the only subject at Class 11-12 where B.Ed is not mandatory. An M.C.A. holder, or a post-graduate in Computer Science, or a B.E. or B.Tech in Computer Science or IT from an AICTE-recognised institution, can compete for 407 posts at Rs 32,000 starting pay without the B.Ed detour.
That is our reading of the tables, not a guarantee. We cannot publish applicant counts, because no reliable figure exists for how many people applied in previous cycles, and we will not invent one.
Read your own category column, not the total
This is where most candidates misjudge the table. Every subject row in Advt 15/2026 splits into UR, EWS, EBC, BC, SC, ST and BCL, with the women's quota shown separately.
Look at English and Mathematics at Class 11-12. English has twice the total posts, but an SC candidate sees 658 against 351, while an EBC candidate sees 168 against 42. The right answer changes with your category.
A subject with 700 posts and 15 in your category is a harder fight than one with 300 posts and 80 in your category. Always read across to your own column.
The same subject at two different levels
Several subjects appear at more than one level, and the post counts differ sharply. If your certificates open both doors, this table is the decision.
Class 9-10 is the thinnest level in this recruitment at 3,877 posts overall, and it shows in almost every row. It also carries a 35% women's quota against 50% at Class 6-8, which matters for women candidates eligible at both.
Against that, Class 9-10 pays Rs 31,000 to Class 6-8's Rs 28,000, and needs a heavier qualification. The trade is fewer posts for better pay, and only your own certificates and category counts can settle it.
What the subject decides after the exam
The subject choice does not end at the answer sheet. At Class 6-8, 9-10 and 11-12 the merit score is Part-II plus Part-III, and the first tie-break is the Part-III subject paper, before Part-I language, age and finally alphabetical order of the name in Devanagari script.
So in a recruitment this size, where hundreds of candidates will land on identical totals, the subject paper decides not just your score but your place among equals. A subject you can push to 70 out of 80 is worth more than one you can reach 55 in, even if the second has more posts on paper.
The Social Science trap
Social Science at Class 6-8 and Class 9-10 runs in two sections with a fixed pairing.
At Class 9-10 the eligibility condition adds to this: your graduation must carry any two of History, Geography and Political Science, one of which has to be History or Geography. Ancient History counts as History under notification 1154 dated 21.06.2023.
Candidates pick Social Science for its post count and then discover their graduation subjects do not satisfy the pairing. Check this before the fee, not after.
Subjects with no number yet
Some subjects appear in the syllabus but carry no vacancy figure in this advertisement. Under departmental letter 905 dated 15.08.2026, their supplementary requisition will be notified after it comes through the General Administration Department.
Choosing one of these as your only option is a gamble on a number that has not been published. Watch bpsc.bihar.gov.in before you commit.
One more caveat on cross-level moves. The subject list is not identical at every level. Physical Education, Fine Arts and Dance exist only at Class 9-10, while Psychology, Philosophy, Computer Science, Accountancy and Entrepreneurship appear only at Class 11-12. A subject you rely on at one level may simply not be on the menu at another.
A five-question checklist
- Which subjects did I actually pass TET or STET in?
- Does my degree satisfy the subject group or post-graduate list for that level?
- How many posts sit in my category in that subject, not in total?
- Can I realistically answer 80 questions from it at the level prescribed for the post, which is the minimum qualification standard, not the school textbook?
- Is the vacancy for it actually published, or still awaiting a supplementary requisition?
If two subjects survive all five questions, pick the one you can score higher in. The paper carries 1/3 negative marking on wrong and unanswered questions alike, so depth in a smaller subject beats shallow coverage of a bigger one.
ExamAtlas has free TRE 4.0 mocks on the five-option pattern with AI analytics that show topic-wise accuracy, which is a quick way to test two candidate subjects against each other before deciding. The full topic list is in our TRE 4.0 syllabus page.
Frequently asked questions
Can I choose any subject I like in TRE 4.0?
No. You may select only the subject in which you passed TET or STET, and your degree must match the subject group prescribed for that level.
Which subject has the most vacancies?
Chemistry at Class 11-12 with 3,695 posts, followed by Mathematics and Science at Class 6-8 with 2,188.
Is a subject with fewer posts a better choice?
Sometimes. What matters is the ratio of posts to qualified applicants, and that ratio is often better where the qualification route is narrow, such as Sanskrit, Music or Psychology. There is no published applicant data to prove this, so treat it as judgement rather than fact.
I cleared TET in two subjects. Can I apply in both?
No. You must choose one, by your own preference.
Can I change my subject after paying the fee?
No. You would have to cancel the payment and repeat the whole process, and cancelled payments are not refunded.
Why do some subjects show no vacancy?
Their supplementary requisition has not yet come through the General Administration Department, under letter 905 dated 15.08.2026.
Decide on paper before you decide on the portal
Write down every subject you are legally allowed to pick, put your category count next to each, and mark the one where you could answer 80 questions today. That sheet is your answer, and it takes twenty minutes.
Then confirm the row on the official site before paying, since vacancies may increase or decrease if the requisition is amended. The complete subject tables are in our Advt 15/2026 breakdown.