OSSSC Nursing Officer Recruitment 2026 - 5989 Vacancies, Last Date 13 July 2026 9 hours ago

The recruitment is being conducted under the Odisha Nursing Service (Method of Recruitment and Conditions of Service) Rules, 2019 and its subsequent amendment rules up to date. Candidates selected may also be deployed as Community Health Officer (CHO) by the respective Appointing Authorities.

OSSSC Nursing Officer Recruitment 2026 - Important Dates

The application window is open for exactly one month. Candidates are strongly advised not to wait until the last date, as the online system is automatically disabled at midnight on the closing date and no application will be accepted thereafter.

Registration and application submission are two separate steps. Completing registration alone does not mean the application has been filed. Candidates must log in after registration and submit the full online application form before 13 July 2026.

Vacancy Breakdown - District-wise and Category-wise

The 5989 vacancies are spread across all 30 districts of Odisha. These are district cadre posts, meaning selected candidates will be posted and transferred only within the district they are allocated. Candidates must indicate their district preferences in the online application form in order of priority.

Category-wise Total Vacancies:

Special Category Vacancies (included within district totals above):

Top 5 districts by total vacancies:

The number of posts to be filled may change at the Government's discretion without prior notice. Reservations for all categories will be applied in accordance with relevant Odisha Government Acts, Rules, and Notifications in force.

OSSSC Nursing Officer Recruitment 2026 - Eligibility Criteria

Candidates must meet both the age and educational qualification requirements simultaneously. All eligibility conditions must be fulfilled as on the date of advertisement (12 June 2026), except for the Nursing Council registration requirement which must be valid as on the date of submission of the online application form.

Age Limit

Candidates must have attained the age of 21 years and must not be above 42 years as on the date of advertisement. Date of birth will be verified only from the HSC Certificate issued by the Board of Secondary Education, Odisha or an equivalent certificate from any recognised Board/Council/Indian University.

Age relaxation:

Candidates falling under more than one relaxation category are eligible for only the single most beneficial relaxation, except PwDs under SC/ST/SEBC who get cumulative relaxation as specified. Ex-Servicemen who have already secured regular State Government employment and availed the Ex-Servicemen benefit once are not eligible for reservation under Ex-Servicemen category for subsequent recruitment.

Educational Qualification

Candidates must satisfy all three of the following:

1. Academic Qualification: Must have passed 10+2 in the 10+2 system or its equivalent.

2. Professional Qualification: Must hold a Diploma in GNM (General Nursing & Midwifery) or BSc Nursing from any Medical College and Hospitals of the State or any other institution duly recognised and approved by the Indian Nursing Council.

3. Registration: Must have registered their name in the Nursing Council in the State of Odisha and must possess a valid Registration or Renewal Certificate as on the date of submission of the online application form. This certificate must be uploaded online at the time of application.

4. Odia Language: Candidates must be able to speak, read, and write Odia, and must have satisfied one of the following: passed the Middle School Examination with Odia as a language subject; passed Matriculation or equivalent with Odia as the medium of instruction in non-language subjects; passed Odia as a language subject in the final examination of Class-VII or above from a School recognised by the Government of Odisha or Central Government; or passed a test in Odia in M.E. School Standard conducted by the School & Mass Education Department.

Other Eligibility Conditions

Candidates must be Indian citizens and of good character. Married candidates must not have more than one spouse living. Sportsperson category claimants must possess a Sportsperson ID card issued by the Sports & Youth Services Department, Government of Odisha and upload the scanned copy of the original (not photocopy). Candidates debarred from any OSSSC recruitment for a specified period are not eligible during that period.

OSSSC Nursing Officer Recruitment 2026 - Application Fee

The examination fee is straightforward, with a full exemption for reserved categories. Candidates who pay the fee and actually appear in the examination will receive a refund after the examination is conducted and attendance records are verified.

The fee of ₹500 must be paid positively using Net Banking, Credit Card, Debit Card, or UPI through the Payment Gateway available during online application submission. If the Confirmation Page is not generated after payment, the transaction will be cancelled and the refund will be credited within 48 hours. If no Confirmation Page is generated, the applicant must make another payment.

The ₹500 fee will be refunded to candidates who actually appear in the examination. The refund will be processed within a reasonable period after the examination and verification of attendance records. No refund is admissible to applicants who fail to appear in the examination for any reason. The refund will be credited to the same bank account or payment method used during registration - candidates are advised to use their own account for smooth refund processing.

OSSSC Nursing Officer Recruitment 2026 - Selection Process

The selection is based on a single Written Test followed by Document Verification. No interview is conducted. The selection process has three stages: Written Test, Provisional Master Merit List, and Document Verification followed by a Provisional Select List.

Stage 1 - Written Test (100 marks, MCQ, OMR/CBRE Mode)

The Written Test consists of 100 questions for 100 marks to be completed in 2 hours. The exact mode (OMR or CBRE) will be notified separately. The test paper is divided as follows:

Negative Marking: For every wrong answer, 0.25 marks will be deducted as penalty. Each question has four options. If a candidate marks more than one option, it is treated as a wrong answer. Unanswered questions carry no penalty.

Minimum Qualifying Marks: Candidates belonging to ST, SC, PwDs, Ex-Servicemen, and Sportsperson categories must score a minimum of 30% (normalized score). All other candidates must score a minimum of 35% (normalized score).

Tie-breaking sequence (applied in order if two candidates score identically): (a) fewer wrong attempts; (b) higher percentage of marks in Diploma in GNM or BSc Nursing; (c) age seniority (older candidate ranked higher); (d) higher marks in +2 examination; (e) Commission's discretion.

In CBRE mode, the test will be conducted in multiple shifts on different dates and a normalization formula will be applied to convert raw scores to normalized scores.

Stage 2 - Provisional Master Merit List

After the Written Test, a Provisional Master Merit List will be prepared in order of marks/normalized scores. Candidates who meet the minimum qualifying marks will be shortlisted for Document Verification at not less than 1.25 times the number of advertised vacancies, category/special category wise.

Stage 3 - Document Verification (DV)

Shortlisted candidates will be called to appear before the District Level Board in the office of the Collector and District Magistrate of each district. Original documents will be verified by the Chief District Medical & Public Health Officers. Failure to attend Document Verification will result in rejection of candidature. Candidature remains provisional until validated by the appointing authority.

Stage 4 - Provisional Select List

A Provisional Select List equal to the number of advertised vacancies will be drawn from the DV screening list, based strictly on merit, availability, and the candidate's district preference as exercised during application or physical counselling.

Physical Counselling (Optional): The Commission may, at its discretion, call shortlisted candidates for physical counselling for district allocation, based on merit-cum-choice as per actual vacancies available.

Written Test Syllabus (as per Annexure-II): Anatomy & Physiology; Microbiology; Psychology; Sociology; Nursing Foundation; First Aid; Community Health Nursing; Nutrition; Medical Surgical Nursing/Adult Health Nursing (as per revised BSc Nursing syllabus 2021); Mental Health Nursing; Child Health Nursing; Midwifery & Gynaecological Nursing; Nursing Education; Research and Statistics; Professionalism, Professional values & ethics; Nursing Administration & Management.

OSSSC Nursing Officer Recruitment 2026 - How to Apply

The application process has two mandatory steps - Registration and Application Submission - which are separate operations but corollary to each other. Completing registration without submitting the application form means the application is incomplete and will be rejected.

1. Visit the OSSSC official website at www.osssc.gov.in.

2. On the Home page, click "Apply Online" if you are a New User (not registered earlier for any OSSSC recruitment). If you are a Registered User (already registered for any earlier OSSSC post and have a User ID), click the "Re-registration" option under the Applicant Menu to re-register for this post.

3. Read the instructions carefully by clicking "How do I register/re-register/apply" on the Home page before filling the Registration Form.

4. Complete the Registration Form first. Keep the following ready before starting: scanned signature in jpg/jpeg/png format between 20 KB and 50 KB; scanned colour passport-size photograph in jpg/jpeg/png format between 20 KB and 100 KB; valid personal email ID and mobile/cell phone number (to be kept active throughout the recruitment process).

5. After successful registration, log in and fill the Online Application Form with all required details and upload documents as per the guidance of the online system.

6. Indicate district preferences (up to the districts available) in order of priority.

7. Pay the examination fee of ₹500 (if applicable) using Net Banking/Credit Card/Debit Card/UPI through the Payment Gateway. After successful payment, print the Confirmation Page.

8. Submit the online application. Incomplete applications will be summarily rejected. No Admission Letter will be issued to candidates whose application is found incomplete.

9. Keep the User ID, Password, and registration number safely - these will be required for downloading the Admission Letter and future communications from OSSSC.

OSSSC Nursing Officer Recruitment 2026  - Salary / Pay Scale

The Nursing Officer post carries a clearly defined pay scale under the Odisha Revised Scale of Pay (ORSP) Rules 2017. This is a permanent Group-C post in the district cadre.

The starting basic pay for a Nursing Officer is ₹29,200 per month at Pay Matrix Level-8, Cell-01 as per ORSP Rules 2017, with applicable Dearness Allowance and other allowances as per Government rules. Candidates selected may also be deployed as Community Health Officer (CHO) by the appointing authorities.

Documents Required for Document Verification

Candidates who qualify the Written Test and are shortlisted for Document Verification must produce all original certificates. The following documents are required:

1. Certificate of Registration in the Nursing Council of the State of Odisha (valid as on the date of online application submission).

2. HSC examination certificate or equivalent, 10+2 pass certificate or equivalent, Diploma in GNM or BSc Nursing certificate and mark sheets.

3. Certificate of passing Odia as a language subject (Class-VII or above from a recognised school/institution) or certificate of passing a test in Odia in M.E. School Standard.

4. Caste certificate (SC/ST/SEBC), or UDID card/Disability Certificate showing permanent disability issued by the Competent Authority (for PwDs).

5. Discharge Certificate/Identity Card and documents in support of defence service rendered, along with an undertaking of non-availing of re-employment under State Government (for Ex-Servicemen).

6. Certificate/documents of contractual work experience under OSH&FW Society/Scheme or as ASHA (for contractual Nursing Officers claiming age relaxation).

7. Sports ID card issued by the Sports & Youth Services Department, Government of Odisha (for Sportsperson category claimants).

PwD candidates must possess a Permanent Disability Certificate showing not less than 40% disability and must upload the scanned copy of the original (not photocopy) UDID Card/Disability Certificate. Applicants with temporary disability are not eligible and such applications will be summarily rejected.

Troubleshooting and Common Mistakes

Applying online for a large-scale recruitment like this involves several steps where errors are common. Following these general practices will help avoid rejection or delays.

Photo and Signature Errors: The photograph must be a recent colour passport-size image in jpg/jpeg/png format, scanned between 20 KB and 100 KB. The signature must be a full specimen signature in jpg/jpeg/png format between 20 KB and 50 KB. Files outside these size ranges will not be accepted by the portal. Both must be clearly identifiable; blurred or unclear images will lead to rejection of the registration/application.

Two-Step Confusion: A very common mistake is treating Registration as the final step. Registration and Application Submission are separate operations. Always log back in after registering to fill and submit the Online Application Form - only then is your application considered filed.

Payment and Confirmation Page: If the Confirmation Page does not appear after fee payment, do not close the browser immediately. If the page is genuinely not generated, the transaction will be cancelled and refunded within 48 hours - you must then make a fresh payment. Do not make multiple payments simultaneously. Use your own bank account or UPI ID to ensure the refund reaches you without complications.

Email ID and Mobile Number: Use a valid personal email ID and mobile number that will remain active throughout the entire recruitment process, including result and admission letter downloads. Do not share your User ID and Password with anyone, and do not change your registered email or mobile number during the process.

Multiple Applications: Submitting more than one Application Form for the same post will lead to cancellation of results and disqualification. Under no circumstances should a candidate fill more than one form.

Last-Day Rush: The OSSSC system will be automatically disabled after the deadline. Submitting close to 13 July 2026 risks server overload and session timeouts. Apply and submit well in advance.

Contractual Nursing Officers claiming age relaxation: Must upload appointment letters from their employers with self-attestation online, and must keep original appointment letters ready for verification after the Written Test.

OSSSC Nursing Officer Recruitment 2026 - Important Links