Recruitment of IIS Officers

IIS Group A: The principal mode of recruitment into the Indian Information Service Group A is through the Civil Services Examination conducted by the Union Public Service Commission, every year. The candidates must clear each round of the examination - Preliminary, Mains and Interview - and acquire a recommendation from UPSC to enter the cadre of the Indian Information Service. Officers recruited this way are called Direct Recruits (DRs). The vacancies in IIS Group A are also filled through promotions from IIS Group B.

IIS Group B: Recruitment to the Senior Grade of IIS Group B is done through a separate examination conducted by UPSC. The staff of the Junior Grade of IIS Group B is selected through the examination conducted by the Staff Selection Commission.

Induction Training for Indian Information Service Officer Trainees at IIMC

Duration and structure of the programme

The Induction Training of IIS Group ‘A’ spans about twenty and half months. The IIS Induction Course is a Sandwich Course comprising two phases of classroom training with On-the-Job Training in between.

The main objectives are:

• To provide a deep understanding of the functioning of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and its Media Organizations and to fully prepare the OTs for specific responsibilities that they are expected to execute on assuming charge of their posts.
• To offer the OTs a 360-degree exposure to the dynamics of media and the process of government communication.
• To equip the OTs with the necessary skill sets for developing strategic thinking across the communication spectrum.

The Phase I Training aims at sensitizing and familiarizing the Officer Trainees on the symbiotic relationship between communication and development administration and on the role of government communication in successful implementation of welfare schemes. The Course also intends to provide the OTs a comprehensive view of the evolving media landscape in India as well as the world, and also making them aware of the multiple challenges, opportunities, and the role of digital communication technologies in delivering development.

Structure: The Phase I Training course is designed with 3 Trimesters comprising classroom sessions (9.5 months), simulation exercises and field attachments and All India Study Tour (Bharat Darshan), enabling an engagement across all media platforms. These range from broadcast news to conceiving and implementing communication campaigns to new technologies of social media. The OTs are given exposure to the learning of a foreign language also.

The classroom sessions are followed by a 10-month-long On-the-Job Training (OJT), with one-month attachment in the regions/field. The training draws to a close with a 2 week Phase II training.

Focus Area Of Study: Communication concepts, strategies and skills; Media tools and research techniques; Social, New and Emerging Media; Latest Information and Communication Technology; Study of Media Units of Government of India; Communication Mechanism at district and sub-district level; General and Financial Rules in Administration; Presentation, Projects and Seminars: etc.