Kolkata, Aug. 5 -- The West Bengal College Service Commission (WBCSC) is expected to release its next advertisement for the recruitment of assistant professors in various subjects in government-aided general degree colleges across Bengal in February 2026, following the completion of the 27th State Eligibility Test (SET).

The online application process for the 27th SET, scheduled for December 14 (Sunday), 2025, began on August 1, with the deadline for form submission and payment set at midnight on August 31. Applicants will be allowed to edit their submitted data between September 9 and 11.

According to WBCSC officials, the results of the SET are usually declared within a month. "Our target is to announce the SET results by January 31, 2026, and publish the recruitment advertisement the following month," said a senior official. "This timeline will allow candidates qualifying in the upcoming SET to be eligible to participate in the next cycle of assistant professor recruitment."

The last recruitment notification for assistant professor posts was issued on December 31, 2020. Although the process was initially expected to conclude by 2023-24, it was significantly delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Commission could begin candidate interviews only in January 2022. The recruitment process concluded by December 2024, with panels expiring in 44 subjects.

Originally, the WBCSC had considered releasing the new recruitment notification in late 2025, following the Puja vacation. However, the Commission decided to defer the process in favour of including candidates from the upcoming SET. During the last recruitment drive, 1,141 vacancies were announced, with nearly 1,100 candidates recommended for appointment.

Those posts accounted for vacancies up to 2023. In the upcoming recruitment cycle, vacancies accumulated during 2024 and 2025, along with some from early 2026, are expected to be included. Currently, there are 452 state-aided general degree colleges under the purview of the WBCSC, where these faculty positions are to be filled.

Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.