KEA Principal Recruitment 2026 Notification Out - Apply Online for 247 Posts

A total of 247 Principal posts are being filled through this recruitment, split across two cadres. Category-wise vacancy breakups are given below. Within each vertical category above, horizontal reservations also apply for women, rural candidates, ex-servicemen, Kannada-medium candidates, persons with disabilities, and transgender candidates, as detailed in the official notification's roster tables.

KEA Principal Recruitment 2026 is not open to the general public or fresh candidates . Only Lecturers currently working in Government Pre-University Colleges under the School Education Department are eligible, subject to the qualification and service conditions below.

The applicant must be a serving Lecturer in the Lecturer cadre of Government Pre-University Colleges under the School Education Department. The applicant must have completed a minimum of 10 years of service in the Lecturer cadre. The applicant must have satisfactorily completed the probation period in the Lecturer post. The notification specifies that if an applicant participates in the recruitment process without holding the required educational/service qualification, their candidature may be rejected at any stage by the Government, the Department, or the Authority. The prescribed qualification must be held as on the last date fixed for submission of applications.

No age limit is prescribed for KEA Principal Recruitment 2026. The notification states that since this recruitment fills vacancies in the Principal post from among serving Lecturers in Government Pre-University Colleges who have completed 10 years of service under the School Education Department, no upper age limit applies.

Selected candidates will be placed in the revised 2024 Karnataka state pay scale of Rs. 90,200 – Rs. 1,59,200 (90200-2300-99400-2700-115600-3100-134200-3500-155200-4000-159200). Pension benefits for officers appointed as Principal will continue to be governed by the pension rules applicable to their original appointment as Lecturer.

The fee must be paid online only, and once paid, it will not be refunded under any circumstances.

Selection is through a competitive examination conducted by KEA, either in Online (CBT) mode or Offline (OMR) mode. The exam consists of three papers. A minimum of 50 marks in Paper 1 (Kannada) is required to qualify, but Paper 1 marks are not counted while preparing the merit list – qualifying nature only. Only marks scored in Papers 2 and 3 are used to prepare the final merit list. Negative marking of 0.25 marks applies for each wrong answer in Papers 2 and 3 (bilingual Kannada/English question papers). Shortlisting for document verification is done at 1:2 ratio against vacancies, category-wise, based on Paper 2 & 3 scores.

Reservation is provided as per Karnataka Civil Services (General Recruitment) Rules, 1977 and related government orders. Category codes used in the notification are listed below.

Aadhaar Card SSLC certificate or equivalent proof of date of birth Service certificate confirming Lecturer appointment, probation completion, and years of service Caste certificate (SC/ST/Cat-1/2A/2B/3A/3B) bearing an RD number, where applicable Income and caste (creamy-layer) certificate for Category 2A/2B/3A/3B candidates, where applicable Rural candidate certificate (Form-2), where applicable Kannada-medium study certificate, where applicable Ex-servicemen or dependent certificate, where applicable Disability certificate (UDID), where applicable Third-gender certificate from the District Magistrate, where applicable Kalyana-Karnataka local candidate certificate under Article 371(J) (Annexure-A), applicable only for KK-cadre posts Recent passport-size photograph (JPEG, 50KB–200KB) and signature (JPEG, 50KB–70KB)

Applications will be accepted only through the online mode; no other method of submission is allowed. No changes or corrections are permitted in the application once submitted. Candidates must carry a valid original photo ID (PAN card, driving licence, Aadhaar, passport, voter ID, or government employee ID) along with the exam admission ticket to the exam centre. Exam centre changes will not be entertained under any circumstances. Applications found to have incorrect, insufficient, or false information will be rejected at any stage. Providing false information or engaging in fraudulent practices may lead to disqualification and legal/disciplinary action. For queries, candidates can call the KEA helpline: 080-23460460 (10:00 AM to 6:00 PM).