Bank Exam -Syllabus & Srategies

BANKING CAREER

Well guys…..  there are three channels to start your journey as a banker.

• Clerk cum assistant
• Probationary officer
• Specialist officer

You  may sail your journey by qualifying either of the exams conducted by two different recruiting agencies viz. IBPS & SBI.

PATTERN FOR BANK CLERK 

IBPS

STAGE -1                                         STAGE-2                                               STAGE-3

  Prelims                                           Mains                                               

(MCQS paper)                       (MCQS paper)                            Documentation

  Aug- sep                                      Sep- Oct

Prelims exam

-Numerical ability 35 Qs 

-Reasoning               35 Qs

-General English     30Qs

                                                                               

Total no. Of Qs =100

Total  Marks = 100                       

Time: 60 minutes

Negative marking : 1/4

IBPS Clerk Syllabus

1. Reasoning Ability
2. Quantitative Aptitude
3. English Language
4. Computer Aptitude
5. General Awareness

 Section 1: English Language

1. Vocabulary – Homonyms, Antonyms,2 Synonyms
2. Word Formation, Spelling
3. Grammar – Direct & Indirect Speech, Active / Passive Voice
4. Spotting Errors, Phrases and Idioms
5. Reading Comprehension – Passage Completion, Theme Detection
6. Topic rearrangement of passage
7. Deriving conclusion

Section 2: Reasoning

1. Verbal Reasoning
2. Analogy
3. Classification
4. Statement and Conclusions Syllogism
5. Statement and Assumptions, Arguments Coding and Decoding
6. Passage and conclusions
7. Alphabet Test
8. Serious Test
9. Number, Raining and time sequence
10. Direction Sense Test
11. Decision Making
12. Input / Output
13. Assertion and Reasoning
14. Sitting Arrangement
15. Non Verbal Reasoning – Off figure out, Analogy,Miscellaneous Test

Section 3: Quantitative Aptitude

1. Simplification 
2. Approximation
3. Ratio and Proportion
4. Time and Work
5. Speed, Distance and Time
6. Mixture and Allegation
7. Stocks and Shares
8. Equations
9. Trigonometry
10. Percentage
11. Clocks
12. Height and Distance
13. Simple and Compound Interest
14. Volume and Surface Are
15. Bar and Graphs
16. Profit Loss and Discount
17. Elements of Algebra
18. Line and charts, Pie Charts
19. Tables
20. Probability

Section 4: Computer Knowledge

1. Basics of Hardware and Software
2. Windows Operating System
3. Basics Basics of Hacking
4. Security Tools and Viruses
5. Internet Terms and Services
6. Basic Functionalities of MS Office (MS Word, MS PowerPoint, MS Excel)
7. Networking and Communication

Section 5: General Awareness

1. Current Affairs related to national and international issues of last 6 months
2. History of Indian Banking System
3. Recent Credit and Monetary Policies
4. Introduction to National Financial Institutions like RBI, SEBI, IRDA, FSDC Etc and International organizations like IMF, World Bank, ADB, UN, Etc.
5. Abbreviations and Economic terminologies, Banking Terms
6. Important government schemes on capital & Money Market

 

Mains exam

Data Analysis & Interpretation

You have only 45 minutes to attempt the 35 Qs of the Quants section. This section mostly consists of Data Interpretation questions as mentioned below :

(1) Data Interpretation- Weightage: 20-25 Qs (3-4 sets)

1. Question Types: Line Graphs
2. Bar Graphs
3. Pie Charts
4. Tabular Graph
5. Mix of any two type of DI (mentioned till now)
6. Missing DI
7. Radar Graph
8. Caselets. Also,

Tthe DI can be based on the concept of Boat & Stream, Time & Work, Profit & Loss etc. to make it tricky.

 (2) Data Sufficiency- Weightage: 7-10 Questions

Question Types: Comparison of quantities, the questions will be based on

1. Ratio & Proportion
2. Profit & Loss
3. Simple & Compound Interest
4. Time Speed & Distance
5. Time & Work
6. Problems on Age
7. Mensuration, Mixtures & Alligations etc.

Reasoning & Computer Aptitude

The Reasoning Ability section is always the key to score better. Even though you have 60 minutes to attempt this section, do not get stuck on any problem. Just move on if you cannot figure out a problem. The various topics expected in the Reasoning Ability section are as below:

(1) Syllogisms-Weightage: 5 Qs

Question Types:

1. Reverse Syllogism 
2. possibility based
3. negative information based

 (2) Coding & Decoding-Weightage: 3-5 Qs

Question Types: 

1. Coding in Fictitious Language
2. New Type Coding Decoding
3. Clock based Coding Decoding

 

 (3) Coded Inequalities- Weightage: 2 Qs

Question Types: 

1. Coded relations between letters to be decoded and solved.

 (4) Directions & Distances- Weightage: 3-5 Questions

Easy but could be tricky, Less time consuming, High Accuracy possible, Requires clean charting with proper technique and step-by-step solving.

Question Types: 

• 1. Statement Based Direction & Distance Problem
  2.  Routes & Network based problem

 May be mixed with order & ranking to make it tricky.

 (5) Ordering & Ranking-Weightage: 3 Qs

Question Types: 

1. Floor Based Puzzles,
2. Box based puzzle,
3. Arranging by age,
4. height,
5. weight,
6. rank,
7. order in row etc.

(6) Blood Relations– Weightage: 2 Qs

Question Types:

1. Family Tree Problems,
2. Coded Blood Relations.

 (7) Machine Input Output-Weightage: 3-5 Qs

Moderate to Difficult, Could be tricky, Moderate to Highly Time Consuming, High Accuracy possible. if you got the algorithm.

Question Types:  New type of input output where operations on box were given.

 (8) Arrangement & Pattern-Weightage: 2-3 Qs

Easy to Moderate, Less Time Consuming, High Accuracy possible.

Question Types: 

• 1. Number arrangement
  2. Random sequence of alphabets etc.

 (9) Data Sufficiency Weightage: 2-5 Qs

Moderate Difficulty, Moderately Time Consuming, Moderate Accuracy possible.

Question Types: 

1. Ordering & Ranking
2. Blood Relations
3. Coding decoding
4. Linear & Circular Arrangements
5. Scheduling
6. Directions & Distances
7. Ages & Birth dates.

 (10) Verbal & Critical Reasoning- Weightage: 9-10 Qs

Moderate to difficult in difficulty, Time consuming, Moderate accuracy possible, Very likely to appear.

Question Types: 

1. Analytical decision making
2. Cause and effect
3. statement and assumption
4. statement and inference
5. course of action
6. statement and arguments
7. critical reasoning.

 (11) Computer Aptitude- Weightage: 3-5 Qs

Scoring, Easy if Steps Followed properly, Moderately time consuming, Moderate Accuracy possible.

Question Types:

1. Fundamentals of Computers
2. Number System
3. Flow Chart

(12) Scheduling- Weightage: 5 Qs

Moderate to Difficult, Could be tricky, Moderate to Highly Time Consuming, Moderate Accuracy possible, Requires clean charting with proper technique and step-by-step solving.

Question Types: 5 month 2 dates & one more variable based problem.

 (13) Linear Seating Arrangement

Weightage: 5-8 Qs

Moderate to Difficult, Could be tricky, Moderate to Highly Time Consuming, Requires clean charting with proper technique and step-by-step solving.

Question Types: 

Single or Double rows facing each other in the same/opposite direction with one more variable. May be mixed up with other information like Blood Relations, Order & Ranking to make it tricky.

 (14) Circular Seating Arrangement- Weightage: 2-5 Qs

Moderate to Difficult, Moderate to Highly Time Consuming, Moderate to High Accuracy possible.

Question Types:

1. Uni & Bi-directional problems on circular
2. square, rectangular
3. hexagonal tables. It may be a square inside a square or circle within a circle and persons sitting in smaller square facing outside & in bigger square are facing inside.

 (15) Puzzle-Weightage: 5-10 Qs

Difficult, Could be tricky, Moderate to Highly Time Consuming, Moderate Accuracy possible.

Question Types: 

1. Double line up,
2. Floor Puzzle with 2 or 3 flat in each floor

English Language

This section 35 Qs in 40 minutes of time duration. The English Syllabus for IBPS PO Mains is pretty much the standard Banking exam fare, except for a few changes in question type here and there. The section can be broadly divided into:

(1) Reading Comprehension- Weightage: 8-10 Qs (2 sets of Passage)

Moderate to Difficult, Time Consuming, Moderate Accuracy Possible.

Question Types: 

1. The passage will be focussed on topics like Banking & Economy
2. Business,
3. Social Issues etc
4. Fact and Inference based questions
5. Vocab & Theme based questions

 

(2) Error Spotting & Phrase Replacement- Weightage: 7-10 Qs

Moderate in Difficulty, Less to Moderately Time Consuming, Moderate Accuracy Possible.

Question Types: 

1. Error Spotting with one or more than one part of the sentence containing the error,
2.  5 sentences will be given & you have to find out the grammatically incorrect/correct sentence among them
3. Phrase Replacement/ Sentence Correction with more than one correct answers.
4. Topics Covered: Tenses, Articles, Prepositions, Subject Verb Agreement, Parallelism, Degrees of Comparison, Sentence Construction, Phrasal Verbs, Pronouns, Adverbs, Non-Finite Verbs, Common Errors etc.

 (3) Cloze Test- Weightage: 5-10 Qs

Easy to Moderate Difficulty, Quick Solve based on Contextual usage, Moderate to High Accuracy possible.

Question Types: 

1. Single passage with 5-10 blanks.
2. Sometimes one word is also given as a suggestions along with the blanks in bracket.

 (4) Para Jumbles/Sentence Jumble/Odd Sentence Out-Weightage: 5-7 Qs

Easy, Moderate Time Consuming, High Accuracy possible.

Question Types: 

1. Para Jumbles
2. Find the odd sentence.

 (5) Fill in the Blanks/Sentence Completion/Para Completion-Weightage: 5-7 Qs

Easy to Moderate Difficulty, Quick Solve based on Contextual usage, Moderate to High Accuracy possible.

Question Types: 

1. A long sentence or paragraph will be given with one part of it missing,
2. Double Filler.

 (6) Word Association Pair-Weightage: 0-5 Qs

Question Types: 

Four words will be given and you need to determine which two words have either synonyms or antonyms relation between them. Your knowledge of vocabulary is tested.

Make sure to try the simplest method of improving all your four English skills – Reading Comprehension, Verbal Ability, Vocabulary & Grammar. Use:

General Awareness

This section consist of 40 Qs in 35 minutes of time duration. This section is scoring & less time consuming. Cover the current affair of last 6 month (i.e May, June, July, August, Sept, Oct) to score good marks.

(1) Financial/Banking Awareness- Weightage: 13-15 Qs

Question Types: 

1. Banking and Economy related facts like budget,
2. railway budget, economic survey, etc.;
3. Roles and functions of institutions like RBI, NABARD, SIDBI, etc.;
4. Currencies of various countries;
5. International Trade,
6. Acquisitions and Deals;
7. New Policies and Pacts;
8. Trade Deficits,
9. Exchange Rate,
10. GDP growth, etc. of various countries; Banking related facts.

 (2) Current Affairs- Weightage: 7-10 Qs

Question Types:

1. Questions that test your knowledge of surroundings and everyday events
2. banking and economy related news
3. National and International news
4. Books by famous personalities
5. new appointments
6. Government Schemes & Policies etc.

 (3) General Knowledge/Static Awareness- Weightage: 5-10 Qs

Question Types: 

1. Science
2. Environmental facts
3. Capital Currency
4. Important dams
5. Sanctuaries
6. Power Plants
7. Stadiums
8. Bank headquarters
9. Airports
10. Cabinet Reshuffle
11. GST
12. Resignations & New Appointments etc.