Your Master Plan to Clear the Bank PO Exam
To be or not to be, that is the question. You spend more than half of your energy and time in wondering about the competitive exams. More than a dozen questions pops up in your head every minute. What exactly is Bank PO exam all about? How can I prepare for it’? Which books should I buy? Will it be a good idea to join a coaching institute for it? What is the syllabus? How will I solve the difficult questions? And the list can go on and on. Staying confused and perplexed cannot help you in clearing the Bank PO exam, but getting the right information and knowledge will definitely go a long way. You need to get a grip on your approach to clear this competitive exam before it too late.
This article contains everything you need to know before you plan your preparation for the Bank PO exam. If you follow the guidelines, suggestions and tips mentioned in this article, you might clear the exam in first attempt. Don’t remain naïve and ignorant, go thrive it.
First of all let’s understand what Bank PO exam is all about:-
In simple words, Bank PO or Probationary Officer exam is a professional level entrance exam where in banks appoints eligible candidates on jobs for a period of two years. It might sound insignificant but the position of the Probationary Officer is the most sought after jobs. Hence, the entrance exam might leave you high and dry. But that does not mean that you don’t stand a chance to do well in this exam. Of course, it cannot be done with your eyes shut. It will require hard work and a strategy. So here’s your strategy or call it tricks and tips to nail the Bank PO exam in one go.
Exam Pattern:- IBPS PO 2018 Common written exam (CWE) is an Objective type paper. There will be three total three subjects in the preliminary exam and five subjects in the mains exam.
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Section wise planning
General Awareness- Given the right approach and planning this can be your true savior. In order to elaborate more clearly, just for your understating we have divided this particular section further in three separate segments. Remember, it is always useful to create portions and segments to understand the structure and dynamism of the question paper.
a. Current affairs – The best sources to prepare for are newspapers, internet, and general awareness books, online quizzes, and read as much as you can. Keep making your notes/ journal of important events. You can start preparing for Current affairs approximately three- four months before your exam date.
Recommended Newspaper- The Hindu, Indian Express
Recommended News channel- NDTV, Aljazeera, CNN
Recommended Magazines- The Frontline
Recommended Book- Oliveboard’s monthly GK
b. Banking Awareness- Bank awareness sections are available online, use the internet and you will get the important content on RBI website or videos on YouTube. This section shouldn’t be any reason for you to worry.
c. Static GK- No doubt this is another mind boggling segment of the exam, practically anything can be asked. But every cloud has a silver lining all you need to do is prepare only these topics a few days before the exam – Countries Currency & Capital, Articles, Amendments , schedules, National Parks & Wildlife Sanctuaries, Power plants, Discoveries & Inventions, Bank Taglines & Headquarter, National & International Organisation Headquarters, Dams on Rivers, Banking Awareness, Agriculture, Geography and Awards and achievements.
English Language
First you need to figure out which is your not-so-strong area in English Language you need to invest maximum time in working on that particular portion. For your ease we have divided this section into following categories:-
Grammar
Vocabulary
Verbal Ability
Reading Comprehension
Logical Reasoning
You can prepare this section thoroughly by practicing as many mock test papers as possible. Keep extra time aside every day for complicated and time consuming questions like puzzles and seating arrangements. There are a set questions on topics like Tabulation, Syllogism, Input Output, Coding Decoding, Data Sufficiency, Coded Inequalities, Non Verbal Reasoning etc. you can easily become an expert in solving these provided you solve two-three questions of each topic every day. Make a note of questions where you got stuck or failed to solve. You might need an expert help there. Here speed is critical; many get carried away and end up wasting precious time. You are advised to maintain a categorical record of time.
Qualitative Aptitude
If math is your weak link then you need to look before you leap. Your sole agenda must only be to get minimum passing marks in this segment, stick to that goal. Although, you will be asked questions mainly of class 10th level math but if it was not your cup of tea then, chances are, it is still not your thing. So, the best solution is take help form a trained person/ coaching centre. Aspirants must understand and learn the tricks and shortcut methods, if you are at all planning to solve each question by writing it step-by-step then it might blow up in your face. So, roll your sleeves for this section and set targets.
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Best Coaching institutes for Bank PO exam
Joining a coaching centre is an alternative when you know you are genuinely stuck. So when to know that it’s time to enroll yourself in a good Banking coaching institute. Firstly, give yourself 20 days trial time; solve as many as 10 mock papers. Soon you will get the hang of it, be very honest while analysing your performance, stay modest and no cheating, okay! Meanwhile start practicing from different books and sources, by the time you will be on your 5th paper you will know whether you can do it all by yourself or not. If you feel you can, then bravo! You surely will, but even if you are slightly unsure, there is no harm in checking out the following coaching centre for Bank PO exam:-
Instead of bragging good things about these coaching centers, we have tried to keep up straight and blunt. Therefore, we have put together some of the feedback and reviews we got from candidates who not only took coaching form these institutes but have a success story to tell.
- Future Sign Career- Situated in Tilak Nagar, connected to metro and easy to commute.
Authentic rating- 4.5 stars
Well-known institute for several completive exams coaching, is popular and reliable.
Honest review– “I joined Future Sign Career to take some help before I appear for the Bank PO exam, a friend suggested me this place. Trust me, I was very skeptical about joining a coaching centre, I have had bitter experience in the past. But perhaps this time I got lucky. Very strong and helpful faculties, they were more like a mentor to me, helped me to overcome my fears and pressure. They really took out extra time for me and helped me in developing my speed and accuracy. From sharing the short-cuts to step-wise guiding me in solving the toughest sections, it really helped me clearing this notorious exam. Reasonable fee was the cherry on the cake. “
- IMS Learning Resources Pvt. Ltd. – This institute is practically situated in every state and city of India, having more than 10 centers in Delhi itself.
Honest Rating: 4.3 stars
Honest Review: “I’ve been selected as a Probationary Officein Canara bank. I have under gone coaching in IMS Guwahati centre for banking and SSC and pleased with the kind of faculty and the training I have received here and played great part in my success. The interview classes really boosted my confidence and my success.”
- APEC Academy – Lakshmi Nagar, Tilak Nagar, Karol Bagh and Pitampura
Honest Rating : 4.7 stars
Honest Review: “The study material is very in-depth and useful. I liked the friendly environment and amazing faculty, which made me go there every day for classes without cribbing. I was extremely happy and thrilled when I saw my exam result; I cleared it in first attempt. All thanks to Vidya Guru”.
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Expert Tips- Here is what professionals have to say about cracking the Bank PO Exam
“To begin with solve questions in the sequence and then keep separate time slots for hard and complicated sections. There is no short cut to crack any competitive entrance exam without working on your core skills, which includes speaking, reading, listening and writing. Develop the habit of reading more and try to learn new words every day, work on your memory, keep yourself updated. All these information will be very advantageous once you become the Probationary Officer”.
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A few books for your reference :-
Book: Quantitative Aptitude for Competitive Examinations
Author: R.S.Aggarwal
Publisher: S.Chand
Book: Gramin Bank Officer (PO) Solved Papers 2012-2014 for IBPS RRBs
Author: Think Tank of Kiran Prakashan,
Publisher: Kiran Prakashan
Book: Test of Reasoning
Author: Edgar Thorpe
Publisher: Pearson
Book: High School English Grammar & Composition
Author: Wren & Martin
Publisher: S. Chand
Book: Word Power Made Easy
Author: Norman Lewis
Publisher: Penguin
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