Ever year, nationalized banks in India recruit management trainees and probationary officers. Earlier, recruitment used to happen through individual exams undertaken by each bank. However, that has changed. Now, there is a common written exam conducted by IBPS for bank probationary officers and management trainees.
Considering that a career in the banking sector is a sought after option by many, cracking the IBPS exam can be tough. The exam has two sections, an objective section and a subjective section. The objective section has several sections, including English, quant, reasoning, computer skills and general awareness.
The subjective section tests your written English skills with a paragraph or an essay, the topic for which is usually from current events happening around the world. While there is no definite formula for cracking the exam, here are some tips that can definitely improve your chances:
Practice previous year papers
Practice always makes a man perfect. In order o crack the exam, it is ideal to practice a lot of previous year papers and model sample papers. Practicing the papers gives you an idea on the kind of questions asked, based on which you can formulate a strategy for attempting the paper. It also helps you with time management, an important aspect of cracking the exams.
Answer the easier questions first
The IBPS PO CWE Exam is always a mix of easy questions with a few tricky ones thrown in. Very often, candidates stuck on a difficult question, thus wasting time they could have utilized for answering a lot of easier questions. It is always a good practice to attempt the easier questions first before moving on to the tougher ones. While different candidates may have different strategies, attempting the general awareness section first is always a winning strategy. It does not take much to answer the questions in the general awareness section, thus helping you maximize your time and your score.
Try to analyze current events as well
Don’t just focus on the objective section. The test has a subjective section too. Yes, if you don’t clear the objective paper, your subjective paper is not checked. However, in order to make it to the next stage, you need to score well in both the sections. To prepare for the subjective paper, try and analyze the events that are happening around you. Often, the subjective paper tests your analytical skills and how you are able to put your thoughts on paper.
Brush up your computer knowledge
Since bank employees are expected to work on computer, the exam has a computer section as well. The questions asked in this section are very basic in nature. However, sometimes, we can forget even the most basic of terminology and concepts. Brush up your computer knowledge before the exam as it can be a high scoring section.
Don’t try to answer everything
The exam has negative marking. Trying to answer everything is never a good strategy. Rather, try to answer about 80% of the questions with at least 90% accuracy.