The banking job of the Probationary Officer or the Bank PO is one of the most prestigious jobs in the country, providing long-term job-security and growth opportunities. The most sought-after PO examinations are the IBPS PO, conducted by the IBPS or the Institute of Banking Personnel Selection annually.
The job of a PO can entail anything from taking care of the cash, managing loans, dealing with credit cards issuance to being a teller or assistant jobs. A Bank PO is exposed to all facets of banking, making the candidate ready to deal with all situations.
The IBPS PO examination is conducted in the following four stages over a period of approximately nine months:
Once a candidate clears all four of the above stages, the candidate is allotted the post of a Probationary Officer in one of the twenty participating Public Sector Banks.
The official notification of the IBPS PO Examination 2019 is expected soon! Watch this space for more.
The official notification for IBPS PO 2018 was released on 09th August, 2018 for 4,252 vacancies in various participating banks. The Bank and Category wise bifurcation is as follows:
Name of the Bank |
SC |
ST |
OBC |
Unreserved |
Total |
Allahabad Bank |
118 |
59 |
212 |
395 |
784 |
Canara Bank |
180 |
90 |
324 |
606 |
1200 |
Indian Bank |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
Syndicate Bank |
Not Reported |
Not Reported |
Not Reported |
Not Reported |
Not Reported |
Andhra Bank |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
Central Bank of India |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
Indian Overseas Bank |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
UCO Bank |
83 |
29 |
196 |
242 |
550 |
Bank of Baroda |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
Corporation Bank |
15 |
6 |
21 |
42 |
84 |
Oriental Bank of Commerce |
Not Reported |
Not Reported |
Not Reported |
Not Reported |
Not Reported |
Union Bank of India |
59 |
29 |
172 |
259 |
519 |
Bank of India |
144 |
72 |
260 |
489 |
965 |
Dena Bank |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
Punjab National Bank |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
United Bank of India |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
Bank of Maharashtra |
Not Reported |
Not Reported |
Not Reported |
Not Reported |
Not Reported |
IDBI Bank |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
Punjab & Sind Bank |
20 |
12 |
52 |
66 |
150 |
Vijaya Bank |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
Total |
619 |
217 |
1237 |
2099 |
4252 |
Event |
Tentative Date |
Official Notification |
August, 2019 |
Online registration Process |
Mid-August to First week of September |
Online Payment of fees |
Mid-August to First week of September |
Download Admit Card for Preliminary Exam |
October 2019 |
Preliminary Examination |
12th October, 2019 13th October, 2019 19th October, 2019 20th October, 2019 |
Preliminary Examination Result |
October, 2019 or November, 2019 |
Download Admit Card for Main Exam |
November, 2019 |
Main Examination |
30th November, 2019 |
Main Examination Result |
December, 2019 |
Admit Card for Interview |
January, 2020 |
Interview |
January, 2020 or February, 2020 |
Provisional Allotment |
April 2020 |
PRELIMINARY EXAMINATION:
The Prelims is an Online Exam, with multiple-choice questions.
Subject |
Number of Questions |
Marks |
Duration (separate for each subject) in minutes |
English Language |
30 |
30 |
20 |
Quantitative Aptitude |
35 |
35 |
20 |
Reasoning Ability |
35 |
35 |
20 |
Some Important points regarding the Preliminary Examination:
MAIN EXAMINATION:
The Mains examination is both Online and Descriptive. Details of both have been provided below.
Online Examination, with Multiple Choice Questions.
Subject |
Number of Questions |
Marks |
Duration (separate for each subject) in minutes |
Reasoning &Computer Aptitude |
45 |
60 |
60 |
General/Economy/Banking Awareness |
40 |
40 |
35 |
English Language |
35 |
40 |
40 |
Data Analysis & Interpretation |
35 |
60 |
45 |
Total: |
155 |
200 |
180 minutes |
Some Important points regarding the online examination:
Descriptive Examination.
Subject |
Number of Questions |
Marks |
Duration (separate for each subject) in minutes |
English Language (Letter Writing and Essay) |
2 |
25 |
30 |
PERSONAL INTERVIEW
Candidates shortlisted on the basis of cut-off (sectional as well as overall), will be called for a round of Interview conducted by the Participating Banks and coordinated by the Nodal Bank in each State or Union Territory with the help of IBPS.
PROVISIONAL ALLOTMENT
After successful completion of the above three stages, the candidate would be provisionally allotted to one of the Participating Banks on the basis of merit-cum-preference and depending upon vacancies.
The IBPS PO Examination process begins with Online Registration. Once the candidate has successfully registered, s/he is eligible to appear for the Preliminary Examination. The candidate must obtain the required sectional cut-off in the Preliminary Examination, to be eligible for the Main Examination. The candidate must qualify in each of the sections of the Main Examination with a minimum score as decided by IBPS to be shortlisted for the Interview. On successful completion of the Interview, the candidate is provisionally allotted as a Probationary Officer in one of the participating banks on the basis of merit (decided on the basis of Mains Examination score and Interview in the ratio 80:20)-cum-preference.
English |
Quantitative Aptitude |
Reasoning Ability |
Reading Comprehension |
Simplification and Approximation |
Syllogism |
Grammar
|
Sequence and Series(missing/wrong) |
Inequality |
Vocabulary
|
Quadratic equations |
Puzzle on Seating arrangement (linear /circular/square/parallel row) |
Verbal Ability
|
Time and Work |
Day/Month/Time based puzzle |
Time and Distance |
Puzzle (building/employee/anniversary etc.) |
|
Ratio, Proportion and Percentage |
Puzzle based on Blood Relation |
|
SI and CI |
Puzzle on Distance and Direction |
|
Mixtures and Allegations |
Miscellaneous puzzle |
|
Profit and Loss |
Coding and Decoding |
|
Number System |
odd one out |
|
Mensuration |
Analogy |
|
Problem on Ages |
Analytical Reasoning |
|
PnC and Probability |
Data Sufficiency |
|
Data Interpretation |
IBPS PO Preliminary Examination Detailed Analysis:
Analysis of the IBPS PO Prelims English Language Section |
||
Topic |
Average Number of Questions Asked |
Difficulty Level |
Phrase Replacement (Grammar) |
5 to 7 |
Moderate to Difficult |
Fill in the Blanks (Grammar) |
5 to 7 |
Easy to Difficult |
Grammar Error Spotting |
5 to 7 |
Moderate to Difficult |
Reading Comprehension |
7 to 10 |
Moderate to Difficult |
Fill in the Blanks |
5 to 7 |
Easy to Difficult |
Phrase Replacement |
5 to 7 |
Moderate to Difficult |
Cloze Test |
5 to 7 |
Moderate to Difficult |
Antonym/ Synonym |
3 to 5 |
Easy to Moderate |
Word Interchange |
0 to 2 |
Easy to Moderate |
Word Usage |
0 to 2 |
Easy to Moderate |
Central Theme Spotting |
0 to 2 |
Moderate to Difficult |
Column Matching |
3 to 5 |
Moderate to Difficult |
Sentence Jumble |
3 to 5 |
Moderate to Difficult |
Para Jumble |
5 to 7 |
Moderate to Difficult |
Analysis of the IBPS PO Prelims Quantitative Aptitude Section |
||
Topic |
Average number of questions asked |
Difficulty Level |
Simplification and Approximation |
4 to 5 |
Moderate |
Sequence and Series(missing/wrong) |
4 to 5 |
Easy to Moderate |
Quadratic equations |
5 |
Easy to Moderate |
Time and Work |
1 |
Easy to Moderate |
Time and Distance |
1 to 2 |
Easy to Moderate |
Ratio, Proportion and Percentage |
1 to 2 |
Easy to Moderate |
SI and CI |
0 to 1 |
Moderate to Difficult |
Mixtures and Allegations |
0 to 1 |
Easy to Moderate |
Profit and Loss |
1 to 2 |
Easy to Moderate |
Number System |
0 to 1 |
Easy |
Surds and Indices |
0 to 1 |
Easy |
Mensuration |
1 to 2 |
Easy |
Problem on Ages |
0 to 1 |
Easy to Moderate |
Algebra |
0 to 1 |
Easy |
PnC and Probability |
0 to 1 |
Easy to Moderate |
Data Interpretation |
10 to 12 |
Moderate |
Analysis of the IBPS PO Prelims Reasoning Ability Section |
||
Topic |
Average number of questions asked |
Difficulty Level |
Syllogism |
3 to 5 |
Easy to Moderate |
Inequality |
5 |
Easy to Moderate |
Puzzle on circular seating arrangement |
0 to 5 |
Moderate to Difficult |
Puzzle on linear/Parallel row seating arrangement |
5 |
Easy to Moderate |
Day/month/time based puzzle |
0 to 5 |
Moderate to Difficult |
Puzzle (building/employee/anniversary etc.) |
3 to 7 |
Easy to Moderate |
Puzzle based on Blood Relation |
2 to 5 |
Easy to Moderate |
Puzzle on Distance and Direction |
3 to 4 |
Easy to Moderate |
Miscellaneous puzzle |
3 to 5 |
Moderate to Difficult |
Coding and Decoding |
4 to 5 |
Easy to Moderate |
odd one out |
0 to 1 |
Easy |
Analogy |
0 to 1 |
Easy |
Analytical Reasoning |
0 to 1 |
Easy to Moderate |
Data sufficiency |
0 to 3 |
Easy |
Once appointed as a Probationary Officer, a Bank PO can be asked to do any job in the bank, be it clerical or assistant. The job responsibilities include:
The Bank PO is a lucrative career and has an upward trajectory. With hard work, a PO can achieve great success. The career progression of a PO is as follows: