Bank interviews for PO & clerk jobs are being conducted regularly especially after IBPS started its common written examinations.Since public banks have to shortlist 3 or 5 times the number of vacancies there is heavy competition among applicants.This has made candidates to prop up their preparations & enter final list.
Bank interview questions will not be the same for everyone.But learning from others can greatly help in understanding the needs of an interviewer which could be handy when your chance comes the way.(see bank PO cutoffs in 2012)
| Mr.Balwinder Singh Choudhary shortlisted by Dena bank for PO interview had sent his experiences to share with others.He is a BSc, MCA graduate & has secured TWS of 162 in IBPS common bank exam. |
Now let us go through the events in his own words where he describes about
The interview was arranged at a hotel in Chandigarh.I reached the venue before 30 mins of the scheduled time of 9.00AM dressed in white shirt, black tie, dark blue trouser & leather shoes (black)
There were two officials in the waiting room to verify the documents.We were given a sheet that contained list of required certificates/proofs & was asked to compile them in the specified order for verification.By 10.30AM the interview process began.
Some time later, it was my turn.After seeking permission, I walked inside the room to see 3 members(male) in the panel.
I wished them ‘Good afternoon’ after which I was told to sit.
#1 panelist: Introduce yourself. (see how to answer tell me about yourself)
#1:(seeing my score card), Mr. Balwinder you’ve scored marginally above our cutoff. Don’t you feel it’s a low score? Do you still feel you will be selected?
I said “Although this score might seem low comparing with the toppers, I still feel its competitive score, I am highly motivated for this job.I am technically sound and good with computers and other ICT tools. I also possess others skills that are required for this job. I can easily outshine other candidates by performing well in this interview. And I’m also committed to work more towards improving my score in case im left behind.
#1: We outsource technical staff, so why do we go for a candidate with master’s degree in computers?
I replied “Sir, apart from being technically sound, I’m also very good in preparing financial statements. I have excellent management skills too & also learned to analyze & prepare annual accounts statements, budgets by using various computer software in my previous job. I am a people`s person too & know how to manage staff efficiently. I have long sitting schedules and I never quit before I finish all my assignments.
#1: Tell about RBI,Its major functions & whether RBI creates credit?
2nd panelist: As you mentioned of being part of budget preparations in your previous job; tell us about,
#2: Who prepares budget for Govt. of India?
Answered.(Budget Division of Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance)
#2: What are its objectives?
I gave the answer. (For substantial distributions/investment of the hard earned money of our citizens in the developmental processes.The Govt. collects this money in the previous financial year inform of fees, fines & taxes etc.It aims for planned money management in order to insure a sustainable and balanced development of our society and attain stable economic growth)
#2: What is FDI?
#2: How does it differ from FII?
I didn’t know the answer. So said ‘sorry sir, I’m not sure about it’ (FII stands for Foreign Institutional Investor)
# 1 (in hindi) “Rupee ki kimat kis tarah mapi jati hai?”
I could not understand what he was asking about, so just said “sorry sir, I don’t know”
# 1(helping me understand the question, explained it again) Aaj kal dollar ki kimat badh rahi hai aur rupee ki kimat kam ho rahi hai. Aap sey hum yahi puchna chahtey hain ki yeh kimat kaisey measure ki jati hai ?
Although i was trying to correlate it with exchange rate, felt it might be wrong.So just said sorry again!
#2: What is plastic money?
#2: What is difference between Debit card and credit card?
Answered it but made a mistake (said credit cards are issued only to current accounts but they aren’t).This lead to next question.
#2: Are u sure?.. (next he asked) Is it necessary to have an a/c in the bank to applying for a credit card?
Panelist 3: (smilingly asked in hindi) So aap ney subha ladoo kahey thai?
I replied “Haan ji sir, kahey thai.”
#3: Kaisey thai? I said “badiya thai sir & thanks for it. It was really tasty sir!”
#3: What was so special about it?
I answered (The bank was established on 26th may 1938 & has completed 74 years.It was 75th year anniversary of dena bank.)
#3: Did you see today’s newspaper? What is the current saving rate? Why do different banks have different saving rates?
#3: Share with us the most pleasant experience of your life?
After I finished, he smiled and said ‘Okay! your interview is over.You can leave now’.
I responded, “Thank you sir” & thanked other members also.
While leaving, I was about to move towards the wrong door but they guided me towards the correct exit. It made me realize they were closely watching my every movement & action. (read how to behave inside an interview hall)
| Overall, we would term it as a good session & his interview preparation has helped. Hopefully the panel might have also been satisfied with the performance expect for few questions. |
How did he prepare?
While responding to a reader`s query, Mr.Balwinder explains how he was preparing for the d-day (the following is an excerpt from our comments section)
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1. Interview experiences of others & articles on interview preparation published on BankExamsIndia.com provided a road map of things that could be asked in any interview, especially in bank recruitments.(see tips for bank interviews)
2. I prepared for banking terms & more importantly about macro economic concepts that are commonly asked in such exams .
3. I expected questions from my profile & hence focused on my bio-data, strengths etc.,It helped me build confidence as i had secured somewhat lower in the IBPS CWE.
4. Listening to news on AIR for past few months helped in improving my communication skills & knowledge of current affairs.
5. I watched interviews of famous personalities on Youtube to learn about proper body language.It also enabled me in learning the art of framing answers to some tricky questions. |