The SBI clerk notification for Junior associates & junior agri associates had few new details to note.Right from a clerk job profile that included sales to loan defaulters not eligible to apply – it had all the elements to add anxiousness for a mega SBI recruitment.
State Bank of India has also planned to conduct a preliminary exam, starting from the 3rd or 4th week of May.Although exam dates are yet to be revealed, we have around 30 –45 days to prepare for SBI clerk prelims.
For many of you who have not given any bank exams before, the one thing that might worry you is – whether you can start and complete the syllabus for SBI clerk prelims 2016 in the limited time available.
Lets look at the preliminary exam pattern before moving to the important topics to cover.
| Within a time limit of 60 minutes, you need to answer 100 questions which means, an average of 36 seconds per question (if attempting all the questions) |
a) Numerical Ability – 35 Questions
b) Reasoning – 35 Questions
c) English Language – 30 Questions
Note: The marks obtained in prelims will not be considered for final selection BUT you need to qualify in each of the 3 tests.There will be sectional & total cutoffs that all candidates must secure to get shortlisted for main exam.
Don’t feel afraid about prelims after reading the conditions.The good news is that you can surely crack the clerical exam by following a study plan with dedication for the next 4 –5 weeks.
If you ask anyone who has cracked bank exams so far, they will tell you that practice is the key to succeed in such competitive exams.
The following list of study materials will help you in stronger understanding of concepts & increase your speed through practice.
| Online Mock Tests: Get a real feel of exam while practicing with these online mock tests.After each test, get your performance report with areas to improve, time taken to answer every question etc.,
* SBI clerk 20 prelims & 10 main mocks – Click here to buy (1st test free) from Rs.399
Books: The latest edition of SBI clerk exam books have also been released.They are:
* English: SBI clerical exam guide for Rs.160 – Click here to buy online
We recommend candidates to buy the book & SBI online mock test series so that you can prepare & practice. |
Topics with high number of questions: (the numbers are just an estimate & can vary in the exam)
1) Analytical reasoning: This includes questions on Seating Arrangements (Linear & Circular) along with Matching type of questions.One can expect at least 10-15 questions from this topic.
2) Simplification& Approximation: This is one topic that has high importance in clerical exams compared to PO or other exams.
You are given a mathematical expression and asked to calculate a particular value or a missing term in an equation. Quick calculation techniques will come in handy here for solving these questions.
Typically around 10 questions can be expected from this topic.
3) Coding-Decoding: This topic appears in all bank exams & can come in several forms. It can be individual questions or a set of 5 questions.
Try to get as much practice as you can to get comfortable with these problems. You can expect around 7-10 questions covering all types of Coding-Decoding questions.
4) Reading Comprehension: A passage with 10 questions is given with around 2 to 4 questions dedicated to vocabulary based questions.
This article & study plan is brought you by Oliveboard, a leading online test preparation site for all major Banking (SBI, IBPS, RBI, NABARD exams) & Government Exams (SSC & Railways RRB).
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