The IBPS Probationary Officer (PO) exam is the main gateway to officer-level jobs in public sector banks. It has three stages: a Prelims exam, a Mains exam and an interview. The Prelims is only a qualifying round, but the Mains and interview decide your final selection. This page explains the pattern and the topics at each stage, so you can plan your preparation without guesswork.
Exam stages in brief
Prelims is an online objective test of 100 questions and 100 marks in 60 minutes, with a separate time limit for each section: English Language (30 questions, 20 minutes), Quantitative Aptitude (35 questions, 20 minutes) and Reasoning Ability (35 questions, 20 minutes). Each wrong answer has a negative mark of one-fourth of the marks for that question.
Mains is longer and tougher. It has objective sections on Reasoning and Computer Aptitude, General, Economy and Banking Awareness, English Language, and Data Analysis and Interpretation, plus a descriptive paper in English that includes a letter and an essay. After this comes the interview, and final selection combines Mains and interview marks. The exact marks, timings and weightage can change with each notification, so verify them on the official IBPS website.
English Language
English is sectional, so you need to clear its cutoff separately.
- Reading comprehension: passages on business, economy and society, with questions on meaning, inference and vocabulary.
- Cloze test and fill in the blanks: selecting the right word for context.
- Error spotting and sentence correction: grammar rules, tenses, prepositions and subject-verb agreement.
- Para jumbles and sentence rearrangement: logical flow and connectors.
- Vocabulary: synonyms, antonyms and word usage.
Read a good English newspaper editorial every day, and learn new words in sentences. For Mains, practise writing letters and essays on banking, technology and economy topics.
Quantitative Aptitude and Data Analysis
The Prelims maths is mostly calculation-based, and the Mains data analysis section is longer and more analytical.
- Simplification and approximation: fractions, decimals, squares, cubes and quick estimation.
- Number series: missing and wrong numbers in a series.
- Arithmetic: percentage, ratio and proportion, average, profit and loss, simple and compound interest, time and work, time, speed and distance, mixtures, ages, and permutation and probability.
- Data interpretation: tables, bar graphs, line graphs, pie charts, caselets and radar charts.
- Quantity comparison and data sufficiency: deciding whether the data given is enough.
Start with our formula pages for percentage, profit and loss, ratio and proportion and time and work.
Reasoning Ability and Computer Aptitude
- Puzzles and seating arrangement: linear, circular and box-based puzzles, which carry a large share of marks.
- Logical reasoning: syllogism, inequality, blood relations, direction sense, order and ranking.
- Verbal reasoning: statement and assumption, course of action, cause and effect, input-output.
- Coding-decoding and data sufficiency.
- Computer aptitude (Mains): basics of computers, hardware and software, operating systems, internet, MS Office, networking and cyber security.
Puzzles take time, so practise them early and learn to draw the arrangement quickly and cleanly.
General, Economy and Banking Awareness
This Mains section rewards steady reading.
- Banking awareness: RBI and its functions, types of banks, monetary policy terms such as repo and reverse repo, CRR, SLR, financial inclusion, digital payments and recent banking reforms.
- Economy: basic economic concepts, budget, inflation, GDP, taxation and government schemes.
- Current affairs: national and international news, appointments, awards, sports, summits and important days from the last 6 to 8 months.
- Static GK: important organisations and headquarters, books and authors, and national parks.
Follow our daily current affairs and keep a notebook of banking terms with simple definitions.
Interview round
The interview checks communication, clarity of thought, and awareness of banking and current affairs. Prepare your own background, your reasons for choosing banking, and be ready to discuss recent economic news in a calm, structured way.
A five-month plan
- Month 1: grammar basics, calculation speed (tables, squares, cubes) and puzzle fundamentals.
- Month 2: topic-wise practice across all Prelims sections.
- Month 3: start Mains topics, banking awareness and data interpretation sets.
- Month 4: full-length mocks from our mock test page, and sectional timing drills.
- Month 5: descriptive writing practice, interview preparation and revision of weak areas.
Time management and sectional timing
Prelims has a fixed time for each section, so you cannot borrow minutes from one section for another. Practise with a timer from the start. In each section, make a first pass through the easy questions, and mark the puzzles and long data sets for the end. Accuracy matters because of negative marking, so avoid random guesses and attempt only questions where you can eliminate at least one option.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Spending too long on a single puzzle and losing the rest of the section.
- Ignoring English because it feels easy, and then missing the sectional cutoff.
- Reading banking awareness only in the last month.
- Skipping descriptive writing practice until after the Mains objective tests.
Frequently asked questions
Are Prelims marks counted in the final result?
In recent cycles, Prelims has been qualifying only, and the final merit has used Mains and interview. Verify in the current notification.
Is there sectional cutoff?
Yes, IBPS has applied sectional cutoffs in the past, so do not neglect any section.
Can I prepare for SSC and IBPS together?
The quant and reasoning overlap, though bank puzzles and data analysis are harder. See our SSC CGL syllabus for the SSC side.
GovAspirant is a private education portal and is not affiliated with any government body. Exam rules change, so always confirm dates, pattern and eligibility in the official notification.