The Institute of Banking Personnel Selection (IBPS) is an autonomous body that is responsible to conduct the recruitment drive for various Public Sector Banks. It cannot be denied that a banking sector job has been highly sought after ever since its commencement but over the past few years, the number of applicants choosing bank jobs as a career option has seen a massive increase.
With this increasing competition and a limited number of vacancies, candidates need to have that extra edge over their competitors to be able to crack the exam. There are four main exams conducted by the Institute:
- Probationary Officer Post
- Clerk Post
- Specialist Officer Post
- Regional Rural Banks (PO, SO & Clerk Posts)
Though the syllabus for each of these posts is almost the same, there are slight changes in the exam pattern. And one section which can help candidates boost their overall scores in the online examination is the Banking/General Awareness section, comprising current affairs and static GK.
This section is now included in the Mains examination, which is the second phase in IBPS online exams. The weightage of the General awareness section varies from 35 to 50 marks, of which current affairs questions are approximately 15 to 20 in number. Thus, can be a great option for boosting your overall marks.
Points To Remember While Preparing Current Affairs for Bank Exams
There are certain things that can be made a note of while preparing current affairs for the upcoming bank exams. Discussed below are the same:
- Read Newspaper – The most reliable source of the latest events across the world. Every candidate must spend at least an hour or more reading the newspaper in detail. This will not just help in getting updated with the current news but also help in strengthening your vocabulary. The Hindu is one of the highly recommended newspapers to be read for the bank exam preparation
- Make Proper Notes – Just going through the updates and reading them once will not settle all the information in your mind. Thus, make proper daily, weekly and monthly notes on current affairs, wherein, points and related data is noted down about all the important events across the world. This will also make revision more convenient
- Direct Questions are Asked – Since IBPS mains is an objective paper, and comprises questions in the form of MCQ, mainly direct questions are only asked. The formation of MCQ is not very complex and does not require a detailed study of each news. Basic and simplistic questions are generally asked
- 3 Months Current Affairs before the Commencement of Exam, most important – Though, current affairs for at least within a year before the commencement of the exam are important from the perspective of the mains, yet, the 3 months prior to the date of the exam are the most important to be covered. As per the analysis of previous year papers, this has been a common observation that current affairs from the last 2 to 3 months are the extremely important
- Sources of Information – There are various sources from where information and study material can be collected. However, candidates must only choose the most relevant and appropriate options. The monthly edition of current affairs magazines, notes provided by coaching/institute, newspaper, and a few online portals can only be considered as trustworthy sources
- Practise Mock MCQs – The best way to test your preparation level is by solving current affairs based mock MCQ tests that are easily available online for free. These are based on the latest events and happenings across the world, important from the perspective of IBPS exams. It will also give an idea of the type of questions that can be framed out of any particular news piece
- Important Topics – Schemes and Policies announced by the Government, the merger of companies, latest bank reforms, banking terms in news, highlighted economic and social issues, newly formed organisations or committee, award winners, authors of latest/award-winning books, obituaries, etc. form a major part of the current affairs section
One of the most important topics from which current affairs questions can be formed is Government Schemes. Full forms, packages allotted, objectives, nodal Ministries, etc. are the forms in which questions can be formed out of the policies and schemes in India. Aspirants can know about the latest and updated Government schemes introduced in the country at the linked article.
Also, note that since sectional cut off is also applicable in the exams conducted by the Institute of Banking Personnel Selection, no subject included in the exam syllabus can be missed out on. With IBPS 2021 recruitments starting soon, candidates must kick start their preparation now.
