Institute of Banking Personnel Selection Common Written Examination for Probationary Officers/ Management Trainees (IBPS PO)

Institute of Banking Personnel Selection (IBPS) conducts Common Recruitment Process (CRP) for selection of Probationary Officers/Management Trainees. IBPS PO is conducted for around 4252 vacancies in 20 participating banks. IBPS PO is conducted in three phases - prelims, mains and interview. Only those candidates who are graduate and between 20 to 30 years of age as on August 1 of the recruitment year are eligible to apply for IBPS PO/MT. On the basis of the marks secured in the preliminary exam, candidates will be selected for the mains examination. The authority will also use the equi-percentile method to normalize the marks secured by candidates in different sessions of the exam. Candidates shortlisted in the IBPS PO mains exam will be called for an Interview to be organized by participating banks and Nodal banks in the State/UTs. The final merit list will be prepared on the basis of the marks secured in mains and interview.

IBPS PO Eligibility Criteria

The eligibility criteria of IBPS PO has been prescribed by the conducting authority, Institute of Banking Personnel Selection. All the candidates must make sure that they meet the eligibility requirement before applying for the IBPS PO.

IBPS PO Eligibility Criteria  - Nationality: Candidates belonging to Indian nationals or a subject of Nepal or Bhutan or a Tibetan refugee who came in India before January 1, 1963 to settle permanently in India or  Indian origin migrated from Pakistan, Burma, Sri Lanka, East African countries of Kenya, Zambia, United Republic of Tanzania (formerly Tanganyika and Zanzibar), Malawi, Zaire, Ethiopia Uganda, and Vietnam to permanently in India.

IBPS PO Eligibility Criteria - Age Limit: To apply for IBPS PO, candidates must be minimum 20 years and maximum 30 years as on 1st August of the recruitment year. 

IBPS PO Eligibility Criteria - Age Relaxation: Candidates belonging to SC/ST/ Other Backward Classes/ PwD candidates/Ex-servicemen/ domiciled candidates in Jammu & Kashmir during January 1, 1980 to December 31, 1989/persons who were affected during 1984 riots will be given age relaxation as per their category. Check age relaxation for reserved categories below:

• SC/ST – 5 years
• Other backward lasses – 5 years
• PWD categories – 10 years
• Ex-Servicemen – 10 years
• Domiciled candidates in Jammu & Kashmir during January 1, 1980, to December 31, 1989 – 5 years
• Persons who were affected during 1984 riots – 5 years

IBPS PO Eligibility Criteria - Educational Level Qualifications – Candidates with Bachelor’s degree from any recognised University by the Government of India or equivalent recognized by Central Govt. can apply for IBPS PO.

Mode of Application : Online

Mode of Payment : Net Banking | Credit Card | Debit Card | Other

Application Fees

IBPS PO Application Form

Institute of Banking Personnel Selection had released the application form of IBPS PO in August. Before filling up the application form candidates had to make sure that they fulfil the eligibility criteria as prescribed by IBPS. The application fees for General and other categories was Rs. 600 and Rs. 100 for SC/ST/PH candidates. Before filling up the IBPS PO application form candidates had to keep the following details ready

• An active email ID, 
• Contact details
• Bank details for payment
• Scanned photograph with the size between 20 kb to 50 kb
• Scanned left-hand thumb impression 
• Scanned signature with the size between 10 kb to 20 kb
• A handwritten declaration as prescribed

Steps to fill IBPS PO application form:

Step 1: Registration

Step 2: Uploading of photograph, signature, left-hand thumb impression and handwritten declaration

Step 3: Filling up the basic details

Step 4: Previewing the application form

Step 5: Payment of application fees

Step 6: Printout of the application form

IBPS PO Application modes: Debit cards (RuPay/Visa/MasterCard/Maestro), credit cards, internet banking, IMPS, cash cards/mobile wallets.

IBPS PO Preparation Tips

Be thorough with the Syllabus - Segregate the syllabus according to your convenience. It can be topic wise or section-wise for each of the subjects.

Know the exam pattern -  After going through the syllabus, candidates must go through the exam pattern of IBPS PO to know the duration of the exam, sectional division of the question papers, division of marks and number of questions, etc.

Best books for IBPS PO - To start your preparation, you must know what are the best books for IBPS PO exam. 

Prepare a timetable - It is always important to make a proper timetable first and then start your preparation accordingly. After collecting all the best books, and knowing the syllabus and exam pattern, segregate time keeping in mind the syllabus and ensuring that it is completed within time and you can get enough time for revision.

Start with the basics - It is imperative to understand the basics of each topic to obtain better marks in the examination. As the exam is held in three stages – prelims, mains and interview. Start with prelims syllabus first and then gradually move towards mains. If the basics are strong and clear, then each stage of the exam will be far easier and compelling. 

Study Regularly - Almost all bank exams need regular study. Divide time wisely for all the sections. Study at least three to four hours on a daily basis so that you do not get stress on the peak time of the entrance test.

Update Yourself - For any bank exam, it is essential to stay updated on Current Affairs and develop it as your core skills. Reading newspapers daily, current affairs books or online e-books, watching channels on the news and general awareness can make your scores higher in the General Awareness section.

Practice sample papers - Along with current affairs, get a hold on the sample papers and previous years question papers of IBPS PO to regularly work on your weak areas. Also, practice mock test to get proper knowledge of the online examination and increase your accuracy and speed by attempting maximum questions on the exam day. 

Revise and make notes regularly - It is an integral part to make notes on each topic and revise regularly and make your concepts clear on a daily basis to avoid last minute confusion.

Do not take any new topics in the last week of preparation - It is better to study those subjects which need to be reworked.

Be focused, confident and include stress busters - Confidence while preparing for an exam is the most important. There might be hurdles and obstructions in your way of preparation. But all you need to be is confident. Do not stress with any negative feeling. To stress out, do meditation, taking short breaks or walks in a park or garden, watch your favourite series or movie etc. This will help you relax and increase your confidence to appear in the examination.

IBPS PO Preliminary Exam

IBPS PO Preliminary Examination

The prelims exam pattern of IBPS PO includes sections, a total number of questions, marks distribution, the medium of the examination, duration of each paper. Candidates can check below the exam pattern for both prelims exam:

IBPS PO Preliminary Examination                                                                               

IBPS PO Mains Exam

IBPS PO Mains Examination                                                                                                                       

The IBPS PO mains exam is conducted in two phases, online exam followed by descriptive test which has 2 questions from letter writing & essay. The written test will be of 25 marks and candidates have to appear for this otherwise they will not be considered for the selection process. 

IBPS PO Preliminary Exam

IBPS PO Admit Card

The preliminary admit card of IBPS PO is issued online. To download the admit card of IBPS PO, candidates have to enter their registration number and date of birth/password in the login window. Before downloading, candidates have to ensure to check all details mentioned on it were correct. If any discrepancies occured, candidates are supposed to contact the officials immediately. The authority does not send any hard copy of the admit card to candidates through email ID/post.

Steps to download IBPS PO Admit Card:

• Log in the online window to download admit card
• Enter registration number and date of birth/password
• Admit card will be displayed on the screen
• Download and take two to three photocopies of the admit card

IBPS PO Mains Exam

IBPS PO Admit Card

The mains admit card of IBPS PO is released in November. Candidates can download it in online mode. To download IBPS PO mains admit card, candidates have to enter registration number and password on the login window. Only those candidates who qualify in IBPS PO prelims examination are able to download the mains admit card. The admit card of IBPS PO carries details about exam venue, date and time of the exam, candidate’s name, registration number, password, space for photograph and signature etc. Along with the admit card, candidates had to carry any one of the photo identity proof to appear in the examination.

IBPS PO Preliminary Exam

IBPS PO Mains Exam

IBPS PO Preliminary Exam

IBPS PO Result

IBPS releases the scorecard of IBPS PO in online mode. The result of IBPS PO for prelims examination is declared in October. To check the result, candidates can use their registration number and date of birth/password. On the basis of the preliminary exam, candidates are selected for mains exam. Along with scorecard, the cutoff marks are also released. Candidates must note that preliminary marks will not be used while preparing the final merit list and shortlisting candidates for interview.

IBPS PO Mains Exam

 IBPS PO Result

IBPS releases the scorecard of IBPS PO mains exam in December. Candidates can check their score by entering registration number and password in the login window. The mains result of IBPS PO is announced in December, in online mode. The authority used equi-percentile method to calculate the marks obtained by candidates in the exam is held various shifts. Based on the marks obtained in the IBPS PO mains, the authority selects candidates for the interview round. The final merit list is also prepared on the basis of mains and interview marks.

Procedure to check IBPS PO Result/Scorecard

• On the login page, enter the registration number and date of birth/password
• The result will be displayed on the screen
• Download the scorecard/result and take printouts for future reference

IBPS PO Cutoff

IBPS will announce the IBPS PO cut off marks for prelims, mains and interview along with the result. The cut off for each stage will be released separately. The IBPS PO cut off is the minimum marks that the candidates need to score to qualify each stage of the examination. In each stage of the exam, candidates have to score overall cut off marks as well as subject wise and category wise IBPS PO cutoff scores. Only those candidates who secure equal to or more than the decided IBPS PO cutoff will be declared qualified for the next stage of the recruitment process.

IBPS PO Selection Procedure

IBPS does the selection of candidates for the post of Probationary Officers/Management Trainees in three stages – prelims, mains and interview. The candidates must qualify the IBPS PO prelims exam first to proceed to the next stage of the selection procedure. Candidates who qualify mains exam will be called to participate in the Common Interview conducted by participating organisations and coordinated by the Nodal Banks in each State/UT with the help of IBPS. 

IBPS PO selection procedure includes the following steps:

• Filling up online IBPS PO application form
• Appearing in Prelims and Mains online examination
• Interview round and Document Verification
• Provisional Allotment
• Issuance of Appointment

IBPS PO application form – The first stage of the selection process is filling and submitting the online application form within the prescribed dates. The application form is available online only. 

Prelims and Mains examination – All registered candidates, have to appear in the preliminary exam. Candidates will be shortlisted on the basis of the marks obtained in prelims exam. Only those candidates who will score more than or equal to the prelims cutoff will be selected for mains. 

IBPS PO mains exam will be held for all the candidates who have qualified prelims exam. Candidates who have shortlisted in the mains exam will be called for the interview. Only marks secured in mains exam will be calculated for shortlisting candidates for the interview round. 

 Interview round and document verification – Shortlisted candidates in mains exam, will be called for Interview round to be organised by Nodal Banks in each State. The interview centre address, date and time for the Interview will be mentioned in the call letter. Candidates have to carry all the original documents as prescribed along with the call letter to the centre for verification of documents. Marks allotted for Interview are 100. The ratio of online mains exam and interview round will be 80:20.

Provisional Allotment – On the basis of the vacancies, candidates will be provisionally allotted to the participating banks of IBPS. 

Issuance of appointment letter – The appointment letter will be issued to the candidates after verification of document and completing all the formalities.