This is one of the most sought-after career opportunities that a student comes looking for after the banking exam, which not only provides stability and a prestigious position but also monetary gains. Thousands wait to crack some such exams like IBPS PO, SBI Clerk, and RBI Assistant among others every year. However, with the right strategy and consistent efforts, one year is required to prepare for any major banking exam. In this blog, we will outline a 365-day plan to get through a successful banking exam preparation period.

Understanding the Banking Exam Pattern

Most of the banking exams, including IBPS PO, SBI Clerk, and so on, have a general pattern and include the following: 

1. Preliminary Examination

• English Language
• Quantitative Aptitude
• Reasoning Ability
• (Total marks-100, Time- 1 hour)

2. Main Examination

• General / Financial Awareness
• English Language
• Quantitative Aptitude
• Reasoning Ability & Computer Aptitude
• (Total marks-200, Time- 2.5 to 3 hours)

3. Interview (for a few exams like IBPS PO, SBI PO, etc.)

365 Days Strategy for Banking Exam Preparation

A yearlong preparation strategy requires being well-structured and aiming at proper practice, revision, and mock tests. Let’s break it down month-wise below:

Months 1-3: Building the Foundations

1. English Language

• Read Daily: Spend 1 hour each day reading newspapers like The Hindu or Indian Express, focusing on vocabulary and comprehension building. Special attention needs to be paid to editorial sections for in-depth analysis.
• Vocabulary Grammar basics: Revise grammar rules and practice with standard books like Wren & Martin. Error spotting, fill in the blanks, sentence correction

2. Quantitative Aptitude

• Basic concepts: Spend some time grasping basic mathematical concepts like percentages, averages, ratios, profit & loss, time & distance etc.
• Daily practice: Solve 20-30 questions daily from each chapter. Books like R.S. Aggarwal’s Quantitative Aptitude are available for practice.

3. Reasoning Ability

• Learn concepts: Master the basic reasoning topics such as syllogism, coding-decoding, seating arrangement, puzzles, and blood relations
• Practice regularly: Try to solve 3-4 puzzles or seating arrangement questions daily.

4. General Awareness

• Stay updated: Firstly, start following news related to the economy, banking sector, and government policies. Do note important current affairs.
• Static GK: Learn relevant facts about the banking industry, RBI, monetary policies, and economic terms.

Months 4-6: Focus on Speed and Accuracy

By now, you must have been able to clearly understand the syllabus and the topics that are to be covered. Improvement towards Speed and Accuracy:

1. Mock Tests

• Take mock tests on a weekly basis: Practice 1-2 mock tests a week. Check on your performance and check areas where you need improvement.
• Manage Time: Improve your speed by practicing for a given amount of time for each question. Prioritize the questions according to their difficulty level.

2. Revision

• Revision of conceptual areas: Retrieve your notes and weak areas and seek to have conceptual clarity
• Strengthening weak areas: There are most likely be certain subjects or topics in which you have been getting a lesser score consistently in mock tests.

3. General Awareness

• Start reading banking and financial awareness magazines, the Banking Services Chronicle Pratiyogita Darpan, etc.
• Daily quizzes: Take current affairs, static GK, and financial awareness-based daily quizzes

Months 7-9: Problem Solving Skills

Half of the year has already passed. The next three months should be spent on advanced preparation and further extension of problem-solving skills.

1. Advanced Practice

• Quantitative Aptitude: More emphasis on DI (Data Interpretation) and questions at advanced levels. Most important for the mains.
• Reasoning Ability: Complex puzzles, input-output, and logical reasoning exercises to be practiced.

2. Topic-specific Mock Tests

• Sectional mock tests: Do sectional mocks. Spend enough time getting good practice in individual sections such as Quant Aptitude or Reasoning. This gets you an improvement in sectional scores.

3. English and General Awareness

• Comprehension: Read long passages and comprehension passages with a high level of understanding for the improvement of your scores in the section of English.

• Banking Awareness: Prepare on the banking terminology, policies and products such as NPAs, CRR, SLR, and repo rates.

Months 10-12: Intensive Revision and Mock Tests

The final stage of your preparation is all about intense practice and revision.

1. Full-length Mock Tests

• Daily mock tests: Simulate the real exam environment, and take full-length mock tests each day in the last three months.
• Review mistakes: Spend ample time reviewing your mistakes after each test and understand where you went wrong. Focus on improving in those areas.

2. Speed and Accuracy

• Increase speed: Practice solving more questions faster by shortcut techniques, especially in quantitative aptitude.
• Accuracy: Maintain a percentage of accuracy on the mock tests. Don’t make any guesses so avoid getting negative marking.

3. General Awareness Revision

• Brush up on current affairs: Try to revise all the current affairs of the last six-eight months as these are going to be crucial for your Mains examination.
• Banking Awareness: Ensure you are abreast of the latest news, reforms, and RBI updates.

Conclusion: Is One Year Enough to Prepare for Banking Exams?

Yes, if one plans properly, it is definitely possible to prepare for banking exams in one year. One needs to be very consistent with sticking to a well-structured plan. One has to keep up with a disciplined routine while concentrating on building conceptual clarity followed by sufficient practice and revision.

You can enroll with any Banking Coaching Centre in Guwahati, like VisionQ. They will guide and prepare you well. The faculties here are experts. The study materials here are of high quality and the mock tests are very good. This is the kind of place that keeps you informed of all your deficiencies and gaps so that you will be adequately prepared for the banking exams and are able to crack them with ease.

Consistent effort and a well-planned approach with regular practice will only take you to the goal. So, hence, keep the consistent effort going, and you shall surely achieve your goal of getting that much-coveted position in the banking sector.