I have been in the trenches of banking exam preparation for over a decade now, and I will be honest here that the SBI PO exam is the one friend who shows up at a party with a twist.
This exam always surprises you when you think you’ve got it figured out! However, don’t worry because today, in this article, I will unveil the 12 most important topics from the SBI PO syllabus that could be game-changers in your prelims game.
1. The Numbers Game: Approximation & Simplification
Difficulty Level: Medium
Importance: Critical
If you do not befriend Simplification and Approximation, you’re missing something. This is the bread and butter of your quantitative preparation from the SBI PO syllabus.
You’ll easily see about 6 to 8 questions on this topic. The best part? This is an easy-scoring section.
Pro Tip: Master BODMAS and fraction calculations. They are like the secret sauce on a gourmet burger that enhances the flavor.
2. Data Interpretation
Difficulty Level: High
Importance: Very High
DI is one thing that sends shivers down aspirants’ spines in the SBI PO exam. However, it’s your best friend in disguise. Why? Once you crack the pattern, these questions are predictable and you can solve them all at once.
Focus on:
- Line Graphs (they love these!)
- Bar Charts (the evergreen favorite)
- Pie Charts (the sneaky ones)
- Mixed Graphs (the party crashers)
3. English Language
Difficulty Level: Medium
Importance: High
There is no need to impress anyone with Shakespeare in the English section of the SBI PO exam. Being street-smart with your language skills is what it’s about. Reading Comprehension and Error Spotting are like the power couple of this section.
Fun fact: This is where most candidates lose points, not because they don’t know English, but because they overthink! Keep it simple!
4. Number Series
Difficulty Level: High
Importance: Medium-High
If you are not spotting patterns faster than your mom finds dust on furniture, you are not ready for the Number series questions in the SBI PO syllabus. These questions are just like a Netflix series, once you know the plot, you can predict what is coming next!
Quick Hack: Practice mixed series. And in recent papers like viral TikTok challenges they’re trending.
5. Reasoning
Difficulty Level: High
Importance: Critical
If you are doing well with the SBI PO reasoning section, then it is the real party in the SBI PO exam! Puzzles and Seating Arrangements are like those complicated family relationships – they appear to be confusing at first, but once you can work out the dynamics, you can tackle them.
Key Focus Areas:
- Circular and Linear Seating Arrangements
- Blood Relations (more twisted than soap operas!)
- Direction Sense (because apparently, North isn’t always up!)
6. Banking Awareness
Difficulty Level: Medium
Importance: Medium-High
This is not heavily tested in prelims but having solid banking awareness is still like having a good credit score – it always helps! That’s not to mention the fact that it’s also important for your main preparation. Basic banking concepts are a part of the SBI PO syllabus that you can’t afford to miss.
7. Quadratic Equations
Difficulty Level: Medium
Importance: Medium-High
Don’t roll your eyes at quadratic equations! They’re that underappreciated Netflix show that everyone ends up loving. Here, quick-solving techniques can save you those very precious minutes in the SBI PO exam.
8. Current Affairs: Stay Woke!
Difficulty Level: Medium | Importance: Medium
Current affairs have a significant weightage in prelims. So, staying in the know with banking and financial news may fetch you easy marks! Key banking policies and financial events over the past 6 months shall be covered.
9. Percentage & Ratio
Difficulty Level: Medium
Importance: High
Like your comfortable old sneakers, these topics in the SBI PO syllabus are always there when you need them and are always reliable. Master percentage change and ratio distribution are the bread and butter of banking calculations.
10. Coding-decoding; Input-output
Difficulty Level: High
Importance: Medium-High
These are like a puzzle while riding a roller coaster – exciting, but challenging questions. We can see from recent SBI PO exam patterns, that these topics are being focused on more and more, so don’t ignore them!
11. Arithmetic
Difficulty Level: High | Importance: Very High
It’s all your skills balled up together like a master chef’s kitchen up top. Real MVPs here are Time-Speed-Distance, Time & Work, and Probability questions.
12. Data Sufficiency
Difficulty Level: High
Importance: Medium-High
And finally, Data Sufficiency questions are just like those riddles your smart friend loves to throw at you. The questions they test you on are more analytical than they are calculation-based.
The Bottom Line:
The SBI PO exam is not about having all your knowledge, it is about how you use your knowledge to survive. These are like your arsenal in a battle. Some weapons (topics) will be used more than others, but you have to have all the weapons ready.
Quick Strategy Tips:
- You should dedicate 60% of your time to high-importance topics
- Prepare past 6 months current affairs from the latest SBI PO notification.
- Practice speed tests for each topic on its own
- Trust me, keep an error log! (It’s a game-changer!)
- Accuracy first, speed will follow.
Conclusion
And by the way, before you read about these things, practice them like your career in banking depends on it (because it really does!).
Sure, the SBI PO syllabus may seem a bit intimidating, but trust me, every one of you who was once a banker, sitting at your place, looking at these same topics, wondering where to start.
Go forth and conquer that SBI PO exam now!
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