State Bank of India conducts SBI PO Exam to recruit eligible and interested candidates to the post of Probationary Officer in SBI. Candidates who are aspiring to appear for SBI PO Exam should know all the details about the exam such as eligibility criteria, exam pattern, syllabus and so on. SBI PO exam pattern highlights important details of the exam such as subjects from which questions are asked, number of questions asked, duration of the exam, marking scheme and so on. It is important that candidates are aware of the exam pattern before they start their preparation for the exam. Read this article to know all about SBI PO exam pattern and other details.
Source: hindustantimes.com
SBI PO Exam Pattern 2021
SBI PO Exam comprises of three stages:
- Preliminary Exam
- Mains Exam
- Interview
Prelims is of qualifying nature, whereas Mains and Interview will be considered for preparing the final merit list. The detailed pattern of each of these stages is as given below.
SBI PO Exam Pattern: Prelims
This is the first stage of the exam. Candidates have to qualify prelims to be eligible to appear for Mains and Interview.
- A total of 100 questions are asked in Prelims.
- There are three sections in Prelims- English, Quantitative Aptitude and Reasoning Ability.
- The duration of the exam is 1 hour with 20 minutes for each section.
- There is negative marking and 0.25 marks are deducted for every incorrect answer.
| Section | No. of Questions | Maximum Marks | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|
| English Language | 30 | 30 | 20 minutes |
| Quantitative Aptitude | 35 | 35 | 20 minutes |
| Reasoning Ability | 35 | 35 | 20 minutes |
| Total | 100 | 100 | 1 hour |
SBI PO Exam Pattern: Mains
Candidates who clear the cut off for prelims are eligible to appear for the mains exam. SBI PO Mains Exam has two parts- Objective and Descriptive.
- There are four sections in Objective part- Reasoning & Computer Aptitude, Data Analysis & Interpretation, General/ Economy/ Banking Awareness and English Language.
- There are two questions in the Descriptive Paper.
- The time duration for the objective paper is 3 hours while for the descriptive paper it is 30 minutes.
- There is negative marking and 0.25 marks are deducted for every incorrect answer.
- Objective test has different timing for each section.
| Section(Objective) | Total Questions | Maximum Marks | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reasoning & Computer Aptitude | 45 | 60 | 60 minutes |
| Data Analysis & Interpretation | 35 | 60 | 45 minutes |
| General/ Economy/ Banking Awareness | 40 | 40 | 35 minutes |
| English Language | 35 | 40 | 40 minutes |
| Total | 155 | 200 | 3 hours |
| Descriptive Test | 02 | 50 | 30 minutes |
SBI PO Exam Pattern: Interview
Candidates who qualify SBI PO Mains have to appear for the Interview wherein a panel of selectors will ask them questions related to their past experience, knowledge of banking sector etc. There is a Group Discussion round and a Personal Interview. Candidates have to clear this round to be finally selected for the post.
SBI PO Exam Pattern FAQs
Q. Is there negative marking in SBI PO Exam?
A. Yes, there is negative marking in SBI PO Exam. 0.25 marks are deducted for every incorrect answer.
Q. How many stages are there in SBI PO Exam?
A. There are three stages in SBI PO Exam- Prelims, Mains and Interview.
Q. What is the duration of SBI PO Prelims?
A. The time duration of SBI PO Prelims is 1 hour.
Q. What is SBI PO Prelims Exam Pattern?
A. There are three sections from which a total of 100 questions are asked in SBI PO Prelims- English, Quantitative Aptitude and Reasoning Ability.