IBPS CLERK - SPLessons

IBPS Clerk Exam Pattern

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IBPS Clerk Exam Pattern

shape Introduction

Understanding the exam pattern and syllabus will help the candidates in devising effective preparation strategies. Speed/Time management is vital in obtaining a good score in any competitive exam and hence, analysis of IBPS Clerk exam pattern and syllabus is very crucial to be able to complete the exams in the stipulated time.
The IBPS Clerk selection process has two phases. The first phase is Preliminary Exam and the second phase is Main Exam which are written exams conducted online.

shape Pattern

  • IBPS Clerk Prelim Exam is an online Objective Type exam.

  • IBPS Clerk Prelim Exam has a duration of 1 hour and Maximum Marks : 100.

  • IBPS Clerk Prelim Exam has 3 sections as shown in table below.

  • IBPS Clerk Prelim Exam – For each wrong answer, there is a Negative Marking of 0.25 marks.

  • IBPS Clerk Prelim Exam is a qualifying exam for IBPS Clerk Main Exam.

  • A candidate should clear the cut-off for each section and total cut-off score of IBPS Clerk Prelim Exam to appear for IBPS Clerk Main Exam

  • S.No Name Of Test No.of Questions Maximum Marks Duration
    1 English 30 30 20 minutes
    2 Numerical Ability 35 35 20 minutes
    3 Reasoning Ability 35 35 20 minutes
    Total 100 100 60 Minutes

    Main exam consists of 4 sections with a total of 190 questions and a total of 200 marks. Each section in the Main Examination is timed and like the Prelims examination, there is a penalty for each wrong answer.
    S.No Sections No. of Questions Maximum marks Time allocated
    1 General/Financial Awareness 50 50 35 minutes
    2 General English 40 40 35 minutes
    3 Reasoning Ability & Computer Aptitude 50 60 45 minutes
    4 Quantitative Aptitude 50 50 45 minutes
    Total 190 200 160 minutes

    1. A login screen will be displayed to the candidate. The candidate has to log in using his/her User ID and Password which is provided on the Call Letter.
    2. After logging in Candidate’s profile (Name, Roll No. & photograph etc.) will be displayed and the candidate has to confirm the same by clicked on the ‘I confirm’ button confirming the profile is correct.
    3. Thereafter the instructions will be displayed on the screen.
    4. A candidate should read the instructions carefully and indicate that he has done so by ‘checking’ (click) the box at the bottom of the screen, after which I am ready to begin the button is activated.
    5. After clicking on the ‘I am ready to begin’ button the actual test time will begin.
    6. In Preliminary Examination, there will be 100 Questions and in Main Examination there will be 190 Questions and each question is followed by 5 alternatives/options.
    7. The questions except those on English Language will be available in Hindi and in English. In order to view a given question in the other language, a candidate can click on the ‘view in’ drop down box and select the desired language.
    8. Only one question will be displayed at a time.
    9. In order to answer a question, the candidate has to ‘mouse click’ the option he/she thinks is appropriate/ correct. The alternative which has been clicked on will be highlighted and shall be treated as the answer given by the candidate for the question.
    10. After selecting an answer for a question the candidate should click on the Save & Next button to save his answer and proceed to the next question. Note that without clicking on ‘Save & Next’ button the answer selected for a question will not be saved.
    11. In case a candidate does not wish to attempt the question then he/ she should not click on any option for that question. A candidate can choose to deselect his/her answer for a particular question by clicking on the CLEAR RESPONSE button provided against each question.
    12. In case a candidate wants to skip a particular question and return to it later before submitting his/her test or a candidate ‘clicks’ (selects) an answer for a particular question but wishes to review it later, he/she may note down the question number on the sheet provided.
    In such cases the candidate may also click on the MARK FOR REVIEW & NEXT button. In case an answer has been selected for a particular question which has been marked as ‘MARK FOR REVIEW & NEXT’, the answer marked will be taken for final evaluation.
    13. The question numbers of attempted and unattempted questions are also shown to the right of the screen. A candidate can then click on any of the question numbers to view the question, in order to attempt/ revise his/her answer to the question.
    14. Each question number will be displayed in a particular color depending on the status of the question:
    15. Candidates are not permitted to submit their answers before the entire test time i.e 60 minutes for preliminary exam and 180 minutes for objective test main exam, is over.
    16. A candidate can navigate between questions across tests in Preliminary Examination and within test in Main Examination by clicking on the question number displayed to the right of the screen.
    17. When a candidate clicks on a particular question, it takes some time for the question to appear. The time lost is not deducted from the total time allotted for the test.
    18. Under no circumstances should a candidate click on any of the ‘keyboard keys’ once the exam starts as this will lock the exam.
    About the Submission 1. Candidates are not permitted to submit their answers before the entire test time is over.
    2. A candidate can only change his/ her answer before clicking the Submit button.
    3. After the expiry of the exam duration, candidates will not be able to attempt any question or check their answers.
    A candidate’s answers would be automatically saved by the computer system even if he has not clicked the ‘Submit’ button.

    IBPS Clerk – Related Information
    IBPS Clerk 2020 - Official Notification