To become a clerk of a private bank, an aspirant has to clear the IBPS (Institute of Banking Personnel Selection) Examination. The guiding and governing bodies for the IBPS exam are the RBI, Finance Ministry of India, and NIBM, which are responsible for the smooth conduct of the exam. Further, there are representatives from public banks and insurance companies also who take part in the decision-making process for the IBPS exam in order to take steps that aid in conducting the exam without any problems.
There are several banks that take into consideration the IBPS scores such as RBI, Public banks like Allahabad Bank, Canara Bank, Dena Bank, Syndicate Bank, India, Maharashtra; UCO Bank, Union Bank of India, United Bank of India, IDBI, Indian Overseas Bank, Oriental Bank of Commerce, Central Bank of India, Corporation Bank and Sind Bank.
Eligibility criteria for IBPS clerk
- The age limit in order to appear for the IBPS clerk exam is that the candidate must be 20 years to 28 years old. However, there is a relaxation on the upper age limit for special category candidates, which you can check online.
- The candidates must have the minimum qualification of graduation in any field from a recognized University. The candidate must have proof of passing the qualifying exam of graduation from college in terms of a certificate or any other proof.
- Candidates must have a valid mark sheet or degree which can act as proof that they are a graduate when they are applying for the IBPS clerk exam and it must show the percentage he or they got in graduation while registering for the exam online.
- The candidate should have an operating and working knowledge in computer systems and they must be proficient in the official language of the State or UT for which they are applying.
How to apply for the IBPS Clerk exam?
In order to apply for the IBPS Clerk exam, the interested candidates have to register themselves for the same by submitting an application form online, along with the application fee (Rs. 175 for SC/ST/PWD and Rs. 850 for General and others), before the last date to do the same. In order to avoid any technical problems, it is recommended that the candidates update their web browsers to the latest version, or to the minimum required version which they can refer to on the official site.
Exam pattern of IBPS Clerk exam
The IBPS clerk exam is conducted in two stages – Prelims and Mains, which are conducted in the online mode of exam, and clearing both the exams is essential in landing the job as a clerk. There is a negative marking of one-fourth of the total marks assigned to a question in the event that a student answers that question incorrectly. There is no negative marking for leaving a question blank and not attempting. A candidate can attempt the IBPS Clerk exam in 13 regional languages along with English and Hindi. The students must take a thorough look at the ibps clerk syllabus 2021 before starting their preparation for the exam.
Stage – 1: IBPS Clerk Preliminary exam – The IBPS Clerk Prelim exam is conducted to test the candidate on the basis of their knowledge in intellect, aptitude, and English. There are 3 sections in this phase of the exam and students should make sure to clear the cut-off in each section in order to be qualified for the next stage.
There are 20 minutes allotted for each section in which students must complete it, with a grand total of 100 marks at stake. Candidates have to clear the cut-offs in the 3 sections successfully so as to be selected for the Mains exam, depending on the number of students selected from each category.
| S.No. | Name of Tests | No. of Questions | Maximum Marks | Duration |
| 1 | English Language | 30 | 30 | 20 minutes |
| 2 | Numerical Ability | 35 | 35 | 20 minutes |
| 3 | Reasoning Ability | 35 | 35 | 20 minutes |
| Total | 100 | 100 | 1 Hour | |
Stage – 2: IBPS Clerk Mains exam – The second phase of the IBPS Clerk exam has 190 questions to be completed by the students in a time limit of 160 minutes. Here is a detailed overview of the exam pattern –
| S.No. | Name of Tests | No. of Questions | Maximum Marks | Duration |
| 1 | Reasoning Ability & Computer Aptitude | 50 | 60 | 45 minutes |
| 2 | English Language | 40 | 40 | 35 minutes |
| 3 | Quantitative Aptitude | 50 | 50 | 45 minutes |
| 4 | General/ Financial Awareness | 50 | 50 | 35 minutes |
| Total | 190 | 200 | 160 minutes | |
Final Score Calculation for IBPS Clerk Exam:
For the final merit list that is released after the Mains exam, the following points are kept in mind:
- Marks obtained by the candidate in the Preliminary Exam (Phase-1) will not be considered for final selection, it is only for selection to the Mains Exam (Phase-2).
- Candidates must pass Phase-2 so as to be qualified for final merit.
- The aggregate score out of 100 is used for the final merit list for each category and the candidates with top merit rank in each category are finally selected.
If you are aiming to become a clerk, the above article would have provided you with all the necessary information to make the correct strategy in order to clear both the levels of IBPS clerk so as to get the post of a clerk at a bank. Getting all the information before beginning the prep of an exam is of utmost importance so that you can plan in the best possible manner on how to approach the exam. As successfully clearing the IBPS Clerk exam rewards you with a clerical post, it is paramount that you prepare for it in the best possible manner so that you are able to land the job you are aiming for in the first attempt itself.