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Preparing for SBI PO Descriptive Exam? Know Topics to Cover

How do I prepare for the English descriptive test, is one query commonly asked by aspirants appearing for bank exams.The concern

showcases vital importance this section has created among entrants since it decides their qualification.Candidates especially from rural areas & towns find this part to be difficult than objective test as it involves writing detailed answers in

english.

By knowing the exact pattern along with

the kind of questions to expect, it is possible to clear descriptive paper.

To help those getting ready for SBI PO recruitment 2013 exam our group

has compiled a comprehensive guide explaining about the descriptive english test

question paper

This article talks on 1) What is descriptive test 2) Pattern 3) Books 4) Sections

What Is It?

An officer in a bank will have to write letters, prepare reports or send views & opinions to

higher officials as & when required.

So descriptive paper as part of banking exams aims to check the english language

proficiency of applicants.

Every year, many candidates fail to secure pass marks in descriptive paper making them

ineligible for personal interviews. How?

If you do not clear or score qualifying marks in any objective section – your

descriptive test paper will not be taken up for evaluation.

Apart from securing minimum marks in each objective test, its also necessary to pass

in descriptive test.

Descriptive Exam Pattern

As already discussed the SBI PO exam will contain the following sections,

Some important points to understand to keep in mind

		Minimum qualifying marks
Subject	Total marks	Gen	Obc	Sc/st
English	50	13	10	10
gk	50	11	7	7
Data analysis and interpretation	50	13	10	10
reasoning	50	86	74	70
Objective test cut off marks for	200	20	18	18
descriptive	50
total	250

This is just to give you an idea..not so perfect

Some important points to understand in here are:

1.  You will have to answer descriptive section within 60 minutes (1 hour)

2.  It shall be conducted for 50 marks

3.  In SBI PO 2011 exam descriptive cutoffs were 20 (gen) & 18 (others). See

previous year SBI examination cutoffs for the complete picture. 

You can expect the english descriptive paper to contain questions from these categori

Letter Writing

Precis writing

Essay Writing

Reading comprehension & Paragraph writing

Previous year questions:

In the previously conducted common written examination for PO/MT posts, descriptive

test paper consisted of the below questions (based on memory)

1.  Write a letter to a branch for closing savings account OR to a friend inviting

him/her for seminar on netbanking OR to a bank for higher education loan.

2.  Write an essay on any of the given topics a) Right to education act b) Financial

Inclusion c) How technology can benefit banking industry.

The word count specified in the question is important as you will have to write the

answers on the question paper itself, within the space provided.

Books:

Whatever be the exam, preparatory books act as source of reference.Here are some

good books for SBI PO recruitment from Arihant publications

* How to crack SBI PO exam (guide with explanations/solved papers) – Rs.296

* Descriptive English Guide (covers SBI PO descriptive) – Rs.259

How to Prepare:

A general rule that must be followed while answering is not to make spelling mistakes.

Now let us see what type of questions could be asked in each category.

Letter writing: There shall be internal choices for this part.You will be asked to write a

letter to someone you know (parents, friend, relation etc) or to a bank manager enquiring

about a service or to a newspaper editor.

Refer to the books mentioned above or use your Std.X or XII grammar book to know

about letter formats.

Essay writing: A topic/title is given based on which you need to write an essay in about

250 words.This is also an internal choice question wherein three topics shall be provided

for you to choose any one.

It is not possible to memorize articles beforehand.So pick up a random topic related to

banking, finance, current affairs etc.,& practice writing.Here is our list, which you can try:

FDI in retail

Rise of the American dollar

Are bank mergers beneficial?

Latest technologies in banking

Precis Writing: Read the given article of atleast 500 words, understand its meaning,

summarize & make a precis (shorter version).The only requirement is – do not change

the meaning of the original passage.

For practicing -

1.  Take a long newspaper report,

2.  Leave unnecessary details,

3.  Pick only the important statements

4.  Write a summary.

Ask any of your family or friends to compare both to make sure you have not deviated

from the original.

Paragraph writing: Titles will be printed & you must write a paragraph related to the

given topic in not more than 150 words.

To write good paragraphs, sentence formation should be proper & to cultivate it one

must read english magazines & newspapers.Story or comic books can also help you gain

control over writing skills.

Paper 2:

banking related questions suggested Descriptive

paper question were

 1.Right to Education Act

 2. Rural Development

 3. Write a letter to bank manager issue loan , go for higher studies in USA

 4. write a letter to your friend , attend seminar and topic is NETBANKING

5. write a letter to close your account in a bank

 6.what is Financial Inclusion

 7. Banking industry growth 8. If I were an author....

. 9. How technology is helpful for Banking sector.

Paper3:

1.Give Three measures to improve the life of people affected from Terrorism.

or

Give Three measures to improve the life of people living in Industrial Slums.( I don’t know exactly but the language o

quite similar I attempted the Terrorism related Question)

2. Give three measures to provide potable water in rural areas. Also analyze the effects of the efforts taken so far

Describe the effects of the Public Distribution System (PDS). Also mention how it can be improved.

3. Give Three Views For & Against

” Salary of M.P’s Should be increased or not? ( Intresting one only one answer absolutely not Ha Ha Ha …! Though it’s been increased

now)

or

” Do not rot the grains, feed the poor” statement stated by Supreme court.

4. Financial literacy should be made available to Vulnerable Sectins of society to make them aware of Financial services along with

their Instinct Benefits. Discuss the statement.

or

Unique Identification (UDI) is actually a mobile utility. Give views.

5. Analyze the effect of T.v (Viewing) on the mind of the Young Generation

or

Analyze the effect of Magazines(Reading) on the mind of the Young Generation Caste System in India

Note:

Friends I have collected this from different sites.. I have not prepared on my own..

But what I want to infer conclusion points from the above questions asked on how to do well in the exam.

See officer in a banking is a prestigious one.. so many problems we deal with.. today what ever we deal

In banking is purely related to money

As everyone know money plays important role in the economy so banks deals with almost every sector of our economy.

Clearly if u observe the questions asked previously.. we can say that he is going deep in the economy..i think u didn’t get that.. k fro example consider the question asked

1.Give Three measures to improve the life of people affected from Terrorism.(see here asked about terrorism so we need to know some

Thing about terrorism.. recently where effected so we need to read newspapers)

or

Give Three measures to improve the life of people living in Industrial Slums.( I don’t know exactly but the language o

quite similar I attempted the Terrorism related Question

2. Give three measures to provide potable water in rural areas. Also analyze the effects of the efforts taken so far

Describe the effects of the Public Distribution System (PDS). Also mention how it can be improved.

3. Give Three Views For & Against

” Salary of M.P’s Should be increased or not? ( Intresting one only one answer absolutely not Ha Ha Ha …! Though it’s been increased

now)

or

” Do not rot the grains, feed the poor” statement stated by Supreme court.

4. Financial literacy should be made available to Vulnerable Sectins of society to make them aware of Financial services along with

their Instinct Benefits. Discuss the statement.

or

Unique Identification (UDI) is actually a mobile utility. Give views.

5. Analyze the effect of T.v (Viewing) on the mind of the Young Generation

or

Analyze the effect of Magazines(Reading) on the mind of the Young Generation Caste System in India

K lets discuss this questions.. by inferring

All these questions .. I said previously to read gktoday.in why because he will give apt explanations

Of what is going around and by that you can know how will be our economy.. what goes how it effects economy..

So do read the banking material provided in this site ie: from gktoday site only. And also read daily gktoday.in to understand our economy.. what’s going on..hope I think it is useful to u

If you have any doubts in banking terminology can ask me at 8971042537 and vatadapraveen@gmail.com

HAPPY READING

Important welfare schemes:

Name	Year	objective/meaning	Imp points
swabiman	2011 feb	Banking and  financial facilities-loans to above 2000 population villages and 5 no frill accounts by march 2011
sabla	2010	Providing nutritional food to 11 to 18 years group adulscent girls	This program implemented through child health scheme
Indira Gandhi mathrutva sahayoj yojana	2010	Govt. of India provides 4000 rs to pregnant women or lactate mothers
Rajiv Gandhi adivaktha radhiksan yojana	2010	Sc, st ,bc women young lawyers skill development
Swavalamban	2010	Unorganized sector labour pension scheme
Pradana mantra adarsh gram yojana	2010	Govt. of india gives 10 lakh rs to above 50% sc population villages	It is a pilot program
Rajiv avash yojana	2009	Urban free slum
Rashtriya krushi vikas yojana	2008	Agriculture development
Mahila kissan swasakthi kiran pariyojana	2010	Women farmers development
National food security mission	2007 august	Food guarantee to bpl people(bellow poverty line)
Rashtriya swastha bhima yojana	2007	Bpl health insurance coverage
Amadmi bhima yojana	2007	Bpl people life insurance coverage
Sakshara bharat	2009	Women literacy development
Rashtriya madhamika siksha mission	2009	Secondary education development
Bharat nirman	2005	6 lakh facilities provides to rural area people	Roads, drinking water, irrigation, telecommunication, electricity, housing
Jnnurm-jawaharlal Nehru national urban renuable mission	2005	Infrastructure facilities to urban areas people
Mnrega- mahatma Gandhi national rural employment guarantee act	2006 feb 2nd	100 days work guarantee to rural areas people
Swarna jayathi program	Self help groups	Dwakra(10-15-20 members can stand as a group)	To help women develop themselves and to create a strength in them to stand on their own feet

HAPPY READING

How do I prepare for the english descriptive test, is one query commonly asked by aspirants appearing for bank exams.The concern showcases vital importance this section has created among entrants since it decides their qualification.Candidates especially from rural areas

& towns find this part to be difficult than objective

test as it involves writing detailed answers in

english.

By knowing the exact pattern along with the kind of

questions to expect, it is possible to clear

descriptive paper.

To help those getting ready for IBPS common

written exam for bank PO jobs - Bank ExamsIndia.com has compiled a comprehensive guide to explain about

the descriptive english test question paper

This article deals about 1) What is descriptive test 2) Pattern 3) Books 4) Sections

What is it?

An officer in a bank will have to write letters, prepare reports or send views & opinions to higher officials as &

when required.

So descriptive paper as part of bank ing exams aims to check the english language proficiency

of applicants.

Last year, many candidates failed to secure pass marks in descriptive paper making them ineligible to apply

for bank jobs. How?

If you do not clear or score qualifying marks in any objective section – your descriptive test

paper will not be taken up for evaluation.

Apart from securing minimum marks in each objective test, its also necessary to pass in

descriptive test to receive scorecard from IBPS.

Pattern:

As you can see from the image,

1. The time allotted for descriptive section is 60 minutes (1 hour)

2. It carries a maximum weightage of 25 marks

The formula to calculate total weighted score (TWS) is:

Standard scores in (Reasoning + Quantitative aptitude + General

awareness + Computer k nowledge + ½ English language + ½ Descriptive paper)

You can expect the english descriptive paper to contain questions mostly from these 3 categories

Letter Writing

Precis writing /Summary writing

Essay Writing

Previous year questions:

In the previously conducted common written examination for PO/MT posts, descriptive test paper consisted of

the below questions (based on memory)

1. Write a letter to your brother/sister in 150 words explaining the importance of Lokpal bill

OR a letter to the concerned authority informing about the shortage of water supply in

your area OR a letter to the editor of a leading newspaper for starting cultural heritage

programmes in your state

2. Write an essay in 250 words on any of the given topics a) E-banking b) Emerging

trends of aviation industry in India c) Global world converting into global village

3. Make a precis of the following article in 125 words & provide a title to it (a long passage

would be printed)

The word count specified in the question is important as you will have to write the answers on the question

paper itself, within the space provided.

Books:

Whatever be the exam, preparatory books act as source of reference.Here is a good book from Kiran

prakashan with model practice sets, that can be bought online or from your local bookstore.

In detail:

A general rule that must be followed while answering is not to make spelling mistakes. Now let us see what

type of questions could be asked in each category.

Letter writing: There shall be internal choices for this part.You will be asked to write a letter to someone you

know (parents, friend, relation etc) or to an authority informing about certain issues.

Prepare for atleast two formats, so you can answer one based on the question.

Essay writing: A topic/title is given based on which you need to write an essay in about 250 words.This is

also an internal choice question wherein three topics shall be provided for you to choose any one.

It is not possible to memorize articles beforehand.So pick up a random topic related to banking, finance,

current affairs etc.,& practice writing.Here is our list, which you can try:

Economic slowdown in India

FDI in retail

Rise of the American dollar

Pollution in developed countries

Rural banking

Precis Writing: Read the given article of atleast 500 words, understand its meaning, summarize & make a

precis (shorter version).The only requirement is – do not change the meaning of the original passage.

For practicing - take a long newspaper report, leave unnecessary details, pick points that are important & write

a summary.Compare both to make sure you have not deviated from the original article.

We hope this post could infuse the required confidence in your minds.

How to Prepare / Crack SSC Combined Graduate Level Exam Test - Best Tips

HAPPY READING

How to Prepare / Crack SSC Combined Graduate Level Exam Test - Best Tips

Overview: Staff Selection Commission Combined Graduate Level (SSC CGL) Exam conducts every year for the recruitment of qualified job seekers to fill up vacant seats under different departments.

As we all know that at least 2 months preparation is necessary for cracking SSC CGL Tier-1 Exam, so it is the right time to start the studies now. Normally, we have seen that aspirants are in different state of minds about how to make strategies to prepare for each section in the SSC CGL Exam, about the exam pattern and which are the important topics to be prepared first. If you plan well for the exam, we assure that you can crack this exam in your first attempt. But, you have to start your preparation from today.

Preparation Plan for each sectionè

SSC CGL Tier-1 Exam contains 4 sections which include Reasoning, Quantitative Aptitude, General English and General Awareness. It is very important to make a preparation strategy for the exam.

It is common knowledge that every body has his strengths and weaknesses. For competitive exams it is very important to understand your plus and minus points. While working on strengths gives us confidence, improving our weak points may become a big pain. It is not useful to worry about the cut-offs before the exams. It is fine to have the previous years' data but predicting the current years' cut-off will only lead to the wastage of time. Let us now come to the exact strategy.

	Prelim Marks	Prelim Weightage	Mains Marks	Mains Weightage	Total Weightage
Arithmetic	50	25%	200	50%	41.7%
Verbal	50	25%	200	50%	41.7%
Reasoning	50	25%	0	0%	8.33%
General Awareness	50	25%	0	0%	8.33%

  

Now, Tips for cracking each section are:

1. Reasoning –>

Reasoning is a test of observing our mental and problem solving ability. Reasoning is not like numerical skill where you learn some formula and solve question by applying that formula. You have to be very careful while answering these questions.

The most important questions from this section are on the topics such as

Seating Arrangements,

Syllogism,

Coding-Decoding,

Statement and Conclusions,

Directions,

Blood Relations,

Analogy,

Classification,

Series problems,

Ranking,

Data sufficiency,

 Assumptions and Directions.

Non-Verbal is the toughest of all.

Also, deals with maximum number of problems especially with problem figures and mirror images.

2. Quantitative Aptitude : This section is there in both Tier I and II Papers.

You should get good grip on all the basic concepts of maths to get good marks in this section. You have to improve your calculation speed. Practice more, it will help you getting good accuracy and speed.

Focus on:

Numerical Ability,

Probability,

Profit-Loss,

Interest,

Partnerships,

 Averages,

Time and Distances,

Speed and Distances,

Algebra and Trigonometry (focus more on these two areas, as these are new for banking aspirants).

The total weight-age of this section is 250 marks (50 marks in Tier I and 200 marks in Tier II). So try to score atleast 170 marks in this section (150 marks for non maths students).

3. General English –>Believe it or not, this is the scoring section for SSC CGL. English section is there for both the Tier I and Tier II SSC Exams. So, you have to keep this in your mind during your preparation. The weight age is also high for this section (50 marks in Tier I + 200 marks in Tier II).

So you have to score at least 160 to 225 marks in this section. Make your preparation plan according to it. The questions will be based on Passages, Common Errors, Cloze test, Antonyms and Synonyms. You have to improve your vocabulary.

  

4. General Awareness –>

General Awareness is the most important section of SSC CGL Tier-1 Exam. This section acquires more importance because this is the only section which can be attempted quickly and at the same time, very high marks can be scored in this section.

How many hours should I spend per a day ? It completely depends on you. If you are sincere and dedicated to your preparation, then 5 hours / day is enough. If not, you should spend the whole day. Let's do 1 thing. Instead of making time schedule, you just make the list of topics you should prepare per day. Based on it you can spend your day. No matter what you do during the whole day, you should complete those topics at the end of the day. 

Note : If you have any doubts related to the preparation of SSC CGL Tier-1 Exam 2014, you can comment your queries below and stay with us for the upcoming posts on SSC Exam.