SBI PO 2018: Detailed Guide
A] General Information SBI PO
What is SBI PO Exam?
SBI conducts annual exam to select eligible candidates for appointment as Probationary Officers (POs) in State Bank of India. SBI not only offers lucrative renumeration but is also a immense opportunities for growth in career, including opportunities for posting abroad.
SBI PO Salary, Perks and Career Growth
Presently, the starting basic pay is 27,620/- (with 4 advance increments) in the scale of 23700-980/7-30560-1145/2-32850-1310/7-42020 applicable to Junior Management Grade Scale-I. The official will also be eligible for D.A, H.R.A/ Lease rental, C.C.A, Medical and other allowances & perquisites as per rules in force from time to time. The total compensation per annum on CTC basis be a minimum of 8.20 lacs and maximum of 13.08 lacs depending on place of posting and other factors.
SBI may offer, subject to necessary approvals, a SMART Compensation Package which would enable candidates a choice to monetise specific elements of the salary package.
Bank provides immense opportunities for growth in career, including opportunities for posting abroad. The attractive promotion policy of the Bank provides an opportunity to the meritorious and exceptionally brilliant officers to reach the Top Management Grade in a reasonably quick time.
B] SBI PO 2018: Important Dates
Activity |
Dates |
Link |
On-line registration including Editing/ Modification of Application by candidates | 21.04.2018 to 13.05.2018 | |
Payment of Application Fees/Intimation Charges | 21.04.2018 to 13.05.2018 | |
Download of call letters for online Preliminary Examination | 18.06.2018 onwards | Download here |
Online Examination – Preliminary | 1st, 7th & 8th of July 2018 | |
Result of Online exam – Preliminary | 17.07.2018 | View SBI PO Prelim Result |
Download of Call letter for Online Main Exam | 20.07.2018 | To be updated here |
Conduct of Online Examination – Main | 04.08.2018 | |
Declaration of Result – Main | 20.08.2018 | |
Download Call Letter for Interview | 01.09.2018 | |
Conduct of Group Exercises & Interview | 24.09.2018 to 12.10.2018 | |
Declaration of Final Result | 01.11.2018 | |
Pre-Examination Training for SC/ST/Religious Minority Community candidates | ||
Download of call letters for Pre-Exam Training | 28.05.2018 onwards | |
Conduct of Pre-Exam Training | 18.06.2018 to 23.06.2018 |
C] SBI PO 2018 Notification Details
Eligibility Criteria
I. Age Limit: (As on 01.04.2018):
Not below 21 years and not above 30 years as on 01.04.2018 i.e. candidates must have been born not later than 01.04.1997 and not earlier than 02.04.1988 (both days inclusive)
Category-wise relaxation of upper age limits is as given below:
Sr. No. |
Category |
Age relaxation |
1. | Scheduled Caste/ Scheduled Tribe | 5 Years |
2. | Other Backward Classes (Non-Creamy Layer) | 3 Years |
3. | Persons With Disabilities (PWD) | PWD (SC/ST)-15 Years PWD (OBC)- 13 Years PWD (Gen)- 10 Years |
4. | Ex Servicemen, Commissioned officers including Emergency Commissioned Officers (ECOs)/Short Service Commissioned Officers (SSCOs) who have rendered 5 years military service and have been released on completion of assignment* | 5 Years |
5. | Persons Ordinarily domiciled of the state of Jammu & Kashmir during the period 01.01.1980 to 31.12.1989 | 5 Years |
*(including those whose assignment is due to be completed within one year from the last date of receipt of application) otherwise than by way of dismissal or discharge on account of misconduct or inefficiency or physical disability attributable to military service or invalidment. |
II. Essential Academic Qualifications: (AS ON 31.08.2018):
Graduation in any discipline from a recognised University or any equivalent qualification recognised as such by the Central Government.
Final year/ Semester students may also apply provisionally subject to the condition that, if called for interview, they will have to produce proof of having passed the graduation examination on or before 31.08.2018.
Candidates having integrated dual degree (IDD) certificate should ensure that the date of passing the IDD is on or before 31.08.2018.
Candidates possessing qualification of Chartered Accountant may also apply.
Vacancies Announced for SBI PO 2018
Category wise and total vacancies announced have been detailed below:
Vacancies |
Vacancies (PWD) |
|||||||
SC | ST | OBC* | GEN | TOTAL | LD | VI | HI | Total |
300 | 150 | 540 | 1010 | 2000 | 27 | 26 | 65 | 118 |
*Vacancies reserved for OBC category are available to OBC Candidates belonging to ‘Non-creamy layer’. ‘Creamy layer’ OBC candidates should indicate their category as ‘General’. (Vacancies for LD, VI & HI category candidates are reserved horizontally.)
Number of Attempts
SBI prescribes certain number of attempts that a candidate can be permitted to take. This varies category-wise.
Category |
Max.
|
General | 4 |
General (PWD) | 7 |
OBC | 7 |
OBC(PWD) | 7 |
SC/SC(PWD)/ ST/ ST (PWD) | No Restriction |
Number of chances counted from: Examination held on 18.04.2010. Appearing in Preliminary Examination will not be counted as a chance.
D] SBI PO 2018 Application
Pre-requisites for Applying Online: Candidates should have valid email ID which should be kept active till the declaration of results. It will be essentially required for receiving any communication from the bank.
Application Fee
Sr. No. |
Category |
Application Fee |
1 | SC/ST/PWD | Rs.100/- (Intimation Charges only) |
2 | General and Others | Rs. 600/- (App. Fee including intimation charges) |
Documents Required when Applying for SBI PO
Before applying online a candidate will be required to have a scanned (digital) image of his/ her/ their photograph and signature as per the specifications:
DOCUMENT |
DIMENSIONS |
FILE SIZE SPECIFICATIONS |
OTHER INFORMATION |
Photograph of the Applicant | 200 x 230 pixels (preferred) | 20kb–50 kb | Image file should be JPG or JPEG format |
Signature of the Applicant | 140 x 60 pixels (preferred) | 10kb – 20kb |
CAPITAL LETTERS NOT accepted The applicant has to sign on white paper with Black Ink pen. |
Scanning the photograph & signature:
- Set the scanner resolution to a minimum of 200 dpi (dots per inch)
- Set Color to True Color
- File Size as specified above
- Crop the image in the scanner to the edge of the photograph/signature, then use the upload editor to crop the image to the final size (as specified above).
- Candidates using MS Windows/MSOffice can easily obtain photo and signature in .jpeg format not exceeding 50kb & 20kb respectively by using MS Paint or MSOffice Picture Manager.
Scanned photograph and signature in any format can be saved in .jpg format by using ‘Save As’ option in the File menu and size can be reduced below 50 kb (photograph) & 20 kb(signature) by using crop and then resize option (Please see point (i) & (ii) above for the pixel size) in the ‘Image’ menu. Similar options are available in other photo editor.
Instructions for writing Category Name & Code no. while applying online.
Candidates belonging to OBC category but coming in the ‘CREAMY LAYER’, are not entitled to OBC reservation and age relaxation. They should indicate their category as ‘GEN’ or ‘GEN (LD)’ or ‘GEN (VI)’ or GEN (HI) (as applicable).
Various category names and their code numbers are given below.
Category |
Code |
Category |
Code |
SC | 01 | ST | 05 |
SC(LD) | 02 | ST(LD) | 06 |
SC(VI) | 03 | ST(VI) | 07 |
SC (HI) | 04 | ST (HI) | 08 |
Category |
Code |
Category |
Code |
OBC | 09 | GEN | 13 |
OBC(LD) | 10 | GEN(LD) | 14 |
OBC(VI) | 11 | GEN(VI) | 15 |
OBC (HI) | 12 | GEN (HI) | 16 |
Proof of Identity to be Submitted at Time of Exam:
The candidates must bring one photo identity proof such as passport/ Adhar/ PAN Card/ Driving License/ Voter’s Id Card/ Bank Passbook with duly attested Photograph/ Identity Card issued by School or College/ Gazetted Officer in the official letterhead in original as well as a self-attested Photocopy thereof. The photocopy of Identity proof should be submitted along with call letter to the invigilators in the examination hall, failing which or if identity of candidates is in doubt the candidate will not be permitted to appear for the test.
Biometric Verification:
The Bank, at various stages, may capture thumb impression of the candidates in digital format for biometric verification of genuineness of the candidates. Candidate will ensure that his/ her/ their correct thumb impression is captured at various stages and any inconsistency will lead to rejection of the candidature. As such, they are advised not to apply any external matter like mehendi, ink, chemical etc. on their hands.
E] SBI PO Exam Pattern and Syllabus
SBI PO Prelim Exam Pattern
The prelim exam for SBI PO will take place on 1st, 7th & 8th of July 2018. The date, time and venue on which a candidate has to appear for examination will be specified in the Admission Letter (AL) to be downloaded by the candidate.
Download SBI PO 2018 Prelim Admit Card here
Mode: Online
Type: Objective
Total Marks: 100
Cutoff: Only Aggregate
Negative Marking: Yes, 0.25 marks per wrong answer are deducted
Detailed Exam Pattern and Structure is given below and will be updated with final breakup as per Information Handout:
SL. |
Name of test |
No. of Questions |
Marks |
Duration |
1. | English Language | 30 | 30 | 20 minutes |
2. | Quantitative Aptitude | 35 | 35 | 20 minutes |
3. | Reasoning Ability | 35 | 35 | 20 minutes |
Total | 100 | Total Maximum Marks 100 | 1 hour |
Category wise merit list will be drawn on the basis of the aggregate marks scored in the Preliminary Examination. Candidates numbering approximately 10 times the numbers of vacancies in each category will be shortlisted for the Main Examination from the top of the merit list.
Roll No. of the candidates shortlisted for Phase-II examination will be published on SBI web-site, tentatively on 15th July 2018.
SBI PO Prelim Result
SBI PO Prelim Syllabus
Based on past years papers, the following trend has been noticed in the topics asked in SBI PO prelim exam.
English Language |
Numerical Ability |
Reasoning Ability |
Reading Comprehension | Number Series | Puzzle and Arrangements |
Cloze Test | Simplification/ Approximation | Inequality |
Parajumbles | Quadratic Equations | Syllogism |
Spotting Errors | Data Interpretation | Coding – Decoding |
Sentence Improvement | Miscellaneous | Blood Relations |
Fill in the Blanks | Direction sense | |
Order and Ranking |
SBI PO 2018 Mains Exam Pattern
Call letter for Mains Exam will tentatively be released on 20th July 2018. The mains exam will take place on 4th August 2018.
Link to SBI PO 2018 Mains Exam Call Letter to be updated here.
Main Examination will consist of Objective Tests for 200 marks and Descriptive Test for 50 marks. Both the Objective and Descriptive Tests will be online. Candidates will have to answer Descriptive test by typing on the computer. Descriptive Test will be administered immediately after completion of the Objective Test.
(a) Objective Test
Duration: 3 hours
Sections: 4 Sections
Total Marks: 200 marks.
The objective test will have separate timing for every section.
Detailed breakup of SBI PO 2018 Prelims Pattern:
Test |
Name of the test |
No. of Qs. (tentative) |
Max. Marks |
Duration |
I | Reasoning & Computer Aptitude | 45 | 60 minutes | |
II | Data Analysis & Interpretation | 35 | 45 minutes | |
III | General/ Economy/ Banking Awareness | 40 | 35 minutes | |
IV | English Language | 35 | 40 minutes | |
Total | 155 | 200 | 3 hours |
(b) Descriptive Test
Duration: 30 minutes
Total Questions: 2 questions
Total Marks: 50 marks Test of English Language (Letter Writing & Essay).
SBI PO Mains Exam Syllabus
Data Analysis |
Reasoning |
English Language |
General/Economy/ Banking Awareness |
Computer Awareness |
Tabular Graph | Verbal Reasoning | Reading Comprehension | Financial Awareness | Internet |
Line Graph | Syllogism | Grammar | Current Affairs | Memory |
Pie Chart | Circular Seating Arrangement | Vocabulary | General Knowledge | Keyboard Shortcuts |
Bar Graph | Linear Seating Arrangement | Verbal Ability | Static Awareness | Computer Abbreviation |
Radar Graph Caselet | Double Lineup | Word Association | Banking and Financial Awareness | Microsoft Office |
Missing Case DI | Scheduling | Sentence Improvement | Computer Hardware | |
Let it Case DI | Input Output | Para Jumbles | Computer Software | |
Data Sufficiency | Blood Relations | Cloze Test | Operating System | |
Probability | Directions and Distances | Error Spotting | Networking | |
Permutation and Combination | Ordering and Ranking | Fill in the blanks | Computer Fundamentals /Terminologies | |
Data Sufficiency | ||||
Coding and Decoding | ||||
Code Inequalities | ||||
Course of Action | ||||
Critical Reasoning | ||||
Analytical and Decision Making |
F] SBI PO Cutoff 2017
SBI PO Prelim Cutoff 2017
The sectional cutoffs for the 2017 prelim are as given below:
Category |
Quantitative
|
English
|
Reasoning
|
Cut Off Marks (GEN) | 10.25 | 8.75 | 6.50 |
Cut Off Marks (OBC/SC/ST/PwD) | 7.00 | 5.75 | 4.00 |
The aggregate cutoff for the 2017 prelim is as given below:
Category |
GEN |
OBC |
SC |
ST |
OH |
VI |
HI |
Marks | 51.50 | 48.25 | 43.25 | 31.25 | 38.75 | 42.50 | 18.50 |
SBI PO Mains Exam Cutoff 2017
Category |
GEN |
OBC |
SC |
ST |
OH |
VI |
HI |
Cut Off (Objective + Descriptive Test) |
89.25 | 79.50 | 62.50 | 62.50 | 62.50 | 88.09 | 62.50 |
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