SBI PO Prelims 2017 exam analysis and review: April 29 Slot 1

The State Bank of India (SBI), known for setting a benchmark for all the banking exams that are conducted throughout the year, has successfully conducted the first shift of Probationary Officer Preliminary Examination 2017.

Approximately 30 lakh candidates applied for the post of PO and only 2,403 will be selected. This is quite a narrow margin and a student has to be smart to make their way through.

The paper was not difficult at all but some questions were time taking. A practice was the only key that could have taken you to the next stage. Talking about the whole paper, it was easy to moderate.

Below is the table that explains the overall level of the exam:

Exam analysis: Quantitative aptitude (Easy-Moderate)

Quant has always been a calculative section and those who mastered it can easily trust their skills. Out of 35 questions, 25 were achievable. Ten questions from data interpretation, 5 from quadratic equation, 5 from approximation and 5 from series are enough to support the above fact. Make a note of the topics that can be done in less time and will help you steer to the overall cutoff marks.

Number Series Asked in SBI PO Prelims Exam, 29th April, 1st Shift:

Q1. 14, 8, 9, 14.5, 30, ?

Q2. 20, 29, 54, 103, 184, ?,

Q3. 7, 8, 18, 57, ?, 1165

Q4. 5, 7, 18, 47, 103, ?

Q5. 77, 85, 69, 101, 37, ?

Exam analysis: English (Easy-Moderate)

This section was normal as, after a lot of shocks last year, this year started on a positive note. Ten questions from reading comprehension, 10 from phrase replacement and 10 from Cloze Test delighted the students. One more thing that was observed during the first session was the emphasis on prepositions as a lot of questions were based on it. So, our first piece of advice will be to go through preposition notes before going for the examination. The reading comprehension was not the typical economy type as last year. So it remained a moderate section.

Exam Analysis: Reasoning (Easy-Moderate)

Reasoning was again filled with puzzles and seating arrangement. Compared to last year, this was an easy one and questions were scattered across the section. Inequalities, direction sense, blood relation and coding-decoding will help you clear the sectional cut-off. A variety of puzzles were asked including floor puzzles, order-based puzzles and linear arrangement. So, friends, this needs to be dealt with care in order to enter the next level. This section can be considered easy to moderate as there was nothing to ponder upon.

The only piece of advice for students is to keep calm and patient while attempting the questions. In order to do them quickly, we tend to make mistakes. So avoid compromising on your accuracy. You know everything and just need to apply your knowledge more wisely.

All the best to the candidates appearing on May 6 and 7.

(Anil Nagar is Founder & CEO, Adda247. Views expressed here are personal. )