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The Bank PO Exam recruits the future bank officers of India. The banking sector deals with the financial matters of the country. This makes financial knowledge a very important element for this job profile. This is the reason why the exam focuses a lot on the quantitative aptitude of the candidate.
The question paper of every year has multiple questions related to quantitative aptitude. This is according to exam analysis as the banks don’t release a proper syllabus for the exams. The questions revolve around basic maths problems which are important for practical banking-related tasks as well.
The candidates must not take this subject lightly and practice as much as possible. The syllabus for the prelims and the mains are overlapping. The mains mainly have data interpretation as an addition to the prelims syllabus.
Thus candidates can prepare for both the exams simultaneously. The best idea is to start with the NCERT mathematics books at the middle school level. They will help you clear the concept from the very start. Now let us take a look at the detailed Bank PO Quantitative Syllabus –
Bank PO Exam Pattern
| Exam Name | Sections | Number of Questions | Marks | Time Duration |
| Preliminary Exam | English Language | 30 | 30 | 60 Minutes |
| Quantitative Aptitude | 35 | 35 | ||
| Reasoning Ability | 35 | 35 | ||
| Mains Exam | English Language | 35 | 40 | 3.5 Hours |
| Quantitative Aptitude | 35 | 60 | ||
| Reasoning Ability | 45 | 60 | ||
| General Awareness | 40 | 40 | ||
| Descriptive Paper | 2 | 24 |
Bank PO Quantitative Aptitude
- It is present at both the stages for 35 in prelims and 60 marks in mains.
- There is a negative marking of 0.25 marks per incorrect option.
- The average time to solve this section is 20 minutes in prelims and 40 minutes for mains.
- There is one mark for the correct answer.
- The total marks for this section are 35 in prelims and 60 in mains.
Bank PO Prelims Quantitative Syllabus
- Number Series
- Number System
- Percentage
- Simplification
- Average
- Time and work
- Time, Speed, and Distance
- Probability
- Quadratic Equations
- Profit and Loss
- Simple and Compound Interest
- Ratio and proportion
- Permutation and Combination
- Surds and Indices
- Boats and Streams
- Pipes and Cisterns
- Mixtures and Allegations
- Mensuration
- Data Interpretations
Bank PO Mains Quantitative Syllabus
- Data Interpretation
- Simplification
- Average
- Percentage
- Ratio and Percentage
- Data Interpretation
- Mensuration and Geometry
- Quadratic Equation
- Interest
- Age
- Profit & Loss
- Number Series
- Speed, Distance & Time
- Number System
- Data Sufficiency
- Linear Equation
- Permutation & Combination
- Probability
- Mixture and Allegations
- Graph-Based Questions
- Missing Case DI
- Caselet
The expected number of questions from Quantitative Aptitude in Bank PO Exams are –
- Simplification – 5 Questions
- Ratio & Proportion, Percentage – 3 Questions
- Number System – 3 Questions
- Profit & Loss – 2 Questions
- Mixtures & Allegations – 1-2 Questions
- Simple Interest & Compound Interest – 1-2 Questions
- Work & Time – 2 Questions
- Time & Distance – 2 – Questions
- Mensuration – Cylinder, Cone, Sphere – 1-2 Questions
- Permutation, Combination & Probability – 5 Questions
- Data Interpretation – 15 Questions
- Sequence & Series – 5 Questions
Bank PO Prelims Quantitative Section Analysis
2020 – Moderate
- Data Interpretation – 15 Questions
- Missing Number Series – 05 Questions
- Approximation – 05 Questions
- Data Sufficiency – 05 Questions
- Arithmetic Word Problems – 10 – 12 Questions
2019 – Moderate
- Data Interpretation – 15 Questions
- Missing No. Series – 5 Questions
- Quadratic Equation – 5 Questions
- Miscellaneous Word Problems – 10 Questions
Bank PO Mains Quantitative Section Analysis
2019 – Difficult
- Data Interpretation – 24 Questions
- Probability – 3 Questions
- Number Series – 1Question
- Time and Work – 3 Questions
- Population – 5 Questions
2018 – Difficult
- Data Interpretation – 15 Questions
- Data Sufficiency – 2 to 3 Questions
- Quantity – 3 Questions
- Number Series – 3 Questions
- Arithmetic – 4 to 5 Questions
- Data Fillers – 4 Questions
- Probability – 1 Question
Quantitative Aptitude Weightage in Different Examinations
| Bank & Insurance Exams | Prelims | Mains |
| IBPS Exams – PO, Clerk, SO, and RRB Scale I/Asst. | 35-40 | 40-50 |
| SBI Exams – PO, Clerk and SO | 35 | 35-50 |
| RBI Exams – Asst. and Grade B | 30-35 | 40 |
| NICL, NIACL, BOB, NABARD, Indian bank, Nainital Bank, IPPB, etc. | 30-50 | |
Tips to prepare for Bank PO Quantitative Aptitude Section
Basic Concepts
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The basic mathematics concepts are very important for this section. The middle school books starting from the 6th class offer these basic concepts for these topics. These basic mathematics concepts make the entire quantitative section of the paper.
And once you clarify them, this section becomes a piece of cake for you. The idea is to test the practical knowledge of the candidate through these concepts. So start from the easiest topic and then climb the ladder up.
Formulas and Identities
Learn the formulas and identities. That is the best way to solve the questions faster during the exam. They are mostly given heavy weightage in the paper and thus become important to score.
And they help in the reasoning section too to some extent. Making notes of them is the best way to keep them together.
Shortcuts and Tricks
Once you start understanding the concepts, it is a good idea to go back and revise frequently. For this purpose having your own shortcuts and tricks can save your time.
You should consider solving questions from different methods so that you know which one works the best for you. This way you may end up finding new tricks to solve the questions too.
Practice
Hard work is the key to success is a common phrase we all come across. Well, that is absolutely correct. The more you practice the more you learn. And the better you score.
This helps you analyze your weak point and where you need to improve. And then it enables you to strengthen the concepts that are already clear to you.
Time Management
Because there are multiple formulas and numbers to remember, the paper is time-consuming. And many candidates often fail here because they lack time management. Though the removal of sectional cut off is good news for many, this section is a very scoring one.
If you know the concept well and have practice enough then this is the best section for you. Because the key is to understand, find a trick, and solve it quickly. These steps will be enough for you to score well.
Conclusion
This was the article for all the candidates appearing for Bank PO Examinations. The quantitative aptitude section remains important in all the papers and stages of the examination. The syllabus is overlapping which is another benefit for the appearing candidates.
This article will help you discover the pattern of the section, a detailed syllabus, and the weightage of it in previous year papers. We have also added some quick tips for you to ace this section.