How to prepare General Awareness for IBPS Clerk Mains Exam 2017

General Awareness or General/Finance awareness as per the notification of IBPS, for Clerical posts under CWE Clerical Cadre is a topic of utmost importance for the aspiring candidates who wish to see themselves working under prestigious Banking Organizations of the country. But it is also one of the toughest nuts to crack. The syllabus for General Awareness is as vast as an ocean. One can easily drown in the same without proper guidance. Today we will assist you in finding the right stream which will definitely lead your ship to the coast of success.

As mentioned above, General/ Financial Awareness constitutes 25% of total marks and thus, has a huge impact on the final result. Although General Awareness is an immensely broad spectrum, yet for our convenience, we can categorize it into 3 sub topics-

• Current affairs
• Static GK
• Banking & Financial Awareness

Let’s see how we can conquer these subtopics, one by one:

Current Affairs:

Current Affairs are the events of political or social importance happening in the world in present. It covers various topics like latest appointments, books and authors, awards and honors, central and state government’s schemes, sports, etc.

The recommended way to keep oneself abreast with Current Affairs is to read a standard newspaper on a daily basis. Newspapers not only improve one’s awareness of the social and geopolitical changes happening around the world but also one’s vocabulary, speed of reading and the newspaper’s editorial section helps in improving one’s ability to look at a situation with a different point of view. This in turn helps in other sections of IBPS Clerk exam like English and Reasoning. Thus, newspapers help in the overall preparation of a candidate.

But in case you are unable to follow the rigorous schedule of reading newspaper daily, even then you need not lose heart. Monthly magazines like Pratiyogita Darpan and others are enough to get you out of troubled waters. Nowadays various free applications are available on various operating systems like Android, IOS and windows that provide updated current affairs. They have an advantage over the newspapers and magazines that information is available instantly whenever any incident takes place. Also, they provide information crisply and perspicuously.

In case you are short on time, you may refer to the GK quizzes available at our website which provide precise information as per the syllabus and are updated regularly.

Static GK:

As the name suggests, the static GK remains “static” i.e. do not change with time. For eg. important organizations & their headquarters, countries and their currencies, national parks & wildlife sanctuaries etc. static GK play a big role in all General Awareness section of all the government exams.

To prepare for the same, you should dedicate yourself to one of the standard books like Lucent’s. Your target should be to finish the book at least twice to ensure the assimilation of the knowledge. The best way to do accomplish this is to make handwritten notes. It is scientifically proven that humans remember things longer when they write down the information. Crisp and precise hand written notes help in two ways, better assimilation of knowledge and quick revision of the same at the eleventh hour.

There are various short notes for Static GK readily available on the internet. But you must be confident before following one as picking up a wrong one with too many mistakes can wash away all your hard work. In case you are unsure and confused over the vast array of available choices, you may visit our website for more information.

Along with regular reading, regular revision and practice is of equal importance. You may check your progress by attempting our daily Static GK.

Banking & Financial Awareness:

Banking & Financial Awareness is a prerequisite for a successful career in the Banking Industry. And hence to check a candidate’s knowledge of the same, IBPS Clerk mains exam consist of questions based on Banking and Finance. Following Topics are covered under Banking & Financial Awareness:-

• History of Banking in India: Nationalisation of Banks, when was the first bank in India set-up etc.
• NABARD, Planning Commission, Finance Commission, World Bank
• CRR, Repo rate ,Reverse Repo, Bank rate, SLR, Mutual Funds, Open Market Operations; Money supply
• Role of Reserve Bank Of India in Indian banking system
• Foreign Exchange reserves of India
• BASEL norms
• Types of markets, banking and money instruments.
• Banking abbreviations
• Government’s new schemes and policies
• Origin of RBI.
• Powers & functions of RBI
• Types of bank accounts and their features
• Debit card, Credit card, Smart card
• Mobile Banking, personal banking, tele-banking, corporate banking, Online banking etc.

Banking Awareness can further be broadly divided into Static and Dynamic.

Dynamic Banking Awareness: Here again, the best way to remain updated is to go through the newspapers like Economic times. It may be hard for some to completely grasp the contents at the beginning, but with lapse of time both your English and Banking Awareness will improve many folds.

Again, various apps are available in the market to ease the burden and provide you with information at your fingertips but nothing can beat the good old newspapers. In case you are unable to read the complete paper, try to read at least the editorial section regularly.

Static Banking Awareness: Static Banking awareness can be grasped thoroughly by referring to one of the standard books like Banking Awareness by Arihant. Regular study and timely revision are the keys to success for every exam and IBPS Clerk Mains is no exception.

As the Mains exam in January, you should try to solve as many sample papers and previous years’ papers as possible. Nothing is better than getting rid of exam fever by simulating the same atmosphere by solving a few mock tests within the stipulated time period. In case you feel that you have done enough and need not do more, then remember that even Master Blaster Sachin Tendulkar used to practice before every match. Make judicious use of your time and embark on your journey to success.

If you wish to be updated regarding the banking exam, daily GK updates, current affairs, study material, and other details, download gradeup. It also provides free practice test, notes, & updates for various competitive exams.

All the best for your exams,

Team gradeup!