IBPS Common Recruitment Process — Probationary Officers / Management Trainees
The common recruitment exam for Probationary Officer posts in participating public sector banks.
IBPS PO topic-wise practice and short mini mocks are live on Kitabey — students can practise IBPS PO Prelims- and Mains-pattern questions topic by topic or take a mini mock with the real paper's sections, sectional timers and marking, and every question's answer and explanation is checked before it's published. Puzzles and seating arrangements, reading passages, data-interpretation charts and current affairs aren't in Kitabey's bank yet, and full-length mocks follow as the bank grows. Coaching centres can also run IBPS PO tests with their own questions or an uploaded PDF.
IBPS PO has two online stages before the interview: a Prelims screening test and a Mains exam that counts towards the final merit. Every question is a single-correct MCQ with five options.
Each section runs on its own clock and has its own minimum score, so you can't make up for a weak section with time or marks from another.
| Prelims | English Language (30 Q, 30 marks, 20 min), Quantitative Aptitude (35 Q, 30 marks, 20 min), Reasoning Ability (35 Q, 40 marks, 20 min) — 100 Q, 100 marks, 60 minutes |
| Mains (objective) | Reasoning (40 Q, 60 marks, 45 min), General / Economy / Banking Awareness incl. digital & financial awareness and RBI circulars (50 Q, 60 marks, 35 min), English Language (40 Q, 20 marks, 35 min), Data Analysis & Interpretation (40 Q, 60 marks, 45 min) — 170 Q, 200 marks, 160 minutes |
| Mains (descriptive) | A separate English essay & comprehension paper (30 minutes) — not covered by Kitabey's tests |
| Question format | Single-correct MCQs with 5 options; every section separately timed |
| Sectional cutoff | Yes — a minimum score in every section plus the total, at both stages |
| Medium | English and Hindi (the English section is in English) |
Marking scheme
Correct
Section marks ÷ questions — e.g. Prelims Quant is 30 marks over 35 questions, Mains English 20 marks over 40
Incorrect
−¼ of that question's marks for every wrong answer; unanswered questions get 0
IBPS publishes section totals, not per-question weights, so uneven sections are read as equal marks per question. The Mains pattern changed in 2026 (170 questions, up from 145 in 2025) and could change again, and the Mains sections may appear in any order on exam day. IBPS calls the Mains section just "Reasoning" — whether computer-aptitude questions still appear inside it isn't confirmed.
Every section has its own timer. Practise 20-minute Prelims sections and full Mains sections on their own clocks so you learn when to move on.
A strong overall score doesn't help if one section falls below its minimum. Keep your weakest section above the line before chasing a higher total.
Mains reasoning is dominated by multi-variable puzzles and arrangements, and DA&I by chart and caselet sets. Practise them as sets of five, timed.
Mains awareness leans on banking, the economy, RBI updates and recent events — a daily habit beats a last-month cram.
What's live today for IBPS PO, and what's coming next.
Note: This guide covers the evergreen pattern, syllabus, and preparation framework. Registration dates, exam dates, and category-wise cutoffs change every cycle — always verify the latest details on the official Institute of Banking Personnel Selection (IBPS) notification before you act on timelines.