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Here in this article, we will be discussing the Topper’s Strategy to score 80+ in IBPS Clerk 2018 prelims exam. These strategies are shared with us by one of our reader along with his scorecard as proof which is clearly shown in the picture above. The strategies discussed below will help you to not only attempt good number of questions but also will aid you in scoring pretty good marks in the upcoming IBPS Clerk 2018 Prelims Exam.
Talking about the IBPS Clerk Prelims Exam held in 2017 the level of questions asked were easy to moderate. As per the reviews given by the candidates last year one can easily attempt 75+ questions in exam if he or she is having good command over all the three sections and have also practiced well in a given stipulated time. But there is a fact which is always need to be kept in mind that whenever the level of questions asked in exam becomes easier the cut off in contrary to it touches the sky and therefore accuracy of a candidate matters a lot accompanied by the speed to attempt maximum questions. The same thing happened last year also, a good number of deserving candidates lost the battle in the preliminary examination due to the rocket high cutoffs and thus failed to get selected for the mains examination. So inorder to target good marks in prelims exam along with surpassing the cutoffs, one need to very smart and calculative before attempting questions in exam.
How to score 80+ in IBPS Clerk 2018 Prelims Exam
IBPS has made a major change this year by introducing the sectional time limit of 20 minutes in all the three sections of English Language, Reasoning Ability and Quantitative Aptitude without making any changes in the sectional cutoffs. Therefore unlike last year candidates cannot give more than 20 minutes to any particular section and attempt more in that section. This time you need to analyse and make the right decision to select the right question on which you are sure to get the correct answer first and then move towards trying those on which you’re not confident enough to get the right answer. Keeping in mind that you need to clear both sectional cutoff as well as overall cutoff to get selection for the mains examination. Hence choosing the right question and getting the correct answer along with it for scoring good marks matters a lot. Now let us look forward towards the strategies which you need and important tips to remember for each section.
Strategy for English Language
This section is the game changer in every competitive bank exam. Candidates getting good marks in Quantitative Aptitude and Reasoning Ability sections, sometimes seems to be loosing the battle at the preliminary stage itself by failing in this section. Therefore English Language section has it utmost importance and need to be handle with proper care while attempting questions from this section. The topics which are usually asked directly or indirectly in English Language includes,
- Reading Comprehension
- Fill in the blanks
- Sentence Correction
- Spot the error
- Cloze Test
- Para jumble
Now the question arises which question to choose the first and which to choose the next inorder to attempt the questions with good accuracy. To answer this, we think that you should first go with fill in the blanks including double fillers or triple fillers or if in case it’s not asked in exam, then first go with cloze test. As these questions don’t require your knowledge of grammar much and proves to be easier comparatively with others to find right answer from the given options. And to mark the right answer accurately you only to understand it completely to get a proper idea of what the author is saying, because sometimes it seems that usually only one or two options fits the given empty blanks correctly making it easier to choose the right answer. In addition to it if your knowledge of vocabulary or phrasal verbs is pretty awesome then fillers or cloze test can became a cake walk for you.
Next comes the Reading Comprehension and Parajumbles, for this you need to pursue all the qualities of a good reader. Reading the given content quickly and understanding them at the same time is necessary to attempt questions from this topic with good accuracy. And sometimes if you’re running short of time or finding it difficult to understand the content written then you also try attempting synonyms/antonyms usually asked in reading comprehension and in Parajumbles you can try attempting the questions in which the starting or the ending sentences are being asked.
In the last, go with Sentence Correction and spot the error questions as they require your knowledge of grammar. If you are good in finding grammatical errors, the error spotting questions can become easier for you to attempt. Talking about the sentence correction questions, they’re known to be easier to deal with in comparison to others. Sometimes the knowledge of idioms and phrases also comes handy while dealing with questions of sentence corrections. So try not forget these tips and prepare accordingly.
In conclusion we can say that some aspirants find English easy while for others it becomes tuff deal to attempt questions from this section. Also there are some candidates who find it easy but fails to clear the sectional cut off due to the negative marking because of incorrect answers. So you first need to read the question quickly, then understand the question correctly and after it choose the right answer smartly as 20 minutes are enough to attempt good number of questions from this section but to clear the sectional and overall cutoffs, accuracy of answers matters a lot.
Strategy for Quantitative Aptitude
Quantitative Aptitude proves to be a scoring section for most of the candidates. It’s because you can arrive at the correct answer quickly after solving the question with right approach and can be sure with the marked option on accuracy. But if you will start selecting with wrong question you may end up with insufficient number of attempts. So to attempt more, some planning is required. The Quantitative Aptitude section includes the following topics which are mostly scoring in nature.
- Approximation
- Simplification
- DI
- Quadratic Equations
- Number Series
- Miscellaneous Word Problems
To give a good start and to maintain a good confidence while attempting questions throughout this section, one should start with the topic of Approximation and Simplification. Use the concepts of digital roots and unit digits to solve the problems of approximation and simplification, inorder to obtain the answers quickly and also accurately. Keep in mind to always solve the questions of simplification after following the rules of BODMAS. Questions from this topics may fetch you good marks and will definitely help you in building a good looking scorecard.
Next try to solve questions from Data Interpretations. Usually out of 5 or 6 given questions in DI, two or three questions are easier to deal with. This may include questions asking to find out ratios between two elements, differences in the values of two products, percentage change etc. The chapter wise knowledge of percentages, ration and proportion and speed maths comes handy while attempting questions of data interpretation with good accuracy. In case if you find any question in DI which time consuming or difficult to deal with the given information, you can skip that question and move towards the next one instantly.
Coming to the topic of Number Series and Quadratic equations, the questions from them are easy to deal with if you gets the logic in the first 30 seconds, but if you gets stuck with any question then skipping them is the best option. On the quadratic equations are simpler to find the answer if you are aware of the root method. Talking about the Miscellaneous Word Problems, the questions included in these may be from chapter based topics like Time & Work, Speed Time & Distance, Pipes & Cistern, Profit & Loss, Percentages, Ages and Partnership. If you have good knowledge of any of these chapter then choose the question from that topic first and solve it. But in case if you’re not sure to get the correct answer, then there’s no need to waste time on it.
Strategy for Reasoning Ability
Talking about the third section of the exam, the reasoning ability section comes with some very good scoring questions and also some lengthy puzzles too. But again everything depends upon the selection of your right question where you’re confident to get the right answer in minimum time. The topics from this section may include,
- Inequality
- Syllogism
- Coding – Decoding
- Puzzles
- Blood Relations
- Direction based Questions
Start attempting with inequality questions with good accuracy as they are very less time consuming and easier to get the right answer. Next move towards the question of syllogism or blood relations if you have good command over them otherwise you can also choose by going with direction based questions or coding-decoding questions first as per your convenience.
Next the major portion of Reasoning Ability section most of the time consists of a number of puzzles and seating arrangement questions. This is the topic where a lot of candidates end up wasting their quality time by selecting the wrong puzzle. So if you have a good amount time left in which you think you can crack the given puzzle, then our advice will be to give a try as it can reward you 5 marks which are good enough to keep you in the competition otherwise if you are not confident enough to crack them in the least possible time then leaving this topic in the preliminary exam can be the better choice. And you can devote that time in solving the other miscellaneous word problems. One thing which you need to remember is that while attempting puzzles try to first deal with those in which less amount of information is given or the puzzles having only one variable.
Final Words
Read the instructions carefully given in every question before attempting them and select the right question smartly based on the knowledge you have in a particular topic and choose the correct option only if you’re confident to get the right answer as one wrong answer can reward you negative marks and can bring your overall scores down. Also if you get stuck in any question or failing to obtain the answer then you should immediately skip that question by challenging your ego to get the right answer otherwise you will end up wasting your quality time in which you can score marks from the easier questions you are not looking at. Furthermore avoid doing any guess work, mark the option only when you are confident enough to get the right answer.
Apart from this don’t read anything from 24 or atleast 12 hours before the exam, keep your mind stress free. And if you’re having exam in the later slots of the day or exam in the next week or next day then it’s important to avoid reading reviews of exam and asking about the number of attempts from your friends as it will not affect the scores you will obtain in any way. It’s because the questions asked in exam are unpredictable and no one knows from which topic the question can be asked in next slot. In addition to it if consider the trending pattern of asking questions in exam, it is observed that topics from which questions are given in exam keeps on changing in every slot. So it’s strongly recommended to focus on your preparation and depend on the practice you have done for the exam rather than on distinct reviews.
That’s all in this article, if you find it useful then don’t forget to share it with others and if there’s any doubt, feedback or suggestions then feel free to share with us in the comment section given below.
Team Banking Dreams wishes you Best of Luck for your exams.
Thank You !!
Also Read :
Memory Based Reasoning Ability Questions of IBPS PO Mains 2018 with Solutions
Data Interpretation Questions with Unique Solutions | DI Set – 4
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