The IBPS SO 2019 preliminary examination is scheduled on 28th and 29th of December 2019.  A total of 1163 vacancies were announced in the IBPS SO 2019 notification for the recruitment of Scale I Specialist Officers under the designations of IT Officer, Agricultural Field Officer, Rajbhasha Adhikari, Law Officer, HR/Personnel Officer and Marketing Officer.  With less than a month to go for the Prelims paper, it is high time that your preparation for the exam goes in a full swing. With the difficulty level of the exams increasing every year, it is prudent to carve out and at the same time follow a smart study plan accompanied with complete dedication, so that there is no looking back and no chances of repenting either. In this article, we would be providing you with some tips & free resources for the exam preparation so that you can go on to ace it and have a great start in your career. Tips to Study Smart & Ace the Exam
  1. Know everything about the Exam
The very first thing you should do before starting your exam preparation is knowing everything about the exam. Go through the complete pattern and syllabus of the exam. If you are a well-informed and strong-willed, half of your battle is won.
  1. Remember “Practice Makes Perfect”
Competitive Exams are all about scoring better than your peers. You will be able to score higher and better only when you practise enough. Have a look at the exam pattern. Understand the question types and then go on to practise each question type with proper understanding. Basic understanding of the concepts of each of the topics and then enough practise will sail you through.
  1. Carve out a Study Plan as per your Time Availability
  • Many of you might be working individuals while others must be preparing full time. We would suggest you carve out day wise study plan as per your availability of time. Give emphasis to each and every section of the paper. Never ignore a particular section, thinking that you might prepare it afterwards.
  • Topics such as Puzzles, Data Interpretation, Reading Comprehension and others that you find tricky, should be given adequate time in your preparation schedule. Overall study should include all the topics with their specific time allotments and a certain period for revision.
  • Some students tend to focus more on the last-minute studying which is not the best approach for the exam preparation.
  1. Practice Previous Years Papers
This is one of the most effective ways to prepare for your exams. Previous Years Papers will help you understand the format of the exam as well the difficulty level of each of the sections. If you could find some memory based previous years papers, do go through them once. We are sure, you would benefit from them.
  1. Take up timely Mock Tests
  • It is one of the best ways of self-study for the exam.
  • Mock tests give you a real-time view of the actual paper.
  • It will help you understand your strong and weak topics as well as strong and weak sections.
  • It will also help you devise an attempt strategy for the IBPS SO Exam.
  • It will give you insights on how your preparations are going on and what needs to be done to have an improvement.
  1. Analyse the Mock Tests
Oliveboard Mock Tests give you a thorough analysis of the test that you take. Pay focussed attention to the analysis part after taking up each of the Mock Tests. Try and follow the advice given in there. This would not only help you understand the areas of preparation where you lack but also improve upon your weak topics if implemented properly.
  1. Keep Calm and Revise
Revision is one of the most underrated part of the exam preparation. Aspirants often tend to ignore this crucial part, consequences of which are seen after the result is declared. This is one of the most important things during preparations. Keep memorizing the tricks and patterns that you have already familiarised yourself with. Lack of revision often tends to forget the formulas and tricks to the questions. So, keep yourself in regular touch with the concepts that you have learned. Therefore, we would suggest dedicating adequate time to revision of Concepts, Formulae, Short Tricks etc.
  1. Time Management
Make timelines for your preparations so that you could complete the entire syllabus in time, revise important concepts and thereafter take up Mock Tests. This technique will help you have the time limit for every section and overall exam. Remember clearing the sectional cut off and the overall cut off is your goal. Also, there is negative marking for every wrong answer. You need to be sure while marking an answer, this will increase your chances of clearing the exam.
  1. Last-Minute Notes
Start making study notes of the topics which are very important from the examination point of view and which need to be revised at the end moment or before the D day.
  1. Have a firm faith in your abilities
Believe in your capabilities. Never underestimate your calibre. Always believe that you have what it takes to ace the exam. You can achieve it if you believe it. IBPS SO Preparation 2019 – Free Resources 
  1. Quantitative Aptitude
  • Learn Quick Calculations Techniques Here
  • Learn & Practice various Numerical Aptitude Topics Here
  • Practice Data Interpretation
  1. Reasoning Ability 
  • Frequently Asked Reasoning Topics– Learn Syllogisms, Data Sufficiency, New Pattern Inequality, Blood Relations, Coding-Decoding, Critical Reasoning Here.
  • Practice Puzzleswith Expert Guidance Here.
  • Practice High-Level Reasoning Here
  1. English Language
  • Understand English Grammar rules
  • Vocabulary Building Series 
  • Learn Important English Concepts
We hope that the above given Tips and Resources prove useful to you. Be regular, be consistent, be true to yourself and success will be yours. All the Best for the Exam.