Bank of India PO Syllabus 2026: Prelims and Mains Topics

The Bank of India PO syllabus follows the IBPS PO syllabus, because Bank of India fills Probationary Officer posts through the IBPS common process (CRP PO/MT-XVI in the 2026 cycle). The exam has a qualifying Prelims, a Mains with an objective and a descriptive paper, a Personality Test and an interview.

IBPS names the tests in its notification but does not publish a topic-wise syllabus. The topic lists below are built from the official test names and from the questions asked in earlier IBPS PO papers. Use them as a working checklist, not as an official list. This page also covers what changed in the 2026 Mains and how to cover the syllabus in phases.

Table of Contents

• Bank of India PO syllabus at a glance

• Key changes to know

• Prelims syllabus

• Mains syllabus

• Overlap between Prelims and Mains

• Personality Test and interview

• How to cover the syllabus

Bank of India PO syllabus at a glance

Key changes to know

• Bigger Mains objective paper: It has 170 questions for 200 marks, up from 145 questions in the earlier pattern.

• Awareness section expanded: It now has 50 questions for 60 marks and includes digital and financial awareness, so banking and economy topics gain weight.

• English cut down in Mains: It carries 20 marks, while it stays a full section in Prelims.

• New descriptive format: Essay and comprehension replace the earlier Letter and Essay paper.

• Personality Test added: It is a new online test before the interview. It has no study syllabus.

Older pages may still show the earlier Mains with Computer Aptitude and a Letter and Essay paper, so follow the current notification. Some sources still name the Mains Reasoning section with Computer Aptitude, so keep basic computer awareness in your revision as a low-cost safeguard.

Bank of India PO Prelims syllabus

Prelims is a screening test, so the goal is accuracy at speed across all three sections, since each has its own cut-off.

Reasoning carries 40 of the 100 marks, so puzzles and seating arrangements deserve the most practice time. In Quantitative Aptitude, simplification, number series and data interpretation usually give the fastest marks. In English, a comprehension passage and a cloze test together can settle your sectional score.

Bank of India PO Mains syllabus

Reasoning

• Logical reasoning: Puzzles, seating arrangement, syllogism, inequalities, statements and assumptions, statements and conclusions, strengthening and weakening of arguments.

• Verbal reasoning: Coding-decoding, blood relations, direction sense, order and ranking, input-output.

• Data sufficiency: Deciding whether the given statements are enough to answer a question.

• Basic computer awareness: Computer hardware and software, operating systems, MS Office, internet and networking, memory, and cyber security basics.

General, Economy, Banking and Digital and Financial Awareness

Aim for the last six to eight months of current affairs before the exam, with banking and economy news given the most time.

English Language

• Reading comprehension: Passages with inference, vocabulary-in-context and tone questions.

• Grammar and usage: Error spotting, sentence improvement, sentence connectors and word usage.

• Sentence-level tasks: Cloze test, fill in the blanks, para jumbles, phrase replacement.

Data Analysis and Interpretation

Descriptive paper

The descriptive paper tests essay and comprehension-based writing in English. Practise structured essays on banking, economy, technology and social topics, with a short introduction, balanced points and a clear conclusion. Write within the time limit so you can finish both tasks.

Overlap between Prelims and Mains

Personality Test and interview

The Personality Test is a self-report questionnaire taken before the interview, and the interview has 100 marks. Neither has a topic syllabus. For the interview, revise your graduation subjects, your state and hometown, current banking and economy news, and your reasons for choosing banking.

How to cover the Bank of India PO syllabus

1. Weeks 1 to 8: Learn concepts in Quantitative Aptitude, Reasoning and English grammar, and start a daily reading habit.

2. From week 3: Add current affairs for 30 to 40 minutes a day and make monthly notes. Save banking terms in a separate sheet.

3. From week 6: Take topic tests and 20-minute sectional tests, and begin Data Analysis sets.

4. From week 10: Move to advanced puzzles and DI sets, and write one essay a week.

5. Final phase: Take full-length mocks, analyse them on the same day and revise your error log.

For the official test names and updates, check the IBPS website.