SBI Apprentice Syllabus 2026: Section-wise Topics and Study Plan
The SBI Apprentice syllabus covers four areas tested in a single online exam: General/Financial Awareness, General English, Quantitative Aptitude, and Reasoning Ability and Computer Aptitude. State Bank of India engages graduates as apprentices under the Apprentices Act, 1961, and the latest cycle (advertisement CRPD/APPR/2026-27/07) used this four-section, 100-mark test for 7,150 seats.
SBI names these four tests in its advertisement but does not publish a topic-wise syllabus. The topic lists below are built from the official test names, the level of SBI's clerical-cadre exams and the type of questions candidates commonly report. Use them as a working checklist, not as an official list. Each section also tells you where to start, so you can spend the first weeks on topics that return marks fastest.
Table of Contents
SBI Apprentice Syllabus at a Glance
The online written test has 100 objective questions for 100 marks in 60 minutes. Each section has its own 15-minute timer, so you cannot carry spare time from one section to another.
Section | Questions | Marks | Time | Medium |
|---|---|---|---|---|
General / Financial Awareness | 25 | 25 | 15 minutes | As available for your state |
General English | 25 | 25 | 15 minutes | English only |
Quantitative Aptitude | 25 | 25 | 15 minutes | As available for your state |
Reasoning Ability and Computer Aptitude | 25 | 25 | 15 minutes | As available for your state |
Total | 100 | 100 | 60 minutes |
One-fourth of a mark is deducted for each wrong answer. For a full breakdown of timing and marking, read the SBI Apprentice exam pattern guide.
Key Points to Know Before You Start
No official topic list: SBI publishes only the four test names. Any page that calls its topic list "official" is going beyond the advertisement.
Computer aptitude is not a separate section: It shares the 15-minute reasoning section, so you need fast answers on computer questions to leave time for puzzles.
Awareness has a financial tilt: The section is called General/Financial Awareness, so banking, RBI and economy topics deserve more time than general static GK.
English is tested only in English: Other sections are offered in regional languages depending on your state, but the English section is not.
One written stage only: There is no mains exam, descriptive paper or interview. After the online test come the local language test and the medical examination.
Older pages may list a separate computer knowledge section or a mains stage for the apprentice exam. Follow the current advertisement, which has one online test with four sections.
General / Financial Awareness Syllabus
This is the section where preparation converts most directly into marks. There are no calculations, so a well-prepared candidate can finish it well inside 15 minutes and still review answers.
Area | Topics to cover | Start with |
|---|---|---|
Banking awareness | Types of banks, banking terms, types of accounts, cheques and negotiable instruments, KYC, NPA, digital payments (UPI, NEFT, RTGS, IMPS) | Banking terms and digital payment systems |
RBI and monetary policy | Functions of RBI, repo and reverse repo rate, CRR, SLR, bank rate, inflation basics, recent policy decisions | Policy rates and what each one controls |
Financial current affairs | Bank mergers, appointments, new schemes, financial inclusion schemes, budget and economic survey highlights | The last six months of banking news |
Government schemes | Central schemes on financial inclusion, insurance, pension, credit and social security | Schemes linked to bank accounts and insurance |
General current affairs | National and international events, awards, summits, sports, important days | Monthly summaries |
Static GK | Headquarters and heads of banks and financial bodies, currencies and capitals, national parks, dams | Banking and financial institutions |
How far back to read
Current affairs from roughly the six months before the exam usually matter most. Keep a single running notebook, add five to ten points every day, and revise it every weekend. Questions often test a basic term in a current context, such as a policy rate change, so learn the meaning of each term along with the news.
Banking terms to learn first
Payment systems: UPI, NEFT, RTGS, IMPS and how they differ in timing and limits.
Policy rates: Repo rate, reverse repo rate, CRR, SLR and bank rate, and what each one controls.
Account and lending terms: KYC, NPA, overdraft, collateral, EMI and priority sector lending.
Institutions: RBI, NABARD, SIDBI, NPCI, SEBI and IRDAI, with their main roles.
These terms appear year after year, either directly or inside current affairs questions, so they repay the time spent on them.
General English Syllabus
The English section rewards reading habit more than memorised rules. Reading comprehension and cloze-type passages take time, so practise them early.
Topic | What is tested | Start with |
|---|---|---|
Reading comprehension | Main idea, inference, tone, vocabulary in context | One short passage a day, timed |
Cloze test | Choosing words that fit grammar and meaning in a passage | Passages on banking and economy themes |
Error spotting | Subject-verb agreement, tenses, articles, prepositions, pronouns | Subject-verb agreement and tenses |
Sentence improvement and fillers | Correct phrase replacement, single and double fillers | Single fillers |
Para jumbles and sentence rearrangement | Logical order of sentences | Finding the opening sentence |
Vocabulary | Synonyms, antonyms, word usage, phrasal verbs | Words from daily reading |
If English is not your strongest subject, aim to secure grammar-based questions first. They are faster and more predictable than long comprehension passages.
Quantitative Aptitude Syllabus
With 36 seconds a question, speed in calculation decides this section. Strong basics in tables, squares, percentages and fractions save more time than any shortcut trick.
Area | Topics to cover | Start with |
|---|---|---|
Calculation | Simplification, approximation, squares and cubes, fractions | Simplification daily for speed |
Number series | Missing number, wrong number | Difference and multiplication patterns |
Data interpretation | Tables, bar graphs, line graphs, pie charts, caselets | Table and bar graph sets |
Arithmetic | Percentage, ratio and proportion, average, ages, profit and loss, simple and compound interest, time and work, time speed and distance, mixtures, partnership | Percentage and ratio, since most other topics use them |
Equations | Quadratic equations, comparison of quantities | Quadratic equations |
Others | Mensuration basics, probability, permutation and combination | Leave until arithmetic is strong |
Simplification, series and quadratic equations are usually the quickest to solve. Attempt them first, then move to data interpretation and arithmetic word problems.
Reasoning Ability and Computer Aptitude Syllabus
This combined section is the most time-sensitive part of the paper. Long puzzles can consume the whole timer, so you need to know which question sets to attempt and which to skip.
Reasoning ability
Area | Topics to cover | Start with |
|---|---|---|
Puzzles and arrangement | Linear and circular seating, floor and box puzzles, scheduling | Linear seating with one variable |
Logical reasoning | Syllogism, inequality, statement and conclusion | Inequality and syllogism |
Verbal reasoning | Coding-decoding, blood relations, direction sense, order and ranking | Direction and ranking |
Other topics | Alphanumeric series, input-output, data sufficiency | Alphanumeric series |
Computer aptitude
Computer fundamentals: Hardware, software, input and output devices, memory types and units.
Operating systems and MS Office: Basic functions of Windows, Word, Excel and PowerPoint, file types.
Internet and networking: Types of networks, protocols, browsers, email terms, IP basics.
Security and banking technology: Viruses and malware, firewalls, phishing, safe online banking practices.
Shortcuts and abbreviations: Common keyboard shortcuts and computer abbreviations, which are quick marks if revised often.
Answer computer questions first in this section. They take a few seconds each, which leaves the rest of the 15 minutes for one or two puzzle sets and quick logical questions.
Local Language Test: Is There a Syllabus?
No. The test of local language checks whether you can read, write, speak and understand one specified language of the state you applied for. SBI does not publish a syllabus or marks for it. It is held after the online test, and candidates who fail it are not engaged.
You are exempt if you produce a Class 10 or Class 12 mark sheet or certificate showing that you studied that language. If you are not covered by the exemption, practise reading short passages, writing simple sentences and holding a basic conversation in the language. The SBI Apprentice eligibility page lists the specified languages state by state.
Overlap with Other Bank Exams
The four SBI Apprentice sections use the same subject areas as most clerk-level bank exams. Studying with that overlap in mind means one preparation serves several exams.
Area | SBI Apprentice | Clerk-level bank exams | How to plan |
|---|---|---|---|
Quantitative Aptitude | 25 questions, basic to moderate level | Same topics, often with tougher data interpretation | Build arithmetic once and add harder DI later |
Reasoning | Shares time with computer aptitude | Same topics, with longer puzzles | Master short puzzles first, then extend |
English | 25 questions, grammar and reading | Same question types | Daily reading helps every exam |
Financial awareness | Banking and current affairs focus | Similar focus where awareness is tested | Keep one combined current affairs notebook |
Using Previous Year Questions
SBI does not release an official question paper for the apprentice exam, but question sets recalled by candidates are widely available. Use them to judge the level, not to predict exact questions.
Start early: Solve one recalled paper in the first two weeks to see the real level of each section.
Mark repeated themes: Note which topics and question types appear across years, such as inequality, simplification and banking terms.
Solve under time: Attempt each set with a 15-minute limit per section, not untimed.
Revisit near the exam: Solve them again in the last month to check how much faster you have become.
Common Mistakes While Covering the Syllabus
Treating awareness as an afterthought: It carries 25 marks, the same as quant, and is the quickest section to score in.
Ignoring computer aptitude: Candidates who skip it lose easy marks and waste reasoning time.
Studying only long puzzles: With 15 minutes for 25 questions, short logical topics often give more marks per minute.
Learning without timing: Knowing a method is not enough if it takes two minutes a question.
Skipping revision: Banking terms and current affairs fade quickly without weekly review.
How to Cover the SBI Apprentice Syllabus
A focused three-month plan is enough for most graduates, provided you practise against the clock from the middle of the plan onwards.
Weeks 1 to 4, foundations: Arithmetic basics, simplification, grammar rules, short puzzles and core banking terms. Start a daily 30-minute current affairs habit.
Weeks 5 to 8, full topic coverage: Data interpretation, quadratic equations, all reasoning topics, computer aptitude and RBI and policy topics. Take topic-wise tests at the end of each week.
Weeks 9 to 10, sectional speed: Practise 25 questions in 15 minutes for each section. Track accuracy and the number of questions you leave.
Weeks 11 to 12, full mocks and revision: Take full-length mocks with sectional timers, analyse each one on the same day and revise from your error log and current affairs notes.
For timed practice in the current pattern, you can attempt SBI Apprentice mock tests on Testkart and use the section-wise analysis to see which topics cost you time. Testkart's SBI Apprentice study notes are useful for quick revision of banking terms and computer basics in the last two weeks.
Check the official SBI careers page for the latest advertisement and any change to the test structure: https://sbi.bank.in/web/careers/current-openings
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