Career Prospects to SBI Associates PO Exam aspirants

Posted by GuduruKarthik on November 3rd, 2014

Banking exams are creating a buzz among today’s Indian youth. From the past 5 years, there has been a significant increase in the number of candidates preferring Bank jobs over other private jobs. And the number is increasing year after year. The openings in the Banking and Financial sector in India are like never before.

The various exams conducted as a part of recruitment process to select candidates for the position of Bank Probationary Officer (PO) are SBI Associates PO Exam, IBPS PO exam etc. Even before thinking of Bank job as a career option, you should be aware of the roles and responsibilities of a bank PO. This helps you in two ways:

1. You can decide whether it is a suitable job for you or not

2. If yes, based on the responsibilities, you can deduce the requirements and structure your preparation for the exam

Probationary Officer is the first position of an officer in Bank and the career growth curve is always inclined upwards for the good performers.

The banks across the country conduct their own competitive examinations to shortlist candidates for the vacant positions. The most common exams are SBI Associates PO Exam for SB group of banks and common written examination (CWE) conducted by Institute of Baking Personnel Selection (IBPS) for a group of 20+ banks and financial institutions across the country. The demand for bank professionals is so high that SBI conducted this exam for the second in this year, first in June/July and second to be held in November.

If you are looking out for an opportunity to enter the Banking industry, SBI Associates PO Exam is your best bet. Hope you’ve already applied for the exam. This PO exam scheduled in the month of November has an overwhelming 3000 vacant positions to be filled in across its 5 branches in India. The exam contains 4 sections: Data Analysis & Interpretation, English Language, High Level Reasoning and General Awareness, Marketing & Computers along with a descriptive exam on English language.

After qualifying in the SBI Associates PO Exam, the next round of selection is Group Discussion and Interview. The selection will be made based on the top ranked candidates in each category.

Role and Responsibilities:

The candidate after clearing all the above rounds is allotted with an office. The candidate now called as the Bank Probationary Officer may be asked to complete the mandatory probation period which may vary from 6-12 months. Only after the probation period, the employee is assigned with the regular work.

The PO has to report to the Senior Manager of the branch. He/she should work in the various departments like loan department, mortgage and finance department. Even solving customer problems and complaints falls under the umbrella of the PO. Good communication and soft skills come into play while dealing with customers’ issues as well as when coordinating with the colleagues.

SBI Associates Bank PO salary:

The starting basic pay for a Probationary Officer is Rs. 14,500/- in the scale of Rs. 14500-600/7-18700-700/2-20100-800/7-25700 which is applicable to Junior Management Grade Scale I. Salary and perquisites like furnished accommodation, Medical Benefits, Conveyance Allowance, loans at less interest rates, LFC/HTC etc. form the compensation package. The total amount of compensation changes with posting location and the facilities provided by the individual banks; the average is about Rs. 65,000/- in Mumbai per month. The salary scales are due for revision.

Career Path

As you sow, so shall you reap. Career growth of a bank PO is directly proportional to the performance level of the candidate. To balance with the huge responsibilities there are promotions. The promotion chances increase every three-four years.

This opportunity can change the course of your career and lands you in a permanent secure job!!