Interview Book

CAREER
POWER - INTERVIEW
BOOT CAMP KIT
[CAREER POWER - INTERVIEW BOOT CAMP KIT]
Table of Contents

Chapter 1: Interview Basics ...................................................................... 3

Chapter 2: Interview Strategies and Behaviour ................................. 8
Chapter 3: Frequently Asked Questions - Interviews .................... 10
Chapter 4: Before / During and After the Interview ...................... 42
Chapter 5: Group Discussion Concepts & Topics ......................... 44

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[CAREER POWER - INTERVIEW BOOT CAMP KIT] 3

Chapter 1: Interview Basics

A job interview is a process in which a potential employee is evaluated by an employer for prospective
employment in their company, organization, or firm. During this process, the employer hopes to determine
whether or not the applicant is suitable for the job. A job interview typically precedes the hiring decision,
and is used to evaluate the candidate. The interview is usually preceded by the written examination and
evaluation of submitted documents from candidates who have cleared the examination, then selecting a
small number of candidates for interviews. The job interview is considered one of the most useful tools for
evaluating potential employees. It also demands significant resources from the employer, yet has been
demonstrated to be notoriously unreliable in identifying the optimal person for the job. An interview also
allows the candidate to assess the corporate culture and demands of the job.

Generally the Government Jobs have got single round of interview which is conducted post written exam.

Interview questions are generally designed to tap applicant attributes that are specifically relevant to the
job for which the person is applying. The job-relevant applicant attributes that the questions purportedly
assess are thought to be necessary for one to successfully perform on the job. The job-relevant constructs
that have been assessed in the interview can be classified into three categories: general traits,
experiential factors, and core job elements. The first category refers to relatively stable applicant traits.
The second category refers to job knowledge that the applicant has acquired over time. The third category
refers to the knowledge, skills, and abilities associated with the job.

General traits:
Mental ability: Applicants capacity to learn and process information
Personality: Conscientiousness, agreeableness, emotional stability, extroversion, openness to new
experiences
Interest, goals, and values: Applicant motives, goals, and person-organization fit

Experiential factors:
Experience: Job-relevant knowledge derived from prior experience
Education: Job-relevant knowledge derived from prior education
Training: Job-relevant knowledge derived from prior training

Core job elements:
Declarative knowledge: Applicants learned knowledge
Procedural skills and abilities: Applicants ability to complete the tasks required to do the job
Motivation: Applicants willingness to exert the effort required to do the job

Interviewee performance
Interviewer evaluations of applicant responses also tend to be colored by how an applicant behaves in the
interview. These behaviors may not be directly related to the constructs the interview questions were
designed to assess, but can be related to aspects of the job for which they are applying. Applicants without
realizing it may engage in a number of behaviours that influence ratings of their performance. The
applicant may have acquired these behaviours during training or from previous interview experience.
These interviewee performance constructs can also be classified into three categories: social effectiveness
skills, interpersonal presentation, and personal/contextual factors.

Social Effectiveness Skills:
Impression management: Applicants attempt to make sure the interviewer forms a positive
impression of them
Social skills: Applicants ability to adapt his/her behavior according to the demands of the situation to
positively influence the interviewer

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Self-monitoring: Applicants regulation of behaviors to control the image presented to the interviewer
Relational control: Applicants attempt to control the flow of the conversation

Interpersonal Presentation:
Verbal expression: Pitch, rate, pauses
Nonverbal behavior: Gaze, smile, hand movement, body orientation

Personal/contextual factors:
Interview training: Coaching, mock interviews with feedback
Interview experience: Number of prior interviews
Interview self-efficacy: Applicants perceived ability to do well in the interview
Interview motivation: Applicants motivation to succeed in an interview

Process
A typical job interview has a single candidate meeting with between one and three persons representing
the employer; the potential supervisor of the employee is usually involved in the interview process. But in
case of Bank or SSC Interview, it is a common Interview panel comprising of existing/ retired personnel of
different banks/ departments who are hired to conduct interviews. A larger interview panel will often have
a specialized human resources personnel/ Women employee or even a minority caste representative.
While the meeting can be over in as little as 15 minutes, job interviews usually last less than half an hour in
case of bank/ssc interviews.

The bulk of the job interview will entail the interviewers asking the candidate questions about his or her
job history, personality, work style and other factors relevant to the job. For instance, a common interview
question is "What are your strengths and weaknesses?" The candidate will usually be given a chance to ask
any questions at the end of the interview. These questions are strongly encouraged since they allow the
interviewee to acquire more information about the job and the company, but they can also demonstrate
the candidate's strong interest in them.

Most job interviews are formal; the specialised or critical the role, the more structured the interview will
tend to be. Candidates generally dress slightly better than they would for work, with a suit (called an
interview suit) being appropriate for a white-collar job interview.

A bad hiring decision nowadays can be immensely expensive for an organizationcost of the hire, training
costs, severance pay, loss of productivity, impact on morale, cost of re-hiring, etc. Studies indicate that 40%
of new executives fail in their first 18 months in a new job. This has led to organizations investing in on
boarding for their new employees to reduce these failure rates.

Govt. Job interviews are typically conducted face-to-face, they are a social interaction between at least two
individuals. Thus, the behavior of the interviewer during the interview likely leaks information to the
interviewee. That is, you can sometimes tell during the interview whether the interviewer thinks positively
or negatively about you. Knowing this information can actually affect how the applicant behaves, resulting
in a self-fulfilling prophecy effect. For example, interviewees who feel the interviewer does not think they
are qualified may be more anxious and feel they need to prove they are qualified. Such anxiety may hamper
how well they actually perform and present themselves during the interview, fulfilling the original
thoughts of the interviewer. Alternatively, interviewees who perceive an interviewer believes they are
qualified for the job may feel more at ease and comfortable during the exchange, and consequently actually
perform better in the interview. It should be noted again, that because of the dynamic nature of the
interview, the interaction between the behaviors and thoughts of both parties is a continuous process
whereby information is processed and informs subsequent behavior, thoughts, and evaluations.

Type of Questions
Behavioral Questions
Behavioral (experience-based or patterned behavioral) interviews are past-oriented in that they ask
respondents to relate what they did in past jobs or life situations that are relevant to the particular job

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relevant knowledge, skills, and abilities required for success. The idea is that past behavior is the best
predictor of future performance in similar situations. By asking questions about how job applicants have
handled situations in the past that are similar to those they will face on the job, employers can gauge
how they might perform in future situations.

Behavioral interview question examples:.
Describe a situation in which you were able to use persuasion to successfully convince someone to see
things your way.
Give me an example of a time when you set a goal and were able to meet or achieve it.
Tell me about a time when you had to use your presentation skills to influence someone's opinion.
Give me an example of a time when you had to conform to a policy with which you did not agree.

One way individuals can prepare for behavioral type questions is to practice the STAR method. The STAR
method is a structured manner of responding to a behavioral-based interview question by discussing the
specific situation, task, action, and result of the situation you are describing.
Situation: Describe the situation that you were in or the task that you needed to accomplish. This
should describe specifics rather than general descriptions of past behavior.
Task: What goal were you working toward?
Action: Describe the actions you took to address the situation with detail and focus on yourself. What
specific steps did you take and what was your contribution?
Result: Describe the outcome of your actions. What happened? How did the event end? What did you
accomplish? What did you learn? Make sure your answer contains multiple positive results.

Situational interview questions
Situational interview questions ask job applicants to imagine a set of circumstances and then indicate how
they would respond in that situation; hence, the questions are future oriented. One advantage of situational
questions is that all interviewees respond to the same hypothetical situation rather than describe
experiences unique to them from their past. Another advantage is that situational questions allow
respondents who have had no direct job experience relevant to a particular question to provide a
hypothetical response. Two core aspects of the SI are the development of situational dilemmas that
employees encounter on the job, and a scoring guide to evaluate responses to each dilemma.

Situational examples
You are managing a work group and notice that one of your employees has become angry and hostile in
recent weeks, to the point of disrupting the entire group. What would you do?
You are in a meeting. Your manager blames you for not doing well on a task, in front of all your peers
and managers from other divisions. You believe that your manager is wrong in his critique, and that he
might have come to this conclusion hastily without knowing all the information. You feel you are being
treated unfairly in front of your peers. You feel that your reputation may be affected by this critique.
What would you do in this situation?
A general request has been issued by the Dean for someone to serve on a new joint
government/industry/university committee on business education. The objective of the committee is
to design the budgeting allocation for the Faculty for the next fiscal year. It is well known that you have
the necessary skill and expertise to improve the chances that the Faculty will receive budget increases
for future operations. You have been told that it will require 23 days per month of your time for the
next 9 months. Your tenure review is one year away. Although you think you have a good publication
record, you have no guarantee of tenure at this point. You are concerned because you have already
fallen behind on an important research project that you are pursuing with a colleague at another
university. What, if anything, would you do?
You are in charge of truck drivers in Toronto. Your colleague is in charge of truck drivers in Montreal.
Both of you report to the same person. Your salary and bonus are affected 100% by your costs. Your
colleague is in desperate need of one of your trucks. If you say no, your costs will remain low and your
group will probably win the Golden Flyer award for the quarter.
If you say yes, the Montreal group will probably win this prestigious award because they will make a
significant profit for the company. Your boss is preaching costs, costs, costs, as well as co-operation

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with one's peers. Your boss has no control over accounting who are the score keepers. Your boss is
highly competitive; he or she rewards winners. You are just as competitive; you are a real winner!
What would you do in this situation?

Other types of questions
Other possible types of questions that may be asked in an interview include: background questions, job
experience questions, and puzzle type questions. A brief explanation of each follows.
Background questions include a focus on work experience, education, and other qualifications. For
instance, an interviewer may ask What experience have you had with direct sales phone calls?
Job experience questions may ask candidates to describe or demonstrate job knowledge. These are
typically highly specific questions. For example, one question may be What steps would you take to
conduct a manager training session on safety?
The puzzle interview was popularized by Microsoft in the 1990s, and is now used in other
organizations. The most common types of questions either ask the applicant to solve puzzles or
brainteasers (e.g., Why are manhole covers round?) or to solve unusual problems (e.g., How would
you weigh an airplane without a scale?)

Types of Interviews

Case
A case interview is an interview form used mostly by management consulting firms and investment banks
in which the job applicant is given a question, situation, problem or challenge and asked to resolve the
situation. The case problem is often a business situation or a business case that the interviewer has worked
on in real life. A little flavour of the same can be seen by way of discussion round in Interview rounds that
various banks like Bank of Baroda, Indian Overseas Bank, IDBI Bank etc run in association with Manipal
School of Banking. Although it cannot be called an Interview but a round of discussion happens where a
Topic / Situation is given for discussion. SBI has a pure Group Discussion round which we will be
discussing in later chapters.

Panel
Another type of job interview found throughout the professional and academic ranks is the panel interview.
All Bank and SSC Interviews are panel Interviews. In this type of interview the candidate is interviewed by
a group of panelists representing the various stakeholders in the hiring process. Within this format there
are several approaches to conducting the interview. Example formats include:
General / Role Format Most prevalent in our Interviews for Govt. Jobs. Penalist from different walks
of life form the core team and Interviews the candidate from various areas like personal, professional,
market knowledge, subjects studied, and other general questions. Each panelist is tasked with asking
questions related to a specific role of the position. For example one panelist may ask technical
questions, another may ask management questions, another may ask customer service related
questions etc.
Other Formats which are seen in Interviews are as follows.
Presentation format The candidate is given a generic topic and asked to make a presentation to the
panel. Often used in academic or sales-related interviews.

Skeet shoot format The candidate is given questions from a series of panelists in rapid succession to
test his or her ability to handle stress filled situations.
The benefits of the panel approach to interviewing include: time savings over serial interviewing, more
focused interviews as there is often less time spend building rapport with small talk, and "apples to apples"
comparison because each stake holder/interviewer/panelist gets to hear the answers to the same
questions.

Stress
Stress interviews are still in common use though not much prevalent in our case. But one should
unsderstand the nuances of such interviews. One type of stress interview is where the employer uses a

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succession of interviewers (one at a time or en masse) whose mission is to intimidate the candidate and
keep him/her off-balance. The ostensible purpose of this interview: to find out how the candidate handles
stress. Stress interviews might involve testing an applicant's behavior in a busy environment. Questions
about handling work overload, dealing with multiple projects, and handling conflict are typical.

Another type of stress interview may involve only a single interviewer who behaves in an uninterested or
hostile manner. For example, the interviewer may not make eye contact, may roll his eyes or sigh at the
candidate's answers, interrupt, turn his back, take phone calls during the interview, or ask questions in a
demeaning or challenging style. The goal is to assess how the interviewee handles pressure or to purposely
evoke emotional responses. This technique was also used in research protocols studying stress and type A
(coronary-prone) behavior because it would evoke hostility and even changes in blood pressure and heart
rate in study subjects. The key to success for the candidate is to de-personalize the process. The
interviewer is acting a role, deliberately and calculatedly trying to "rattle the cage". Once the candidate
realizes that there is nothing personal behind the interviewer's approach, it is easier to handle the
questions with aplomb.

Example stress interview questions:
Sticky situation: "If you caught a colleague cheating on cash or expenses, what would you do?" This
question was asked in one of the bank Interview.
Putting you on the spot: "How do you think your interview is going?" Previous year interview
question from SSC CGL.
Popping the balloon: (deep sigh) "Well, if that's the best answer you can give ... " (shakes head) "Okay,
what about this one...?"
Oddball question: "What would you change about the design of the hockey stick?"
Doubting your veracity: "I don't feel like we're getting to the heart of the matter here. Start again tell
me what really makes you tick."

Candidates may also be asked to deliver a presentation as part of the selection process. The "Platform Test"
method involves having the candidate make a presentation to both the selection panel and other
candidates for the same job. This is obviously highly stressful and is therefore useful as a predictor of how
the candidate will perform under similar circumstances on the job. Selection processes in academic,
training, airline, legal and teaching circles frequently involve presentations of this sort.

Technical
This kind of interview focuses on problem solving and creativity. The questions aim at your problem-
solving skills and likely show your ability and creativity. Sometimes these interviews will be on a computer
module with multiple-choice questions.

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Chapter 2: Interview Strategies and Behaviour

Non Verbal Behaviors
It may not only be what you say in an interview that matters, but also how you say it (e.g., how fast you
speak) and how you behave during the interview (e.g., hand gestures, eye contact). In other words,
although applicants responses to interview questions influence interview ratings, their nonverbal
behaviors may also affect interviewer judgments. Nonverbal behaviors can be divided into two main
categories: vocal cues (e.g., articulation, pitch, fluency, frequency of pauses, speed, etc.) and visual cues
(e.g., smiling, eye contact, body orientation and lean, hand movement, posture, etc.). Oftentimes physical
attractiveness is included as part of nonverbal behavior as well. There is some debate about how large a
role nonverbal behavior may play in the interview. Some researchers maintain that nonverbal behaviors
affect interview ratings a great deal, while others have found that they have a relatively small impact on
interview outcomes, especially when considered with applicant qualifications presented in rsums. The
relationship between nonverbal behavior and interview outcomes is also stronger in structured interviews
than unstructured and stronger when interviewees answers are of high quality.

Applicants nonverbal behaviors may influence interview ratings through the inferences interviewers make
about the applicant based on their behavior. For instance, applicants who engage in positive nonverbal
behaviors such as smiling and leaning forward are perceived as more likable, trustworthy, credible,
warmer, successful, qualified, motivated, competent, and socially skilled. These applicants are also
predicted to be better accepted and more satisfied with the organization if hired.

Applicants verbal responses and their nonverbal behavior may convey some of the same information
about the applicant. However, despite any shared information between content and nonverbal behavior, it
is clear that nonverbal behaviours do predict interview ratings to an extent beyond the content of what
was said, and thus it is essential that applicants and interviewers alike are aware of their impact. You may
want to be careful of what you may be communicating through the nonverbal behaviors you display.

Physical attractiveness
To hire the best applicants for the job, interviewers form judgments, sometimes using applicants physical
attractiveness. That is, physical attractiveness is usually not necessarily related to how well one can do the
job, yet has been found to influence interviewer evaluations and judgments about how suitable an
applicant is for the job. Once individuals are categorized as attractive or unattractive, interviewers may
have expectations about physically attractive and physically unattractive individuals
and then judge applicants based on how well they fit those expectations. As a result, it typically turns out
that interviewers will judge attractive individuals more favorably on job-related factors than they judge
unattractive individuals. People generally agree on who is and who is not attractive and attractive
individuals are judged and treated more positively than unattractive individuals. For example, people who
think another is physically attractive tend to have positive initial impressions of that person
(even before formally meeting them), perceive the person to be smart, socially competent, and have good
social skills and general mental health.

Within the business domain, physically attractive individuals have been shown to have an advantage over
unattractive individuals in numerous ways, that include, but are not limited to, perceived job qualifications,
hiring recommendations, predicted job success, and compensation levels. As noted by several researchers,
attractiveness may not be the most influential determinant of personnel decisions, but may be a deciding
factor when applicants possess similar levels of qualifications. In addition,
attractiveness does not provide an advantage if the applicants in the pool are of high quality, but it does
provide an advantage in increased hiring rates and more positive job-related outcomes for attractive
individuals when applicant quality is low and average.

Just as physical attractiveness is a visual cue, vocal attractiveness is an auditory cue and can lead to
differing interviewer evaluations in the interview as well. Vocal attractiveness, defined as an appealing mix
of speech rate, loudness, pitch, and variability, has been found to be favorably related to interview ratings
and job performance. In addition, the personality traits of agreeableness and conscientiousness predict

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performance more strongly for people with more attractive voices compared to those with less attractive
voices.

As important as it is to understand how physical attractiveness can influence the judgments, behaviors, and
final decisions of interviewers, it is equally important to find ways to decrease potential bias in the job
interview. Conducting an interview with elements of structure is a one possible way to decrease bias.

Faking
Interviewers should be aware that applicants can intentionally distort their responses or fake during the
interview and such applicant faking has the potential to influence interview outcomes if present. Two
concepts that relate to faking include social desirability (the tendency for people to present themselves in a
favorable light), and impression management (conscious or unconscious attempts to influence ones image
during interactions). Faking in the employment interview, then, can be defined as deceptive impression
management or the conscious distortion of answers to the interview questions in order to obtain a better
score on the interview and/or otherwise create favorable perceptions. Thus, faking in the employment
interview is intentional, deceptive, and aimed at improving perceptions of performance.

Faking in the employment interview can be broken down into four elements.The first involves the
interviewee portraying him or herself as an ideal job candidate by exaggerating true skills, tailoring
answers to better fit the job, and/or creating the impression that personal beliefs, values, and attitudes are
similar to those of the organization.

The second aspect of faking is inventing or completely fabricating ones image by piecing distinct work
experiences together to create better answers, inventing untrue experiences or skills, and portraying
others experiences or accomplishments as ones own.

Thirdly, faking might also be aimed at protecting the applicants image. This can be accomplished through
omitting certain negative experiences, concealing negatively perceived aspects of the applicants
background, and by separating oneself from negative experiences.

The fourth and final component of faking involves ingratiating oneself to the interviewer by conforming
personal opinions to align with those of the organization, as well as insincerely praising or complimenting
the interviewer or organization.

Of all of the various faking behaviors listed, ingratiation tactics were found to be the most prevalent in the
employment interview, while flat out making up answers or claiming others experiences as ones own is
the least common. However, fabricating true skills appears to be at least somewhat prevalent in
employment interviews. One study found that over 80% of participants lied about job-related skills in the
interview, presumably to compensate for a lack of job-required skills/traits and further their chances
for employment.

Most importantly, faking behaviors have been shown to affect outcomes of employment interviews. For
example, the probability of getting another interview or job offer increases when interviewees make up
answers. Different interview characteristics also seem to impact the likelihood of faking. Faking behavior is
less prevalent, for instance, in past behavioral interviews than in situational interviews, although follow-up
questions increased faking behaviors in both types of interviews. Therefore, if practitioners are interested
in decreasing faking behaviors among job candidates in employment interview settings, they should utilize
structured, past behavioral interviews and avoid the use of probes or follow-up questions.
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10 [CAREER POWER - INTERVIEW BOOT CAMP KIT]

Chapter 3: Frequently Asked Questions - Interviews

The ice breaking questions asked in interview are usually based on personal details of the candidate and
related to candidates family, qualification, future planning and basic knowledge which can be either
related to their subjects or the role for which they have applied. SSC Interviews are more oriented towards
general aspects of candidate and the past background, education etc and on the other hand the Banking
Interviews apart from general aspects tends to get a bit technical i.e. Candidate must be prepared for
questions from Banking, Economy.

Some of the questions you can expect from these areas are discussed below and the answers or guidelines
provided are only hints based on which one can prepare the answers. This may or may not fit in an
individual case and may require case to case modifications and improvisation.

Q1. Introduce yourself ?
You can answer this question by giving a brief introduction of yourself - including your name, how many
family member are there in your family, family profession, about your education and professional
qualification if any, brief work experience if any, and career interest.

Q2. What is the meaning of your name
This is a very common question that the candidates face at a bank interview. You must know the meaning
of your name and mythological importance of your name. In fact, if the name of any of your family
members has a special connection, you must know about that also.

Q2. What is the specialty of the place you belong to?
You must be aware of the good/ bad things related to their home town or the place they live. You must
know the history of the place like - what is the meaning of the name of your city, what is the history behind
it, what was the old name of your place etc. or anything special that the city is/ was famous for like sarees,
bangles, marbles etc.

If theres nothing special about the city, try to explore famous places nearby. For example if a person
belongs to any village in Rajasthan, then he/she can give a view of Jaipur or Jaisalmer or any other famous
place near to his/her town or city or village. It can be the natures beauty, food, clothes, industries etc.

Q What are your hobbies?
Hobbies give an insight into your personality. So, mention them carefully and once you have mentioned
them, you must know well about them. For example if the candidate says that playing cricket is his/her
hobby, then the candidate must know about the number of players, rules and regulations, about the recent
cricket match, a little about cricket players also and all current news related with it. Mentioning a hobby
just for the sake of doing it without a proper knowledge about it will be disastrous.

Q. Why did you choose SSC/ banking as your profession?
This is a very common question that you can expect. Provide a straight answer without trying to bat
around the bush.

Q. Do you have any previous experience?
If you are working somewhere, you must know your job, company, industry well, as you can expect some
related questions. Also, you must be very careful while replying to this question if you have switched jobs
frequently. Since many candidates leave the bank job after some time, so, they try to find people who will
work with them for a longer time. Too many job switches in your profile reflect badly on your stability.
Either dont show too many job switches or be prepared with the valid reasons for change. If you are a

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working candidate, keep your NOC and other required documents ready. The banks are very strict and can
cancel your candidature in absence of a required document.

Q. Why did you leave your previous job?
Always be positive regardless of the circumstances. Speaking bad about your past employers would reflect
badly on you. So, dont malign anyone. The best answer would be for better prospects unless you have a
more genuine reason to offer.

Q. How can you be a value addition to our organization?
Try to connect your qualification and relevant experience with the organization. The candidates from fields
like engineering, science etc also apply for the bank job. These candidates can relate their qualifications or
subject they studied in their graduation with the banking sectors. Try to show a little banking knowledge
here. Show that you are interested in this job from several years with a valid reason.

Q Where do you see yourself in another five years?
Give a an answer which is practically possible. Study a bit about the banking organization that what are the
possible posts you can achieve in coming 5 to 10 years, and answer accordingly.

Q Do you think you have leadership quality?
Give a positive reply and relate it with some achievement at work, academics or even from the personal life

Q Can you explain a situation in which you displayed the leadership quality?
Mention a situation when you conducted any program, captained any game like cricket, football etc. or any
school curricular activity. If you have no such experiences then try to relate it to some of the incidents in
your personal life.

Q Do you have any achievement?
The achievement doesnt mean only by saving someone life or getting a gold medal. If in your life you feel
you have got or done something good, it is an achievement.

Q What is the basis of preferences which you have filled in your application?
In case of SSC the candidate needs to know the exact nature of jobs / positions which are there in SSC and
back up the answers. In case of banking candidate should have reasoning behind preferring one bank over
the other. The same can be backed by way of comparing them on basis of branches, business and overall
brand. A small note can be referred to for SSC Candidates in Annexure II to understand the nuances of SSC
Jobs.

Q What are your strengths?
Give two or three traits which can help you in your banking job like eye of detail, precision, good
communication skills etc.

Q What are your weaknesses?
Give one and correlate it with some strength. Never give any negative trait that affects or results negative.

Q Are you applying for other jobs?
Dont spend a lot of time replying to this question. Be honest and keep the focus on this job.
Dont give a big answer or discuss your future planning. Speak about what is in front of you only.

Q Do you know anyone who works in SSC / banking sector? (Applicable for Both Banking/SSC)
Keep information of relatives or parents friend who work in banking sector. This gives an impression that
you are aware about the industry and culture but be careful to mention a friend only if they are well
thought of.

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Q Are you a team player?
Always reply a positive answer for this question because it is a common requirement in all organizations.
Give a generic example from your experiences and show that you are a good evidence of your team
attitude.

Q Why should we select you?
Relate your skills and qualifications with the requirements.

Q Are you willing to work at other places except from your hometown?
Always reply this question with a Yes. There are less chances of getting the job at your desired places and
there are many candidates who are ready to work anywhere.

Q How would you evaluate your present firm?
Talk positive things about your current employer. Tell about the valuable experience you gained from the
organization. Dont mention negatives.

Q Who is your idol?
Only name of your idol is not sufficient. The candidate must know the history of his/her idol as well what
are the qualities which make him/her the idol.

Q Do you have any questions?
If you have any genuine questions, you can ask. Otherwise, just say thank you and leave.

Few previously asked Personal Questions -
It is not enough to have solid answers only for the below questions but you need to be prepared for the full
spectrum of questions that may be presented.
Tell me about yourself. (Even Qs related to your name/place can be expected if your name/place has
prominence )
Why did you choose this career?
Tell us about your education?
When did you decide on Banking career? A similar shoot off question can be for SSC.
Arent you over qualified for this position?
How will your professional knowledge be helpful in the Banking career?
Do you have any plans for further education?
Do you have any actual work experience?
What have you been doing after graduation?
Why are you leaving your current position? ( for working professionals)
What other career options do you have?
What goals do you have in your career?
How do you plan to achieve these goals?
What do you know about banking?
What is a Bank? A similar shoot off question can be for SSC like who is a preventive officer or an examiner.
Why do you want to work in the Banking industry?
What do you know about our company? (Should have an idea about important products from various
banks, tag lines etc)
Why are you interested in our company?
Why dont you join some private company?
How is your professional knowledge useful for our organization?
Why should I hire you?
What will you do if you get a better offer?
Who is your role model?
What are your short-term goals?
What is your long-term objective?
Where do you see yourself, five years from now?

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What is your greatest strength?
What is your weakness?
What are your hobbies?
Tell us about your extracurricular activities.
Qs related to your achievements?
Are you a team player?
Do you handle pressure well?
Do you have any location preferences?
Will you relocate?

Subject-wise Interview Questions

English
What have you read in English poetry?
What is the theme of Miltons poetry?
Which poem of Milton enchants you? Please lets
hear his lines?
What else have you read in English?
Do you know about Hamlet?
Who is the Nobel Prize winner in Literature in
2012?
Who is your favorite writer, and why?
What is noteworthy about Shakespeare/Milton?
Tell the name of some Indo-Anglo writers?
Some contemporary Indian English writers and
their work?
Do you read novels?
Which one you have read lately?
Woods are lovely dark and deep but I have
promises to keep miles to go before I sleep
Miles to go before I sleep. Why these lines are
famous and who has written these lines?

Public Administration, Management and
Marketing
What is POSDCORB In public Administration?
What is Motivation?
Explain X and Y theory of Motivation? Who is
founder of this Theory?
Who is the founder of management?
Who is the founder of Scientific Management?
Who is the founder of Management by
Exception?
What are the 4 P in Marketing?
Use of Marketing in Banks?
What is Management? Define in one line?
What is marketing? Define in one line?

How will you motivate your subordinates in

Bank if there are misconceptions between them
or any confusion?
What are the leadership qualities? Do you posses
these Qualities?
What is marketing mix?
What is product mix?
What is Branding?
What is corporate social responsibility?

Economics
What is optimum theory of population?
What is Malthusian theory of population?
Why 5 year plan in India is not successful?
What is law of Diminishing marginal utility?
Define National Income?
What is the Difference between GDP and GNP?
Difference between Micro and Macro
Economics?
Difference between Dynamic and Static
Economics?]
What is Interpolation and Interpolation?
What is Time Series?
Explain Fisher Index Theory?
Principle of maximum Social Advantage?
What is Absolute Error?
Discuss Keanss theory of Employment?
What is indifference curve analysis?
What is Says market law?
What is perfect competition?
Price determination under imperfect
competition?
What is Dumping?
Difference between Economy and Economics?
What is Law of Demand?
What is AC-MC Curve?
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Geography
What are the benefits of flood?
Can you give some specific reasons for untimely

rain is India?
What is Alnino effect?

What is Hurricane?
How many types of soil are found in India?

How your subject would be useful in Bank?
History
Do you know some places where black soil is
Who was Vikramaditya?
available in India?
Who was Chanragupta-II? Are they same
For which crop is the black soil suited most?
person?

here from he belonged?
Math
Who was the first governor- general of the
Which part of your mathematics is good?
independent India?
Do you know Demoviers theorem? Explain it.
How many battles were fought in Panipat?
Expansion of SinX.
Who had fought all the three battles?
Expansion of CosX.
Tell me something about Julius Ceaser? Name
Fariur Sevices.
two well known Historian?
Define n
What do you know about Indus valley
pr and n
civilization?
cr and their different applications in solving
When did Aryans come to India?
sums?
What are the sectors of Jain Religion?
What is Differentiation?
Please tell us about main principles of Jain
What is Integration?
Religious?

Who laid the foundations of the British Rules in Science Stream
India and in which year?
Why does cycle tube burst in summer?
What is Magna Carta?
Why does sky look blue?
Who was the last emperor of Gupta period?
What is the formula of (A+B)3

Is there any vain which carries impure blood?
Political Science
What is color blindness?
You are a student of Political Science? How is our What is Raman effect?
foreign Policy at present?
What is Boyles law?
What is Socialism? Should we follow it fully?
Who is the winner of Nobel prizein Physics,
What is Capitalism? Should we follow it if yes
Chemistry and Medicine?
then why of not then why?
What is Newtons I, II, III law?
Which article refers to emergency provision?
What is Charls law?
What is article 356?
Is there any use of science in Bank?
How does amendment take place in the
What is Snells law (laws of refraction)?
constitution?
What is Coulombs law of Electrostatics?
What is Veto?
What is Boyles law?
What is article 370?
What id Pascals law?
Do you think that Sonia Gandhi is a good leader? What is Archimedess Principle?
Sonia Gandhi as a PM, Are you agree with it if yes What is Specific heat?
then why it not then why?
What is Conduction, convection, radiation?

What is Dopplers effect?

What is Hard and Soft water?

CAREER POWER

Relevance of International Economics for this
year?
Who is the winner of Nobel Prize of Economics
for this year?
For which work this years Economic Nobel is
conferred?
Who is Amaitya Sen?

What is under table water?

Law
What is the difference between IPC and CPC?
Is our constitution written?
When was IPC formed or written?
When was CPC formed or written?
What is hypothecation?
What is mortgage?
What is Negotiable Instrument Act?
When Negotiable Instrument Act came into
force?
Difference in bill of exchange and Promissory
Notes?
Difference between cheque and Draft?
Tell us something about banking regulation Act?
What is Pledge?
Tell us something about Debt Recovery
Tribunal?
Till us full name of Securitization Act?
What is Securitization?
What is Lok Adalat?
What are the new amendments regarding
Company Act?
Difference between promise and proposal
What is Sale of Goods Act?
Difference between void and voidable contract?

Agriculture
How Indian Agriculture is viable?
Tell me something about green revolution?
mpact of green revolution on Banking Sector?
How you will manage rain-flooded area and raid-
fed area?
What are genetically modified crops?
With a bumper harvest and record yield of food
grains this year, the price rise was expected to
be reversed, But strangely the prices continue to
rise in India, why this is so?
What is the present scenario of Indian
Agriculture?
What is Rain water harvesting system?
How much amount of pulse is required at
minimum in Indian diet, and how much Indians
are actually getting it?
What is organic Farming?
How it is differ from existing way of farming?

Give some suggestions for sustainable

Agriculture in 21st century?
What is sustainable agriculture?
What is the situation of use fertilizers in India?
Are they being used in accordance with the
prescribed proportion of NPK?
What are the problems of marketing of
agricultural groups
What are the main sources of agricultural credit
in India?
Can commercial banks provide economic
assistance to the farmers?
Why should Agricultural officers be appointed in
banks?
What is the contribution of Agriculture towards
National Income?
Can a non technical man manage the post of an
Agricultural Officer of a bank?

Commerce Stream
What are the principles of Book Keeping?
What is Balance Sheet? How you come to know
after seeing balance sheet that economic
condition is good or bad any organization?
What is the difference between CA and ICWA?
What are the Accounting ratios?
What is the use of ratio in balance sheet of a
bank?
What is Acid test ratio?
What is accounting?
Difference between Double Entry System and
Double Account System?
Difference between Presidency and Provincial
Insolvency Act?
Explain various lists of Insolvency Act.
Explain tax and how many types of Tax are being
imposed in India?
What is Direct and Indirect Tax? Give some
examples?
What is 80L, 80G, 80DD, 88B, 89(1), 88C, 80E?
What are the sources of Income according to
Income Tax Act?
What is Capital Gain?
Income of MPs and MLAs is related to which
sources?
Agriculture Income is Exempt under which
section?
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Current Assessment year?

Describe new changes regarding to Income tax
in current Budget?
When Income Tax Act was enacted?
What is difference between Public Limited
Company and Private Limited Company?
Article of Association?
Memorandum of Association?
Quorum?
Annual General Meeting?
What are Prepaid Expenses and Outstanding
Expenses?
Tell us about Authorized, Issued and Paid-up
Capital.
What is Forfeiture of shares? How it is treated in
Balance Sheet of a Bank?
What is Single Entry System?
Tell us about Promoters and Directors?
What is Auditing? What are the main purposes of
Auditing?
An Auditor is the watchdog of a company
Explain it?
What is Value Added Tax?
What is Market Capitalization?
What is Break Even Point?
What is Prime Cost and Overhead Cost?
Difference between Fixed and Variable
Expenses?
What is Marginal and Standard Costing?
What is Master Budget?
What is capitalization?
What is Contract?
What is Bank Reconciliation Statement?
What is Partnership Deed?
Relevance of Bhartiya Bahi Khata in present
time?
What is Wages Inward and Outward?
What is Contribution in Cost Accounting?
Difference between Cost Accounting and Cost
Accountancy?
What are the elements of effective

Communication?
Explain Accounting Standards?
Explain Accounting Conventions?
What is Accounting Equation?
What is the use of Trial Balance?
What is Fund Flow?
What is Cash Flow?
What is Working Capital?
What are LIFO, FIFO, and HIFO?
What is Short Working?
What is Work in Progress?
What is Intangible Assets?
Tell us the Errors which are not disclosed by
Trial Balance?
What is difference between Public Sector
Company and Public Limited Company?
What is Real Account?

Finance
Difference between FDI and FII?
What is Sensex?
What is Nifty?
Difference between Cheque and DD.
What is NBFC?
Difference between Banks and NBFC.
What is KYC? Is it really useful to restrict Black
Money, how?
Demat account?
Shares?
Brokers?
Bullion market?
RBI, SBI, NPA?
What is meant by willful defaulters? Who
displays this and why? What are the effects of
being declared as willful defaulter by them..?
Money spent on PMJDY for ad's was waste or
useful..?

Random Questions
Share some views about Malala. She deserved Nobel or not?
Do you believe that Atal Vihari Bajpayee deserved Bharat Ratna?
Dont you think Govt is bit late in giving Madan Mohan Malviya a Bharat Ratna?
Who was Madan mohan Malviya? Expalin elaborately.
Is BJP right for India?
Explain Peshawar Attack

CAREER POWER


What is Moral policing?

What is kiss-of-love movement?
Why Modi visiting several countries frequently? Don't you think it is unnecessary?
Why MOM is necessary for us? Without that we can't eat or what?
Increase in E-Commerce is good or bad? If good, why retailers dont like the? (P.S.: Through Retailers,
Govt. earning more money)
Recently 1 cricketer died of bouncer, what was your feeling? Bouncers should be banned?
Why Planning Commission Abolishe?
Who is Bodo militant? Why they were in News?
What is wrong with Rahul gandhi? Why he is not as famous as Modi? (General Elections prospect)
Why is the insurance bill so important?
The right to fair compensation and transparency in land acquisition, rehabilitation and resettlement
Bill 2012?
What is article 370, and why it was in news?
What is Coalgate scam? And how it leads to e-coal auction?
Tell me about the success stories of ISRO in 2014?
What do you think about plane crashes? Who have to be blamed? Aviation Industry or Private Airlines?
Why Government not takeover all private airlines and airports?
What do you know about Ebola outbreak? Tell me some symptoms?
Do you really know about Kailash Satyardhi before he took Nobel? He deserves it or not?

Some Clues for Model Answers

1. Tell me something about yourself?
You walk into the interview room, your interviewer asks you to sit down with your best interviewing smile
on. Guess what their first question is? "Tell me about yourself." Do you "wing it" and actually tell all manner
of things about yourself? Will you spend the next 5 minutes rambling on about what an easy-going, loyal,
dedicated, hard working employee you've been? If this is the case, you stand a good chance of having bored
your interviewer to death thus creating a negative first impression. Because it's such a common interview
question, it's strange that more candidates don't spend the time to prepare for exactly how to answer it.
Perhaps because the question seems so disarming and informal, we drop our guard and shift into ramble
mode. Resist all temptation to do so. Your interviewer is not looking for a 10-minute dissertation here.
Instead, offer a razor sharp sentence or two that sets the stage for further discussion and sets you apart
from your competitors.

To answer this, the candidate must tell his name, place of residence and his current work or educational
degree along with a very brief note on his family-father, mother and siblings. He/she can also tell about his
father or mothers occupation. One point must be highlighted here is the USP or the Key Achievement of the
candidate. As that might be one the make or break point. From here the Interviewee can actually drive the
interview. Give them "your synopsis about you" answer, specifically your Unique Selling Proposition.
Known as a personal branding or a value-added statement, the USP is a succinct, one-sentence description
of who you are, your biggest strength / achievement. This could very well be your introductory line.
Here is an example of a Unique Selling Proposition: Someone without any work experience - "I'm Namrata
Prasad, a Bachelor in Commerce with Hons from Delhi University. I am a Gold Medalist of my Batch and an
ardent follower of Gandhi Principles. (Here Interviewee is trying to drive the interview as the next question
can be on Gandhi Principles). So if you have something like that go and speak up and use it for your benefit.

Someone with Work Experience can use following lines I am Namrta Prasad, a seasoned Retail Manager
strong in generating tapping new markets and generating quick sales that have resulted in revenue
contribution of over Rs 50 Million for my previous Company during the past 1 year much above the
average."

Someone with Technical experience can discuss contribution in developing a path breaking software/
technology used by various company now.

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Some key points to note here are:-
He must know the meaning of his name and specific reference with his name if any. For ex:- a boy
named Prashant was asked about the geographical connection of his name i.e. Prashant Mahasagar or
Pacific Ocean.
The answer should be precise and questions like- if your father is a teacher then why do you want to
become a banker? can come up from your answer to the first question. Be prepared with the answers to
these expected questions.
Because this is the first question so the candidate must give a short and effective answer. You might be
nervous at the beginning but remember to keep a smile on your face.
Be Specific - The key is that you must lead with your strongest benefit to the employer. Be specific and
don't wander about with some laundry list of skills or talents. Be sure to put a monetary value on your
work if at all possible and be ready with details when you're called upon.
Be Prepared - When you walk into an interview, remember to always expect the "tell me about
yourself" question. Prepare ahead of time by developing your own personal branding statement that
clearly tells who you are, your major strength and the clear benefit that your employer received. The
advantages of this approach are that you'll quickly gain their attention and interest them in knowing
more. You'll separate yourself from your competitors. You'll also have a higher chance of being
positively remembered and hired

2. Where have you come from and what is famous in your city?
The candidate must tell about his place of living- city and state. If the board further asks about any
specifications, then name of the district etc. should be told. He/she must tell about the famous things of his
place. For ex:- a candidate from Lucknow may tell about Imambara, chicken clothes, tehzeeb of Lucknow
etc.

The key things to deal this question effectively are:-
The candidate must know about the local MLA and MP from his area. If any renowned personality
belongs to that area, you should be aware of the details.
He must have full knowledge about that place, its history, famous monuments, personalities, rivers, at
times even number of railway stations in the city etc., also about the politics of that state-CM and ruling
party and all other nitty gritties of his place.
For ex: - A candidate from Ghazipur, U.P. was asked about cultivation of Poppy seeds as Ghazipur is
famous for cultivation of poppy seeds.
At times, questions about local politics are also put forward like a candidate, from Amethi was asked
about the electoral battle between Rahul Gandhi and Kumar Vishwas form Amethi.
A good answer to such questions leaves a very positive impact on the board as it demonstrates your
awareness about the surroundings and the fact that you are well prepared puts you ahead of others.

3. Why do you want to join the banking industry?
To answer this question, you can say something like I want to join this industry because it can provide
me a stable career with good growth prospects. It is one of the fastest growing sectors of the nation and
provides great career opportunities.

There could be many other reasons for you wanting to join the bank industry for e.g. it is an honest
organization, good working conditions, chances to directly interact with public etc. The choice of reason
could be anything that suits you as a person. This is a very commonly asked question and you must be
prepared to answer it.

4. Please tell us about your strength and weaknesses.
Here, the answers vary from candidate to candidate. But the strength and weakness should be such that
they match up to or are in synchronization with the personality of the candidate. For ex:- If a candidate
says that his strength is is general awareness while in reality he possesses least knowledge of current
affairs - cross questioning can easily unveil him and could actually land him in trouble.

Some key things to answer this question effectively are:-

CAREER POWER

Try to put forward a strength which is useful in the banking sector. For ex: - good communication skills,
adjustable etc. The strength should bring about a positive aspect of your personality in front of the
board.
This is a question from which you can actually turn the interview in your favour. For ex:- If you say
something like, I have won many awards in debate competitions so I would think that good oratory
skills are my strength.
This way I can inform the board about my previous achievements also and can get an advantage over
others.
They may ask how your quality/strength will be helpful to bank. Be prepared with an answer.
Weakness should not be very negative like short temper, irregular etc. as they leave a bad impression.
Remember, this question is the golden chance for you to turn the ball in your court. In the answer you
must introduce all your unique talent in front of the board. So that the interview enters in your own
comfort zone.

5. After doing B.Sc/B,tech/MBA/MA why do you want to choose banking or SSC? Why not something
related with you field of education?
You must give honest and sensible answers to such question. For ex:- A MBA candidate may say that there
are hardly good jobs in MBA as of now. Banking/SSC is a safe sector providing great employment
opportunities. In the answer, you must show your keen interest in joining banking sector and it should not
look like you dont have an option so you are choosing it.
You can also expect some questions from academics. A science stream student may be asked about about
Newtons Law etc. So, you must also prepare the subjects studied by you in the degree.

Other Tricky Question which one might expect from the panel
What has been the greatest disappointment in your life?
Your response to the question "What has been the greatest disappointment in your life?" will help the
interviewer determine know how easily you are discouraged. Believe it or not, it is okay to have not had a
"greatest" disappointment.
If possible, tell about a personal disappointment i.e. the early death of a parent, child, or school friend.

What are you passionate about?
When you're asked what you're passionate about during a job interview it's a good opportunity to share
what is important in your life. It's also an opportunity to show your dedication and what's important to
you.
Your response doesn't need to be work focused, but do be sure that what you share isn't something that
could potential cut in to your working hours.
For example, you don't want to say that you're a mountain climber with the goal of climbing Mountain
Everest or that you're getting ready for the Tour de France or looking to spend the winter skiing in Aspen.
Or One of my greatest passions is helping others. When I was younger, I've enjoyed helping mom with
household repairs. As I grew older, that habit grew and I desired to help others as well. I like helping
people find solutions that meet their specific needs.
Or I'm passionate about painting. I take an evening art class once a week and try to find time each weekend
to paint. Painting is a good way for me to relax and even though I don't have much talent, I do it enjoy it.
Or I'm passionate about making a difference. When I'm involved with a project at work I want to do my
best to achieve success, I feel the same way about what I do in my personal life.

What do people most often criticize about you?
The interview question "What Do People Most Often Criticize About You?" is asked to find out how
sensitive to you are and how you accept criticism.
A possible answer could be that There's no on-going criticism. I'm open to personal and professional
growth and welcome the opportunity to improve.

CAREER POWER

When was the last time you were angry? What happened?
When the interviewer asks "When Was The Last Time You Were Angry? What Happened?" he or she wants
to know if you lose control. The real meaning of the word "angry", to an interviewer, is loss of control and
it's important to know how you handle situations when you're angry.
A possible Answer could be that Anger to me means loss of control. I do not lose control. When I get
stressed, I step back, take a deep breath, thoughtfully think through the situation and then begin to
formulate a plan of action.

If you know your boss is 100% wrong about something how would you handle it?
The question "If you know your boss is 100% wrong about something, how would you handle this?" is
asked to find out how you deal with a difficult situation.
Sample Answers - An answer that works well is: "It depends on the situation and the personality of the
supervisor." To elaborate, give examples:
My present supervisor does not like to have his authority questioned. He's fairly new on the job and almost
all of the people he supervises have been on the job longer than he has. He's never bothered to learn the
procedures, how things are done or how the computer system works. But if any of us tell him that how he
wants something done won't work, he gets extremely angry. So, I never tell him he's wrong. Never.
Whatever he tells me to do, I smile and say "okay." Then if I know a way to get it done that will work, I do it
that way, give him the results he wants and never tell him I didn't do it the way he told me to. He got the
results and is happy. I saved myself the stress of being yelled at and gave him what he wanted, so I'm
happy.
My prior supervisor was more easy-going and if I told her "you know, I think it might work better if I do
what you asked in such and such a way," she say "okay, try it."
If I were a new hire on a job, I would probably not question a supervisor because I might think I didn't
know enough. Except on the new job I'm going to. The director has admitted that she's new on the job and
there are alot of things that a secretary does that she doesn't know how to do, so she will be depending on
me to know how to keep the office running.

Why do you think you will be successful at this job?
The interviewer is concerned as to whether you see this as a career move, or stop-gap employment.
As my resume reflects, I have been successful at each of my previous places of employment. My research of
your company, the job description outlined, and the information we've exchanged today, lead me to believe
I have the skills and experience for which you are looking; and I'm eager to be a contributing employee.

Tell me about a time that you participated in a team, what was your role?
Companies, for the most part, do not want "Lone-Rangers" - they are looking for employees who will adapt to
the company culture and get along with others.
In high school, I enjoyed playing soccer and performing with the marching band. Each required a different
kind of team play, but the overall goal of learning to be a member of a group was invaluable. I continued to
grow as team member while on my sorority's debate team and through my advanced marketing class
where we had numerous team assignments.

More job interview questions about you.
When the questions are "personal", about you, it can be a very slippery slope. The answers below are
guidelines so you can write out your answers long before you go to the interview. Then, when the question
is asked, you can take the few seconds (expected by the interviewer) to think about the question and how
you will frame your answer (which you already know).

How do you balance life and work?
The interviewer wonders if you've made arrangements for the days when your child is too sick to go to school
and/or daycare or if you're "out of there" as soon as it's quitting time.
Sample Answer: Being organized helps me balance my professional life and personal life. Consequently, I
can be fully engaged while I'm at work. For those unexpected times, I have a good back-up system of child
care for my children.

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What is your preferred way to communicate?
This is a good opportunity to show you understand the importance of adjusting your preferences when
necessary.
At home, I enjoy talking on the phone and emails. At work, I follow the established pattern. Each of my
bosses, in the past, has had a preferred method I've followed their lead.

What is your favorite book? How about your favorite movie?
The interviewer wants to know whether you read to stay current and if you will you fit into the company
culture.
Sample Answer (include your personal favorites): I read many different kinds of books. My current
"favorite" book is The World is Flat by Thomas Friedman. My favorite movie? Miracle on Ice.

What historical figure do you admire and why?
The interviewer wants to know whether you are well read and what characteristics you admire.
Sample Answer (include historical figures you personally admire): Personally, I most admire Abigail
Adams, John Adam's wife; professionally I admired the leadership style of Ronald Reagan.

What did you do during this six month gap in employment?
Everyone, at some point, will probably have a gap in employment. Do not "waste it".
Sample Answer: For the first month, I worked on my "to do list" at home and accomplished a great deal.
Then I began building a plan to reenter the workplace. While it took a little longer than I'd anticipated, I've
learned a great deal about myself, am rested and looking forward to new challenges in the workplace.

What interests you about this job?
When you're asked what interests you about the position you are interviewing for, the best way to respond
is to describe the qualifications listed in the job posting, then connect them to your skills and experience.
That way, the employer will see that you know about the job you're interviewing for (not everyone does)
and that you have the qualifications necessary to do the job.
For example, if you were interviewing for a Human Resources Manager job where you would be
responsible for recruiting, orientation, and training, you will want to discuss how you were responsible for
these functions in your past positions, and why you are interested in continuing to develop your expertise
in Human Resources management.
Another example would be if you were interviewing for a Specialist Officer role. In that case, you would
mention your interest in learning and excelling at new technologies or practices, your experience in
programming both new applications, and your interest in and your ability to problem solve.
In all cases, you will want to convey your enthusiasm for the opportunity to interview, along with your
solid ability to do the job.

Why do you want this job?
Why do you want this job? Are you prepared to answer this question in an interview?
Keep in mind that you can customize these answers to fit your particular circumstances and the job you are
applying for.

Sample answers to the interview question "Why do you want this job?"
- This is not only a fine opportunity, but this company is a place where my qualifications can make a
difference. As a finance executive well versed in the new stock options law, I see this position as made
to order. It contains the challenge to keep me on my toes. That's the kind of job I like to anticipate every
morning.
- I want this job because it seems tailored to my competencies, which include sales and marketing. As I
said earlier, in a previous position I created an annual growth rate of 22 percent in a flat industry.
Additionally, the team I would work with looks terrific.
- I well understand that this is a company on the way up. Your Web site says the launch of several new
products is imminent. I want be a part of this business as it grows.
- Having worked through a college business major building decks and porches for neighbors, this entry-
level job for the area's most respected home builder has my name on it.

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-
As a dedicated technician, I like doing essential research. Being part of a breakthrough team is an
experience I'd love to repeat.
This job is a good fit for what I've been interested in throughout my career. It offers a nice mix of short-
and long-term activities. My short-term achievements keep me cranked up and the long-term
accomplishments make me feel like a billion bucks.
I want this job selling theater tickets because I'd be good at it. I'm good at speaking to people and
handling cash. I would like a job with regular hours and I'm always on time.
Although some companies are replacing Americans with imported low-wage workers, you are standing
tall. This company's successful strategies, good reputation and values make it heads and shoulders
above its competition.
I'd fit right in as a counter clerk in your fine drycleaners. I have observed that the counter clerk position
requires competence at handling several activities in quick order -- customer service, payments,
bagging and phones. I like multitasking and, as a homemaker, I have a lot of practice in keeping all the
balls in the air.
The work I find most stimulating allows me to use both my creative and research skills. The buzz on
this company is that it rewards people who deliver solutions to substantial problems.

Are you overqualified for this job?
Are you overqualified for this job? Are you prepared to respond when an interviewer asks if you're
overqualified? Keep in mind that you can customize these answers to fit your particular circumstances and
the job you are applying for.

Sample answers to the interview question "Are you overqualified for this job?"
- Overqualified? Some would say that I'm not overqualified but fully qualified. With due respect, could
you explain the problem with someone doing the job better than expected?
- Fortunately, I've lived enough years to have developed the judgment that allows me to focus on the
future. Before we speak of past years, past titles and past salaries, can we look at my strengths and
abilities and how I've stayed on the cutting edge of my career field, including its technology?
- I hope you're not concerned that hiring someone with my solid experience and competencies would
look like age bias if once on the job you decided you'd made a mistake and I had to go. Can I present a
creative idea? Why don't I work on a trial basis for a month -- no strings -- which would give you a
chance to view me up close? This immediately solves your staffing problem at no risk to you. I can hit
the floor running and require less supervision than a less experienced worker. When can I start?
- I was proud to be a charge nurse but I really like getting back to working with patients.
- I'm flattered that you think I'm headhunter bait and will leap to another job when an offer appears. Not
really. This job is so attractive to me that I'm willing to sign a contract committing to stay for a
minimum of 12 months. There's no obligation on your part. How else can I convince you that I'm the
best person for this position?
- I'm here because this is a company on the move and I want to move up with you. With more than the
minimal experience to just skim by, I offer immediate returns on your investment. Don't you want a
winner with the skill sets and attitudes to do just that?
- My family's grown. And I am no longer concerned with title and salary -- I like to keep busy. A reference
check will show I do my work on time, and do it well as a team member. I'm sure we can agree on a
salary that fits your budget. When can we make my time your time?
- Downsizings have left generational memory gaps in the workforce and knowledge doesn't always get
passed on to the people coming up. I could be an anchor or mentor -- calm, stable, reliable and
providing day-to-day continuity to the younger team. For my last employer, I provided the history of a
failed product launch to a new marketing manager, who then avoided making the same mistakes.
- As you note, I've worked at a higher level but this position is exactly what I'm looking for. You offer
opportunity to achieve the magic word: balance. I'm scouting for something challenging but a little less
intense so I can spend more time with my family.
- Salary is not my top priority. Not that I have a trust fund but I will work for less money, will take
direction from managers of any age, will continue to stay current on technology and will not leave you
in the lurch if Hollywood calls to make me a star.
- And I don't insist that it's my way or the highway.

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What can you do for this company?
A typical interview question to discover what assets you have that are specific to the company's goals is
"What can you do for this company?"
First of all, be sure to have researched the company prior to the interview, so you are familiar with the
company's mission. Respond by giving examples why your education, skills, accomplishments, and
experience will make you an asset for the employer.
Take a few moments to compare your goals with objectives of the company and the position, as well as
mentioning what you have accomplished in your other jobs. Be positive and reiterate your interest in the
company, as well as the job.

Why should we hire you?
A typical interview question, asked to get your opinion, or to validate the interviewer's opinion, on why
you would be the best candidate for the position, is "Why should we hire you?"
The best way to respond is to give concrete examples of why your skills and accomplishments make you
the best candidate for the job. Take a few moments to compare the job description with your abilities, as
well as mentioning what you have accomplished in your other positions. Be positive and reiterate your
interest in the company and the position.

Why are you the best person for the job?
A typical interview question, asked to get your opinion, or to validate the interviewer's opinion, on why
you would be the best candidate for the position, is "Why should we hire you?"
The best way to respond is to give concrete examples of why your skills and accomplishments make you
the best candidate for the job. Take a few moments to compare the job description with your abilities, as
well as mentioning what you have accomplished in your other positions. Be positive and reiterate your
interest in the company and the position.

What do you know about this company?
A typical job interview question, asked to find out how much company research you have conducted, is
"What do you know about this company?"
Prepare in advance, and in a word, research, so, you can provide relevant and current information about
your prospective employer to the interviewer. Start by researching the company online. Review the "About
Us" section of the company web site.
Google the company, read blogs that mention it, and check Discussion Boards and social networking sites.
If you're a college graduate check with the Career Office at your school to see if you can get a list of alumni
who work for the company. That's an ideal way to get an insider's view of the employer, and to get
information that might not be available elsewhere.
Use the information you have gathered to create a bulleted list of relevant information that you can easily
remember during the interview. Taking the time to research will help you make a good impression with
how much you know about the company.

Why do you want to work here?
A typical interview question, asked to ensure that you are seriously interested in the job and the company,
and to find out how much you know about the company, is "Why do you want to work here?"
The best way to answer this question is, first of all, to be prepared and knowledgeable about the company.
Spend some time researching the company (the About Us section of the web site is a good place to start) so
you can talk about the benefits of working for this employer.
Compare your goals with objectives of the company and the position, then reiterate why you would be an
asset to the employer.
Let the interviewer know what you can do for the company, if you get a job offer.
Even though the question is about why you want to work here, you still need to convince the interviewer
that hiring you will benefit the company.
Here are sample answers you can use to frame your own response:
- This company is internationally known for its (widgets), and my experience in the (marketing/
planning/production/etc.) of (widgets) has me intrigued by the opportunity this position presents.

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-
The businesses in this area are known for their commitment to the community, and I would like the
opportunity to participate in making this a better place to live.
I am a (widget) connoisseur, and would love the opportunity to share my enthusiasm for (widgets)
with customers.

What challenges are you looking for in a position?
A typical interview question to determine what you are looking for your in next job, and whether you
would be a good fit for the position being hired for, is "What challenges are you looking for in a position?"
The best way to answer questions about the challenges you are seeking is to discuss how you would like to
be able to effectively utilize your skills and experience if you were hired for the job.
You can also mention that you are motivated by challenges, have the ability to effectively meet challenges,
and have the flexibility and skills necessary to handle a challenging job.
You can continue by describing specific examples of challenges you have met and goals you have achieved
in the past.

Are you willing to travel?
When you are asked about your willingness to travel during an interview, be honest. There's no point in
saying "yes" if you would prefer to be home five nights a week.

It is perfectly acceptable to ask how much travel is involved. That way, you can weigh how much you would
need to be on the road and make an educated decision as to whether the amount of travel required fits in
with your lifestyle. What's most important is to get a good understanding of what's involved before you are
offered the job, rather than being (unpleasantly) surprised after you have already been hired.

What is good customer service?
When you are applying for a retail or customer service position a typical job interview question is "What is
good customer service?" The interviewer wants to know what you consider quality customer service and
how you would be willing to provide it to customers.
Here is a selection of sample answers you can use to respond to questions about good customer service.
Good customer service means having thorough knowledge of your inventory, experience with your
products, and being able to help customers make the best choices for them.
Good customer service is treating customers with a friendly, helpful attitude.
Good customer service means helping customers efficiently, in a friendly manner. It's one of the things that
can set your business apart from the others of it's kind.

How long do you expect to remain employed with this company?
Review sample answers to the interview question "How long do you expect to remain employed with this
company?" When you respond, be sure to frame your response so that it's positive.
I've heard applicants say that they only want the job for a short amount of time or are planning to relocate
or go back to school.
Responses like that aren't going to impress the hiring manager who is looking to hire a long-term
employee.
Possible Answers
- I believe that this company has the capacity to offer me a rich and satisfying career, and I would like to
remain employed here for as long as I am having a positive impact.
- I would like to pursue my career here for as long as I have the opportunity to.
- I would like to remain employed here for as long as my services are needed.

Banking/ Economy Related Questions asked previously

1. What are the basic documents a person requires to open an account?
The RBI has advised banks to follow the Know Your Customer (KYC) guidelines where some personal
information of the account holder is obtained by the bank. This information includes: - photograph, proof
of identity and proof of address. In 2013, AADHAR cards and MNREGA cards are included in KYC papers.
Without these documents a person cant open his account. Key points:-
The interviewer might ask whether you have a bank account or not.

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It is preferable to have an account and to know about the process because it will only help you if such
questions come up.

2. Who is the governor of RBI?
As of today (March14) , you can answer this as, Mr. Raghuram Govind Rajan is the 23rd governor of RBI.
Before taking reins as RBI governor he was an officer on special duty in RBI. He has also served as
economic advisor in PMEAC. His tenure is of 3 years ending in September 2016.

Key points:-
In IBPS interviews, you must have a quick read about the prominent personalities of banking industry,
especially governor and deputy governors of RBI.
You must address the name of personalities by using Mr. or Madame in case of male and female
respectively.
Try to keep yourself updated about the recent happenings of at least the month prior to interview.

3. Tell us something about the 27th or latest public sector bank in India
Sir, the 27th public sector bank in India is Bhartiya Mahila Bank. It was created by Finance Bill 2012. The
first BMB was opened in Mumbai on 19th November 2013 on the 94th birth anniversary of Indira Gandhi.
India is the third country in the world to have a bank especially for women after Pakistan and Tanzania.
Tagline- women empowerment economically.
Head- Usha Anantha Subramanayam
The bank allows deposit from everyone, but lending will be focused for women.
This bank is very important because it is the latest and 27th PSB of India. So, try to know every basic
point about BMB.
Initial capital of Rs. 1000 crore.

Similarly, if there has been some other initiative in that year, you should be well aware of it.

4. What do you understand by the GDP of the country?
The final value of all the goods and services produced under the geographical area of a country is the Gross
Domestic Product of that country. GDP is calculated at consumption, investment and exports and imports
are subtracted from the sum of these three.

5. What is a Non -banking Financial Company (NBFC)? Difference between NBFC and banks?
A NBFC is a company registered under the companies act, 1956 which is involved in the business of loans,
shares/stocks, etc. Non-banking financial companies are financial institutions that provide banking
services, but do not hold a banking license. These institutions are not allowed to take deposits from the
public. NBFCs do offer all sorts of banking services, such as loans and credit facilities, retirement planning,
money markets, underwriting, and merger activities.

The basic difference between bank and NBFC is:-
They cant accept demand deposits.
They are not a part of the payment and settlement system and cant issue cheques drawn on
themselves
They are not registered in the banking act and dont have a banking license.
They dont have to maintain CRR, SLR or CASA like banks.

6. What is the difference between nationalized banks and private banks?
A nationalized bank is owned by the govt. of that country and is also known as public sector bank whereas
a private sector bank is owned by an independent individual or company.

7. What are the Non Performing assets of a company?
A NPA is an obligation payable to the bank which has not been made or the interest and principal amount
has not been paid on the due time. NPA is the loan or credit provided by the bank to its customers which
could not be recovered in due time.

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Thus NPA is somehow not yielding any income to the lender either in the form of principal or interest
payments. NPA is also known as bad debts.
NPA is shown at the assets side of the balance sheet whereas deposits are shown at the liability side.
If there is any recent story or news regarding NPA, then revise it thoroughly. For ex:- Recently, United
bank of India was marred in loss due to its rising NPA. So was the case with Kotak Mahindra Bank.

8. What are the various risks that banks face?
Sir, there are mainly three types of risks faced by banks:-
Credit Risk: - loan or NPA.
Market Risk: - Money invested in the market.
Operational risk: - Day-to-Day working risks.

9. What do you mean by term CASA related to bank?
CASA stands for Current Account Savings Account. The CASA ratio shows how much deposit a bank has in
the form of current and saving account deposits in the total deposit. A higher CASA ratio means better
operating efficiency of the bank because on current account there is no interest payable whereas on
savings account a tiny 3.5% interest is payable by the bank. CASA ratio shows how much of the deposit of
the bank comes from the current and savings deposit.

10. What is the difference between cheque and demand draft?
Cheque is a negotiable instrument which is paid to the bearer but a demand draft is a negotiable
instrument always payable on order.

11. What are the parts of banks capital?
Bank has following parts of capital:-
Tier 1 capital:- Paid up capital (core capital) + Reserves (owners or promoters fund)
Tier 2 capital:- Secondary Capital (borrowed funds) + general loss reserves + subordinated term debts
+ undisclosed reserves (cant be maintained in India)
Tier 3 capital: - same as tier 2 capital but with a higher amount in order to face the market risks of the
bank.

12. Tell us something about BSBDA.
BSBDA stands for Basic Savings Bank deposit account. BSBDA is the new name for no-frill accounts under
which anyone can open a bank account with even zero balance in it or zero balance account. This BSBDA
is aimed at providing banking facilities to weaker section of the society and improve financial inclusion. All
scheduled commercial banks in India including foreign banks with branches in India have to avail BSBDA.
Important:-
Such accounts are opened with relaxed KYC norms.
Relaxed KYC norms include an affidavit by the Pradhaan or councilor of a village or area confirming
about the person concerned.
In such accounts there are certain restrictions- in a month, 4 withdrawls can be done at a maximum.
This includes ATM withdrawls. The amount withdrawn in a month shouldnt exceed Rs. 10,000 and the
balance in the account at anytime shouldnt exceed Rs. 50,000.

13. What is the meaning of base rate?
Base Rate is the minimum rate of interest which a bank has to charge from its customers and a bank cant
sanction loan on a rate below the base rate. This rate came into effect from July 1 2010. Before Base rate
there was Basic Prime Lending Rate or BPLR introduced in 2003. It was replaced with Base Rate because in
BPLR banks had an option to loan their special customers below BPLR. Banks may choose any benchmark
to decide on the base rate. The exceptions of base rate are:-
Agriculture loans
Govt. sponsored schemes
Staff loans
Only under the above cases, bank can lend below base rate.

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14. We hear regularly that all bank branches are turning CBS. What is CBS?
Sir, CBS stands for CORE banking solutions under which the branches of the banks are interconnected with
each other through intra net with a central database server. Now, with this facility, a person having an
account in a certain branch of the bank can operate from any other branch of the same bank. He need not
visit the same branch to operate his account. The CORE word in CBS stands for Centralized Online Realtime
Exchange.

15. What is Para Banking?
Para Banking includes all the services provided by banks apart from day to day banking. For example: -
Debit cards, Credit cards, Life Insurance products, Cash Management services etc.

16. What are the components of the monetary policy of RBI?
The components of monetary policy include CRR, Repo rate, reverse repo rate, SLR, MSF and Bank Rate.

17. What is priority sector credit?
All Indian banks and foreign banks (which have more than 20 branches in India) are required give 40% of
their credit to priority sector out of which 18% is for agriculture. In case of Regional Rural Banks, 60%
credit is to be given to priority sector. Priority sector includes- Agriculture, Micro and small enterprise,
Education loan (upto 10 lakh for study in India and upto 20 lakhs for study in foreign nations) and housing
loan. Priority sector lending is one of the most important part of a banks lending and it is devoted towards
those sector which are important for public welfare.

18. What is the difference between Micro finance and micro credit?
Micro credit is giving a small amount of loan to the customers whereas Micro Finance is a wide term. It
includes small loan + training on financial matters. In other words, Micro finance= Microcredit + Financial
Literacy.

19. What is financial inclusion? (One of the most important questions).
Financial inclusion is the availability of banking services at a affordable cost in order to include the weaker
section of the society in the banking system. In 2004, Kofi Annan (UNO Head) was addressing UNESCO
conference and the word Financial Inclusion was for the first time used by him at that time. In 2006, a
committee was made under the chairmanship of Mr. HR Khan for financial inclusion and the report said
that 57% of Indian population was deprived of banking facilities.

20. What are the steps taken by banks to promote financial inclusion?
Publicity of banks so that more and more people open the accounts.
BSBDA so that poor people can also open their account.
People with agriculture land are being provided with Kisan Credit Card.
General Purpose Credit card provided to people with no agricultural land where maximum limit of
withdrawal is Rs.15,000 and rate of interest is 4%.
Ultra small banking and banking correspondents.
CRISIL has made an index to calculate financial inclusion named as CRISIL INCLUSIX and in June
2013, there was 40% financial inclusion as per the index.

21. What is REPO rate and reverse REPO rate?
Repo rate is the rate at which banks borrow from RBI during shortage of funds. This is a short term loan
provided for upto 90 days by selling securities to RBI and receiving money in lieu of it. Reverse repo rate is
the rate at which banks deposit their excess liquidity with the RBI. In other words, the rate at which RBI
borrows from banks by selling securities in order to control excess liquidity in the market is reverse repo
rate. Liquidity Adjustment Facility (LAF) introduced in 2000 has a provision that reverse repo rate will be
1% less than the Repo rate.

22. What is Bank rate?
It is same as repo rate but here the time period is for more than 90 days.

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23. What is Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR)?
CRR is the part of Net Demand and Time Liabilities (NDTL) or cash of the bank deposited with the RBI. A
higher CRR makes loans expensive as liquidity is controlled by RBI. NDTL is the deposits of the customers
with the bank. Net demand liabilities are deposits payable on the demand on customer, or when the
customer wants. Ex:-current account, savings account. Time liabilities are the deposits which are payable
only on a specific time or after a period of maturity. For ex:- Fixed deposits, Recurring Deposits.

24. What is Statutory Liquidity Ratio (SLR)?
SLR is the amount of NDTL which a bank needs to maintain in the form of cash, gold or govt. securities
before providing credit to its customers. Through SLR, RBI makes sure that bank always have a reserve
amount out of their deposits to meet any future contingencies.

25. What is Marginal Standing facility (MSF)?
In MSF, banks borrow money from RBI for upto 24 hours. MSF is always 1% above the repo rate and banks
can draw only upto 25 of their NDTL from RBI.

26. What is Term Repo?
Under term repo, RBI lends to banks through auction of funds. The minimum interest charged has to be
above the repo rate and there is no limit for maximum interest rate because auction is made on the rate of
interest.

27. What is white label ATM?
It refers to ATMs owned by corporate or private operators seeking to earn a commission by banks for
transactions performed by their customers. For ex:- INDICASH by TATA group.

28. What is brown label ATM?
It refers to the ATMs where investment, installation and maintenance is by a private operator but the
license and branding is by a commercial bank.

29. Tell us something about NABARD and its functions.
NABARD was established by an act of Parliament on 12 July 1976 as National Bank for Agricultural and
Rural Development. It is the apex bank to provide rural credit and monitor the RRBs. The main functions of
NABARD are:-
Provide refinance to RRBs and other banks in rural areas for lending.
Acts as a subsidiary for RRBs and co-operative banks.
It has two subsidiaries:-
NABFINS:- NABARD financial
NABCON: - NABARD consultancy.

30. What is banking ombudsman scheme?
The banking ombudsman scheme is a scheme to listen to customers grievances and complaints regarding
certain services provided by the bank. It was introduced under the Section 35 A of banking regulation act,
1949 by RBI with effect from 1995 which was later amended and became the banking ombudsman scheme,
2006. Customer can appeal against the decision of ombudsman to deputy governor of RBI. He is the highest
authority of appeal. All banks in India are covered under the scheme.

31. What is the difference between FII and FDI?
FDI or foreign direct investment is an investment that a parent company makes in a foreign country. FII or
Foreign Institutional Investor is an investment made by an investor in the markets of a foreign nation. FII
can enter the stock market easily and also withdraw from it easily. But FDI cannot enter and exit that easily
as FDI only targets a specific sector.

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32. What is the CAD? What is Fiscal deficit?
CAD or current account deficit is the difference between the imports and exports of a nation in one
financial year whereas fiscal deficit is the difference between total revenue and expenditure of a nation.

33. What is inflation and deflation?
Inflation is the increase in the price of goods and services due to more demand and less supply. In inflation,
there is more liquidity in market which has to be controlled to reduce the purchasing power of customers.
Deflation is the decrease in prices of goods and services due to more supply and very less demand. In
deflation, there is lack of liquidity in market which results in very weak purchasing power of people.

34. What is Capital Adequacy Ratio? What is DEMAT account?
CAR is the proportion of capital to the banks risk. DEMAT accounts are those in which shares, securities
and insurance policies are kept in electronic form.

35. Name a few poverty eradication schemes of govt. of India.
Food Security bill, MNREGA, Sarva Shiksha Abhiyaan, Antoday Yojana, JNURRM, Swalamban Yojana, Nirmal
Gram Yojana, Rajiv Awas Yojana, Indira Gandhi Pension plan etc. (Also read in detail about these
schemes.)Apart from the questions listed above, the candidate needs to thoroughly read about the latest
happenings at the time of his interview. He must read the newspaper of the very day of his interview
because there have been many instances where the board asks the news of that day.

He needs to prepare a full note about RBI, and types of banks, functions of RBI, and the latest monetary
policy given by RBI etc. and many other banking terms and facts, insurance facilities provided by banks,
important bills like food security bill, RTI etc.

Public finance and budget process Questions Asked in Interviews

Q1. What is budget?
Ans. The Budget System in India was first introduced on 7th April 1860 by James Wilson, the first Indian
Finance Member. The budget is the Statement of the estimated receipts and expenditure of Government
for that year. This Statement is called the Annual Financial Statement.

Q2. What points are covered in the Annual Financial Statement?
Ans. The Annual Financial Statement consists of:
Statements of expenditure.
Ways and means to raise the revenues.
An analysis of the actual receipts and expenditure of the closing year.
The causes of any surplus or deficit in relation to such year.
An explanation of the economic policy.
Spending program of the government for the coming year.
Prospects of revenue.

Q3. How is the Budget processed?
Ans. In our parliament two budgets are presented.
1. Railway budget
2. General budget

Both budgets are presented in Lok Sabha. The Railway Budget is presented by the Minister of Railway and
the General

Budget is presented by the Finance Minister. The Budget speech is represented in two parts:
PART A General Economic Survey and
PART B taxation proposals.

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One copy of the budget is presented in Rajya Sabha also. After few days the discussion starts on the
presented Budget.

Budget was discussed in two stages:
General discussion followed by detailed discussion and
Voting on demands for grant.

After receiving demands for grants and detailed discussion by the different ministries the budget is
processed.

Q3. What is Consolidated Fund?
Ans. It is the most important of all government funds. All government expenditures are made from this
fund except the items met from Contingency fund and Public Account Fund. No money can be withdrawn
from this fund without Parliaments approval.

Q4. What is Contingency Fund?
Ans. Any urgent expenditure is met from this fund. Rupees 500 crore fund is at the disposal of the
president. If any unforeseen expenditure is incurred from this fund requires approval from the parliament
and amount withdrawn is returned to the fund from consolidated fund.

Q5. What is Fiscal Deficit?
Ans. It refers to the excess of all expenditures, which includes the capital and revenue plus net lending over
total revenue receipts and external grants. This explains the total expenditure and borrowing by the
government.

Banking structure questions

Q. What is a bank?
Ans. Bank is a financial institute where we deposit the money. The bank accepts this money for the purpose
of lending and repays it on demand.

Q.What is the major functions of any bank?
Ans. Major Functions of bank are:-
Accepting deposits from public or firm.
Lending money to public.
Transferring money from one place to another.
Credit creation.
Act as trustee.
Keep valuables in safe custody.

Q. In how many types you may categorize the bank in India?
Ans. We can categorize the banks into five categories :
Central bank (RBI)
Public sector banks
Private sector banks
Co-operative sector banks
Development bank or financial institution

Q. What are scheduled commercial banks?
Ans. Scheduled commercial banks are those banks in India which were included in the second schedule of
Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Act, 1934.

Q. In which year national housing bank (NHB) started its operation?
Ans. NATIONAL HOUSING BANK (NHB) started its operations in 1988.

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Q. Under which act were the State Bank of India and its subsidiaries nationalised?
Ans. The State Bank of India and its subsidiaries where nationalized under SBI Act, 1955.

Q. What is non-scheduled bank?
Ans. Non scheduled bank in India means a banking company as defined in clause (C) of section 5 of the
BANKING REGULATION Act, 1949.

Q. What are Co-operative banks?
Ans. Co-operative banks are organised under the provision of co-operative credit societys law of state. The
major beneficiary of this bank is agricultural sector.

Q. Which is the first bank that was incorporated at the initiative of World Bank and in which year?
Ans. The Industrial Credit and Investment Corporation of India Limited (ICICI) in the year 1955.

Q. In which year Indian Banks Association (IBA) was formed and initially with how many members?
Ans. IBA was formed in 26 September, 1946 with 22 members.

Q. What is KYC?
Ans. KYC is the acronym for know your customer, which is termed for the process of proper identification
of account holder.

Q. What is CRAR?
Ans. The Reserve Bank of India had made a norm that every bank has to maintain an adequate amount of
capital on continuous basis and this adequacy of capital is measured in terms of CAPITAL TO RISK-
WEIGHTED ASSEST RATIO which is also known as CRAR.

Q. What is the minimum amount of money that should be remitted through RTGS?
Ans. We can remit Rs 2,00,000/- minimum through RTGS.

Q. Who insures the banks in India?
Ans. Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation (DICGC) insure the banks in India.

Q. Which was the first Indian bank to get an ISO certification?
Ans. CANARA bank was first Indian bank that got an ISO certification.

Q. Name the financial institution built by Industrial Development Bank of India (IDBI)?
Ans. The financial institutions built by IDBI are:-
NATIONAL STOCK EXCHANGE OF INDIA (NSE)
THE NATIONAL SECURITIES DEPOSITORY SERVICE LIMITED (NSDL)
STOCK HOLDING CORPORATION OF INDIA (SHCIL)

Q. According to Narasimham committee what is the minimum amount of money that is statutorily
required by the NBFCs for registration?
Ans. According to Narasimham committee NBFCs require Rs.25,00,000 for registration.

Q. Which committee had worked for the recapitalisation of Regional Rural Banks (RRBs)?
Ans. K.C. CHAKARABARTY worked for the recapitalisation of RRBs.

Q. The authorized capital of NABARD in 2013 was raised up to what limit?
Ans. In the year 2013 the authorized capital of NABARD raised up to 20000 corers.

Q. The BASEL COMMITEE was formed in which year?
Ans. The BASEL COMITTEE was formed at the end 1974.

Q. Which bank comes under the category of APEX banks.

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Ans. Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD)
come under the category of APEX banks.

Q. Which kind of operations are included in treasury operations?
Ans. The treasury operations include the following:-
DEBT MARKET
EQUITY MARKET
MUTUAL FUNDS
DERIVATIVES
FOREX OPERATIONS
TRADING

Q. What do you mean by CASH CREDIT?
Ans. CASH CREDIT is the system formed by the banks which allows the borrower to draw amount up to the
specified limit.

Q. What do you understand by OVERDRAFT?
Ans. OVERDRAFT is the facility granted by bank to the customers of current account by which they draw
the amount more than the credit balance in their account.

Q. How many types of debit card do the banks provide to their customers in India?
Ans. The following are the types of debit cards provided by the banks in India are:-
VISA CARD
MAESTRO CARD
MASTERCARD
RUPAY CARD etc.

Q. How many type of deposits does Indian banking deal with?
Ans. The Indian banking industries deal with the following types of deposits:-
Term deposits
Demand deposits
Current deposits
Savings deposits

Q. Classify the business of banking?
Ans. Business of banking can be classified into four categories:-
Retail banking business
Wholesale banking business
Treasury operations
Other banking activities

Q. What are the major products of the banking industry?
Ans. There are three major products in the banking industry:
Deposit products
Credit products
Customized banking services

Q. Which Act allows the bank and financial institutions to auction the properties when borrower
fails to repay the loans?
Ans. SARFAESI Act, 2002 allows the banks and financial institutions to auction the properties when
borrowers fail to repay their loans.

The acronym for SARFAESI is Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of
Security Interest.

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Q. What is the significance of IFSC code?
Ans. The acronym for IFSC is Indian Financial System Code. It is an alpha numeric 11 digit codes which
uniquely identifies a particular bank branch in India.

Q. What are the objectives of SLR?
Ans. Objectives of SLR:
To restrict expansion of banks credit.
To increase banks investment in approved securities.
To ensure solvency of banks.

Q. How many types of subsidiaries does RBI have?
Ans. RBI has two types subsidiaries
Fully owned subsidiary
Majority stack subsidiary

Q. Name the fully owned subsidiaries of RBI?
Ans. RBI has three fully own subsidiaries:
National Housing Bank(NHB)
Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation of India(DICGC)
Bharatiya Reserve Bank Note Mudran Pvt. Ltd.(BRBNMPL)

Q. Name some negotiable instruments.
Ans. The negotiable instruments include
promissory note
Warehouse receipt
bill of lading
Certificate of deposit
Bank draft/ pay order/bankers cheque.
Commercial paper
Railway receipts
Treasury bills
Dock warrant
Hundi

Q. What are the features of Negotiability?
Ans. Features of Negotiability:
Freely transferable by delivery (when it is bearer).
Freely transferable by endorsement (when it is an order instrument).
The transferee taking the instrument in good faith.

Q. What is Promissory Note (PN)?
Ans. Its an instrument in writing which contains an unconditional undertaking signed by the maker to pay
a certain sum of money to the order or the bearer of instrument. The Promissory Notes require being
stamped ad per Indian Stamp Act.

Q. How many types of Promissory Notes are there?
Ans. Types of Promissory Note:
Demand Promissory Note - The Promissory Note which is payable immediately on demand is called
Demand Promissory Note.
Usance Promissory Note - The Promissory Note which is payable after a predefined definite period is
called Usance Promissory Note.

Q. How many parties are required in Promissory Notes?
Ans. Basically it requires two parties. The one is maker who promises to pay and the other is payee to
whom it is payable. For example a person take loan from the bank then the person is the maker and
the bank is payee.

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Q. What is Money Laundering?
Ans. The process of converting illegal money into legal money is Money Laundering. According to Section 3
of the Prevention of Money laundering Act 2002 as: Whosoever directly or indirectly attempts to indulge
or knowingly assists or is involved in any process or activity connected with the proceeds of crime and is
projecting it as the untainted property shall be guilty of the offence of money laundering.

Q. What are the common factors of Money Laundering?
Ans. Generally there are four factors of money laundering:
The true ownership and real source of money is not revealed.
The launderers change the form of the proceeds in order to shrink the huge volume of cash generated
by the initial unlawful activity.
The trail left by the process is not known so that it make it difficult to follow the money from the
beginning to end.
Constant control is maintained on the money.

Q. What are the stages of Money Laundering process?
Ans. The following are the stages of money laundering process:
1. Placement stage:-It is the first introduction of entry for funds derived for any criminal activities.
2. Layering/Agitation stage: - The object of this stage is to prevent the tracing of illegal proceed. It creates
a complex network of transactions which attempts to not reveal the link between the initial entry and the
end of the money laundering cycle.
3. Integration stage: - This process achieves the appearance of total legitimacy of funds thereby it refers
to the return of funds to the legitimate economy for later extraction.

Q. Give few ways of Money Laundering?
Ans. Following are the few ways of money laundering:-
Frequent exchange of cash into other currencies.
Large withdrawals from inactive account.
Transferring large sum of money to or from abroad.
More use of safe deposit facilities.
Customer having several accounts in different banks but in same location.

Q. What is Digital Signatures (DS)?
Ans. Digital Signature is used for security purpose and it is equivalent to the handwritten signature. It is a
signature in electronic form attached to an electronic record. Digital signature identifies the origin of the
message and maintain the integrity of message. It defines authentication of an electronic record by a
person whose name the digital signature certificates. In India Information Technology Act 2000 considers
digital signature as personalized thumb print.

Q. What is Mobile Banking?
Ans. Mobile banking provides us the ease of carrying out certain banking transactions through their mobile
phone. This facility is provided by the banks. Many operations can be performed by using mobile banking
like checking account balance, other account etc

Q. What is Electronic Fund Transfer System (EFTS)?
Ans. Electronic fund transfer provides us to transfer fund electronically replacing the paper instruments.
The electronic fund transfer is fast and easily available. It saves time of customers standing in queue. The
products of EFTS includes:-
WTs- wireless transfers.
ATM- Automated Trailer Machine
CDs- Cash Dispensers
POS- Point of Sale terminals
Home banking

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Q. What is Smart Card?
Ans. The Smart Card is an Integrated Circuit Card (ICC) to store information. It is a cash card or we can say
electronic purse which is a pre-paid cash card. The card provides an option to the customers for debit and
credit facilities. These cards can be reloaded by ATM or by telephone. It reduces the need of carrying cash
for shopping and enables the card holder to increase the amount at any time.

Q. What is Credit Card?
Ans. It is an instrument of payment. The customer gets some credit on the card which he can use for
shopping, ticket booking, encashment etc. The credit cards are of different types having different credit
limits depending upon the bank.

Q. What is Debit Card?
Ans. It is a payment card used to obtain cash, purchasing goods and services automatically debiting the
payment to the card holders bank account.

Q. What are the advantages of Debit Card?
Ans. The advantages of Debit Card:
No need to carry cash.
Quick and less complicated than using cheque.
Used for withdrawal of cash.
It can be issued to any individual having bank account

Q. What is Inflation?
Ans. The rise in the prices of goods or service in an economy over a certain period of time is known as
inflation.

Q. Name the types of Inflation?
Ans. Following are the types of inflation:-
Wage inflation
Stagflation
Price power inflation
Mild inflation
Cost-push inflation
Hyper-inflation
Sectorial inflation

Q. What are the effects of Inflation?
Ans. Following are the effect of inflation:-
It decreases the real value of money
It discourage investment and savings
It leads to shortage of goods
Mitigate economic recessions
Reduces the level of debt

Q.What is PAN number and where we can use PAN number?
Ans. A PAN is a 10 character alphanumeric number allotted to a tax payer who is eligible to file the income
tax return. The PAN number is used for the following financial transactions:
Sale or purchase of any immovable property valued 5 lac or more.
Sales or purchase of Motor Vehicle or Vehicle.
One time deposit exceeding Rs. 50000 with banking company.
A contract of value exceeding Rs. 10 lac for sale or purchase of securities.
Opening an account with a banking company.

Q. What are Payments Bank?
Ans. A payments bank is a type of non-full service niche bank in India. A bank licensed as a payments bank
can only receive deposits and provide remittances. It cannot carry out lending activities.

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Types of Bank Accounts in India (Deposit Accounts)
Traditionally banks in India have four types of deposit accounts, namely Saving Banking Accounts, Current
Accounts, Recurring Deposits and, Fixed Deposits.

1. Saving Account - Saving accounts are opened to encourage the people to save money and collect their
savings. The saving account holder is allowed to withdraw money from the account as and when required.
The interest on Saving Bank Accounts was fixed by RBI and it was fixed at 4.00% on daily balance
basis. RBI has deregulated Saving Fund account interest rates and now banks are free to decide the
same within certain conditions imposed by RBI.
Features of Saving Accounts
v There is no restriction on the number and amount of deposits. However, in India, mandatory PAN
(Permanent Account Number) details are required to be furnished for doing cash transactions
exceeding 50,000.
v Withdrawals are allowed subject to certain restrictions.
v A minimum amount has to be kept on saving account to keep it functioning.

2. Current Account - Current Accounts are basically meant for businessmen and are never used for the
purpose of investment or savings.
Features of Current Accounts
v The main objective of Current Account holders in opening these account is to enable them (mostly
businessmen) to conduct their business transactions smoothly.
v There are no restrictions on the number of times deposit in cash / cheque can be made or the
amount of such deposits;
v Usually banks do not pay any interest on such current accounts.
v The current accounts do not have any fixed maturity as these are on continuous basis accounts.
v Cheque book facility is provided and the account holder can deposit all types of the cheques and drafts
in their name or endorsed in their favour by third parties.

3. Recurring Desposit Account: Recurring Deposit is a special kind of Term Deposit offered by banks in
India popularly known as RD accounts which help people with regular incomes to deposit a fixed amount
every month into their Recurring Deposit account and earn interest at the rate applicable to Fixed Deposits.
Features of RD Accounts
v Recurring Deposit accounts are normally allowed for maturities ranging from 6 months to 120
months
v These accounts can be opened in single or joint names. Nomination facility is also available.
v Rate of Interest offered is similar to that in Fixed Deposits.
v Interest is compounded on quarterly basis in recurring deposits.

4. Fixed Deposit Account (FD) - The account which is opened for a particular fixed period (time) by
depositing particular amount (money) is known as Fixed (Term) Deposit Account. The term 'fixed deposit'
means that the deposit is fixed and is repayable only after a specific period is over. Under fixed deposit
account, money is deposited for a fixed period say six months, one year, five years or even ten years. The
money deposited in this account can not be withdrawn before the expiry of period.
Features of FD Accounts
v The main purpose of fixed deposit account is to enable the individuals to earn a higher rate of
interest on their surplus funds (extra money).
v The amount can be deposited only once. For further such deposits, separate accounts need to be
opened.

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v Fixed Deposit Account may be opened for a minimum period of 7 days and maximum period of 10
years.
v The minimum amount required to open a Fixed Deposit is Rs.1000.
v Withdrawals are not allowed. However, in case of emergency, banks allow to close the fixed account
prior to maturity date. In such cases, the bank deducts 1% (deduction percentage many vary) from the
interest payable as on that date.

5. About (BASIC SAVING BANK DEPOSIT ACCOUNT): Under the guidelines issued on August 10, 2012 by
RBI: Any individual, including poor or those from weaker section of the society, can open zero balance
account in any bank. BSBDA guidelines are applicable to "all scheduled commercial banks in India,
including foreign banks having branches in India".
ii. The aim of introducing 'Basic Savings Bank Deposit Account' is very much part of the efforts of RBI for
furthering Financial Inclusion objectives.

Main Points of BSBDA-Small Accounts:
In BSBDA, banks are required to provide free of charge minimum 4 withdrawals, through ATMs
Total credits in such accounts should not exceed 1 lakh rupees in a year.
Maximum balance in the account should not exceed 50,000 Rs at any time
The total of debits by way of cash withdrawals and transfers will not exceed 10,000 rupees in a month
Foreign remittances cannot be credited to Small Accounts without completing normal KYC formalities
Small accounts are valid for a period of 12 months initially which may be extended by another 12 months
if the person provides proof of having applied for an Officially Valid Document.

6. ATMs: (Automated Teller Machine): The ATM debit cards, credit cards and prepaid cards (that permit
cash withdrawal) issued by banks can be used at ATMs for various transactions.

Use of ATMs of Other Banks:
5 free transactions are permitted per month (inclusive of financial and/or non-financial) at other bank
ATMs for Savings Bank Account holders.
For transaction beyond this minimum number of transactions, banks charge maximum of Rs 20/ - per
transaction.
Reserve Bank of India reduced free usage of other bank automated teller machines (ATMs) to 3 per month
from 5 from November, in six metropolitan cities - Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Bangalore, Kolkata and
Hyderabad.

Reconciliation of failed transactions at ATMs
The time limit for resolution of customer complaints by the issuing banks shall stand reduced from 12
working days to 7 working days from the date of receipt of customer complaint.
Accordingly, failure to recredit the customers account within 7 working days of receipt of the complaint
shall entail payment of compensation to the customer @ Rs. 100/- per day by the issuing bank..
Any customer is entitled to receive such compensation for delay, only if a claim is lodged with the issuing
bank within 30 days of the date of the transaction.
All disputes regarding ATM failed transactions shall be settled by the issuing bank and the acquiring bank
through the ATM system provider only.

WHITE Label ATMs: ATMs which are owned and operated by non-banking companies are called White
Label ATMs.

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Note: RBI authorised four entities to operate as WLAs namely Tata Communications Payment Solutions,
Prizm Payment Services Pvt. Ltd, Muthoot Finance Limited and Vakrangee Ltd.

Personal Identification Number (PIN) : A Personal Identification Number is a secret numeric password
shared between user and a system that can be use to authenticate the user to the system.

IFSC (Indian Financial System Code):
Indian Financial System Code is an alpha-numeric code that uniquely identifies a bank-branch participating
in the NEFT system.
ii. This is an 11 digit code with the first 4 alpha characters representing the bank, The 5th character is 0
(zero).and the last 6 characters representing the bank branch.
iii. IFSC is used by the NEFT system to identify the originating / destination banks / branches and also to
route the messages appropriately to the concerned banks / branches.
For ex: SBIN0015986 : i. First 4 character SBIN refers to State Bank of India. ii. 0 is a control number.
iii. last six characters (015986) represents the SBI branch Jail Road, Hari Nagar New Delhi.

MICR (Magnetic Ink Character Recognition): MICR stands for Magnetic Ink Character Recognition.
MICR Code is a 9 numeric digit code which uniquely identifies a bank branch participating in the ECS Credit
scheme. MICR code consists of 9 digits e.g 400229128
i. First 3 digits represent the city (400)
ii. Next 3 digits represent the bank (229)
iii. Last 3 digits represent the branch (128)
Note: The MICR Code allotted to a bank branch is printed on the MICR band of cheque leaves issued by
bank branches.

Cheque Truncation: Truncation is the process of stopping the flow of the physical cheque issued by a
drawer at some point with the presenting bank en-route to the drawee bank branch. In its place an
electronic image of the cheque is transmitted to the drawee branch by the clearing house, along with
relevant information like data on the MICR band, date of presentation, presenting bank, etc. Cheque
Truncation speeds up the process of collection of cheques resulting in better service to customers, reduces
the scope for clearing-related frauds or loss of instruments in transit, lowers the cost of collection of
cheques, and removes reconciliation-related and logistics-related problems, thus benefitting the system as
a whole.

Bancassurance: The sale of insurance and other similar products through a bank. This can help
the consumer in some situations; for example, when a bank requires life insurance for
those receiving a mortgage loan the consumer could purchase the insurance directly from the bank.

Banking Ombudsman Scheme 2006:
The Banking Ombudsman Scheme enables an expeditious and inexpensive forum to bank customers for
resolution of complaints relating to certain services rendered by banks. The Banking Ombudsman is a
senior official appointed by the Reserve Bank of India to redress customer complaints against deficiency in
certain banking services. All Scheduled Commercial Banks, Regional Rural Banks and Scheduled Primary
Co-operative Banks are covered under the Scheme.

Other Important Points:
The Banking Ombudsman does not charge any fee for filing and resolving customers complaints.
The amount, if any, to be paid by the bank to the complainant by way of compensation for any loss
suffered by the complainant is limited to the amount arising directly out of the act or omission of the
bank or Rs 10 lakhs, whichever is lower.
The Banking Ombudsman may award compensation not exceeding Rs 1 lakh to the complainant only
in the case of complaints relating to credit card operations for mental agony and harassment.
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If a complaint is not settled by an agreement within a period of one month, the Banking Ombudsman
proceeds further to pass an award. Before passing an award, the Banking Ombudsman provides
reasonable opportunity to the complainant and the bank, to present their case.
If one is not satisfied with the decision passed by the Banking Ombudsman, one can approach the
appellate authority against the Banking Ombudsmens decision. Appellate Authority is vested with a
Deputy Governor of the RBI.
If one is aggrieved by the decision, one may, within 30 days of the date of receipt of the award, appeal
against the award before the appellate authority.

Deposit insurance and credit guarantee corporation (DICGC)
All commercial banks including branches of foreign banks functioning in India, local area banks and
regional rural banks are insured by the DICGC. Note: Primary cooperative societies are not insured by
the DICGC.
DICGC insure: DICGC protects bank deposits that are payable in India.
The DICGC insures all deposits such as savings, fixed, current, recurring, etc. except the following types of
deposits.
(i) Deposits of foreign Governments;
(ii) Deposits of Central/State Governments;
(iii)Inter-bank deposits;
(iv) Deposits of the State Land Development Banks with the State co-operative bank;
(v) Any amount due on account of any deposit received outside India
(vi) Any amount, which has been specifically exempted by the corporation with the previous approval of
Reserve Bank of India.
Maximum deposit amount insured by the DICGC - Each depositor in a bank is insured upto a maximum
of Rs.1,00,000 (Rupees One Lakh).
Credit Information Bureau (India) Limited: is Indias first Credit Information Company (CIC) founded in
August 2000. CIBIL collects and maintains records of an individuals payments pertaining to loans and
credit cards.
Headquarter Mumbai
Coins in India
Coins: The Government of India has the sole right to mint coins. The designing and minting of coins in
various denominations is also the responsibility of the Government of India. Coins are minted at the four
India Government Mints at Mumbai, Alipore (Kolkata), Saifabad (Hyderabad), Cherlapally (Hyderabad) and
NOIDA (UP).

Denominations: Coins in India are presently being issued in denominations of one rupee, two rupees, five
rupees and ten rupees. Note: Coins can be issued up to the denomination of Rs.1000 as per the Coinage
Act, 1906.
Currency in India
Currency: Banknotes in India are currently being issued in the denomination of Rs 10, Rs 20, Rs
50, Rs 100, Rs500, and Rs1000. These notes are called banknotes as they are issued by the Reserve Bank
of India (Reserve Bank).
Note: The printing of notes in the denominations of Rs 1, Rs 2 and Rs 5 has been discontinued as these
denominations have been coinised.

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Bank Notes in India
Contemporary Currency notes have 15 languages on the panel which appear on the reverse of the note.

Soiled Notes: Soiled notes are those which have become dirty and slightly cut. Notes which have numbers
on two ends, i.e. notes in the denomination of Rs.10 and above which are in two pieces, are also treated as
soiled note. The cut in such notes, should, however, not have passed through the number panels.

Mutilated Notes: Notes which are in pieces and/or of which the essential portions are missing can also be
exchanged. Essential portions in a currency note are name of issuing authority, guarantee, promise clause,
signature, Ashoka Pillar emblem/portrait of Mahatma Gandhi, water mark.
Imperfect banknotes: Imperfect banknote means any banknote, which is wholly or partially, obliterated,
shrunk, washed, altered or indecipherable but does not include a mutilated banknote.

Security Features of Indian Banknotes
Watermark
Security Thread

Latent Image
Micro lettering
Intaglio

Identification Mark

Fluorescence
Optically Variable Ink
See through Register Legal provisions against counterfeiting

Some Important Tips which you have to keep in your mind while going for Interview.

1. Tips on Preparing for the Interview-Day:
i. Gather information about the bank or organization that has invited you for the interview. This will give
you a clear idea about the philosophy, work environment and reputation of the company.
ii. Read the job description carefully as to what they expect from you.
iii. Evaluate your qualifications, experience, and core competences, areas of strength and accordingly draw
up a questionnaire along with your replies to the expected questions.

2. Brush up your communication skills.
i. Interviewers normally ask you to highlight your strengths and weaknesses.
ii. Strengths of course can be emphasized more easily but even the weaknesses can be presented in a
positive light. For example, I am a little impatient with the people who are not focused enough, or
non serious about the work in hand
iii. Go with a positive frame of mind, without worrying much about the outcome.

3. Attending the Interview: Go with a smile (not a grin) on your face, with confidence and determination
to succeed in your heart.

4. As You Enter:
i. Depending upon whether you are being interviewed by one person or a panel of interviewers, greet
politely Good Morning/Afternoon or Evening depending upon time of the day.
ii. If there are more than one person then address them as Sirs/Madams and try to encompass them all in
your greeting. If there is only one lady in the panel, it is polite to greet her separately.
iii. Most probably you will be offered a seat. Do not sit down unless you are asked to.

5. Facing the Interviewers
i. As you sit across the interviewer(s), look confident and relaxed.
ii. In most cases the interviewers themselves will try to put you at ease.

6. The Body Language
i. Good body language can be inculcated and practiced. Your facial expression, appearance, gestures, how
you walk, talk, stand, sit, use your limbs etc. all form part of your body language.

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7. Pay attention to the following.
v Sit straight comfortably without craning your neck. Do not slouch.
v Look attentive, keen and interested.
v Talk clearly, maintaining a pitch that is comfortably audible to the person(s) around.
v Do not get overexcited even while describing your achievements and strengths.
v Listen to the queries attentively, constantly maintaining polite eye contact with the interviewers.
v Nod your head to show that you are listening, interjecting appropriately with Yes Sir/Madam,
absolutely, definitely etc.
v Lean forward a little as you speak and backward as you listen.
v Do not touch your face, or shake your legs.
v Keep your arms either on your sides or in your lap. Do not fold your arms, as it is a sign of rudeness.
v Use short simple sentences while talking.
v Do not make unrealistic tall claims during the interview.
v Never get too arrogant or aggressive in front of the interviewers.
v Do not show your disappointment and disinterest. Maintain your poise till the end.
v Always thank the interviewers as you leave.

Is there anything I haven't told you about the job or company that you would like to know?
It's your turn! As the interview comes to a close, one of the final questions you may be asked is "What can I
answer for you?"
Have interview questions of your own ready to ask. You aren't simply trying to get this job - you are also
interviewing the employer to assess whether this company and the position are a good fit for you.
Here are questions to ask the interviewer so you can ensure the company is a good match for your
qualifications and interests.

Interview Questions to Ask the Employer
- How would you describe the responsibilities of the position?
- How would you describe a typical week/day in this position?
- Is this a new position? If not, what did the previous employee go on to do?
- What is the company's management style?
- Who does this position report to? If I am offered the position, can I meet him/her?
- How many people work in this office/department?
- How much travel is expected?
- Is relocation a possibility?
- What is the typical work week? Is overtime expected?
- What are the prospects for growth and advancement?
- How does one advance in the company?
- Are there any examples?
- What do you like about working here?
- What don't you like about working here and what would you change?
- Would you like a list of references?
- If I am extended a job offer, how soon would you like me to start?
- What can I tell you about my qualifications?
- When can I expect to hear from you?
- Are there any other questions I can answer for you?

Interview Questions NOT to Ask
- What does this company do? (Do your research ahead of time!)
- If I get the job when can I take time off for vacation? (Wait until you get the offer to mention prior
commitments)
- Can I change my schedule if I get the job? (If you need to figure out the logistics of getting to work don't
mention it now...)
- Did I get the job? (Don't be impatient. They'll let you know.)

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Chapter 4: Before / During and After the Interview

BEFORE THE INTERVIEW
Conduct Basic Interview Research
Every interview must be preceded by research to give you an edge over the rest. Find out as much as you
can about the company before the interview.
Here is a list of the information that you must have:
- Organisational structure
- Growth in the past and future potential
- Divisions/departments that interest you
- Job description & job title
- Products/Services
- New products and services they are
- Training Programs
developing
- Size of company
- Employee benefits
- Career paths
- Geographic location of home office, branches,
- How long have they been in business
stores
- Types of clients

Sample questions usually asked in an interview where you cannot falter. Prepare them well
How would you describe yourself?
What are your long range and short range goals and objectives and how are you preparing yourself to
achieve them?
What specific goals, other than those related to your occupation, have you established for yourself for
the next 10 years?
What do you see yourself doing five years from now?
What are the most important rewards you expect in your career?
What do you expect to be earning in five years?
What do you consider to be your greatest strengths and weaknesses?
Why should I hire you?
Why did you choose this profession? What qualifications do you have that make you think that you will
be successful in this field?
How do you determine or evaluate success?
What do you know about our organization?
Why did you decide to seek a position with this organization?
In what ways do you think you can make a contribution to our organization?
What qualities should a successful manager possess?
Describe the relationship that should exist between a supervisor and those reporting to him or her
What has been your biggest achievement and why?
Tell us about your previous job experience. Reasons for leaving the previous job.
Do you have a geographical preference and are
Will you relocate? Does relocation bother you?
Are you willing to travel?
Are you willing to spend at least six months as a trainee?
Why do you think you might like to live in the community in which our organization is located?
What have you done that shows initiative?
What major problem have you encountered, how did you deal with it and lessons that you learnt out of
them?

3. Organisation Expectations
Every Organisation has a set of expectations from the prospective employee. In order to know that you
fulfill those expectations, you must ask yourself the following questions:
- Do you have the skills to do the job?
- Do you fit in the organization structure?
- Do you understand the company and its purpose?
- How do you stack up against the competition?
- Do you have the right mindset for the job and company?

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- Do you have the right mindset for the job and company?
- Do you want the Job?

Pick Your Outfit, and Go to Bed Early
Lay out your interview outfit the night before, get a good night's rest, and always get an early start. The last
thing you want is to arrive at the interview flustered and panicked because you couldn't find a parking
spot.

ON THE INTERVIEW DAY
1. Non-verbal Messages: Non-verbal language speaks larger than words. As you walk in the interview room,
here are a few things that you must keep in mind:
Start it off like a winner.
- Posture: Stand and sit erect
- Don't Fidget: There is nothing worse than people playing with their hair, clicking pen tops, tapping feet
or unconsciously touching parts of the body.
- Eye Contact: Look the interviewer in the eye
- Move your hands: Gesturing or talking with your hands is very natural, but keep it in moderation.

2. Be comfortable. Take a seat facing the interviewer, however, slightly off center. Be sure that you are in a
comfortable position

3. Listen attentively. Look at the interviewer directly, but don't get into a stare down! Sit up straight. Try to
relax. It's okay to take a few notes if the questions are lengthy, or you need to remind yourself of something
you want to stress

4. Avoid nervous mannerisms. Pay attention to nervous mannerisms. Everyone is nervous to some extent,
the key is to appear calm and composed

5. Speak clearly. Use good grammar and a friendly tone. Never answer just "yes" or "no" to a question.
Always clarify, expand on your answers. Be sure not to go on rambling

6. Be positive and enthusiastic. Pump up your enthusiasm prior to the interview. Never whine, gripe or
complain about past employers, jobs, classes etc

7. Ask pertinent questions. Be prepared to ask a few questions. Do not monopolize the interviewer's time,
particularly if you know they have appointments scheduled following your interview. Do ask thoughtful
questions. Don't ask about salary and benefits, this can be discussed when the company is definitely
interested in you

8. While giving answers to questions:

- Be Concise: Listen to the questions carefully and answer to the point. An interviewee rambling on is
likely to turn off the interviewer.
- Provide Examples: Support your contentions with examples. Think of recent strong strategic examples
of work you've done, then when the question is asked, answer with specifics, not in generalities.
- Be Honest: It is always better to state the truth than beating about the bush. If you dont know
something then state the fact.
- Keep Your Guard Up: Always maintain your professionalism. Dont get swayed by the friendly
behaviour of the interviewer and disclose everything. For all you know it might be a trap laid out by
him.

AFTER THE INTERVIEW
- Say thanks. - Chin Up. If you don't get the job, don't be disheartened. Gear up for your next interview. After
all the more interviews you tackle the more polished you become.
Job interviews are always stressful - even for job seekers who have gone on countless interviews. The best
way to reduce the stress is to be prepared. Take the time to review the "standard" interview questions you
will most likely be asked. Also review sample answers to these typical interview questions. Then take the
time to research the company. That way you'll be ready with knowledgeable answers for the job interview
questions that specifically relate to the company you are interviewing with.

CAREER POWER


Chapter 5: Group Discussion Concepts & Topics

What is a Group Discussion?
GD is a discussion, but most students misconstrue it to be a debate. They akin it to a wrestling match and
try to score points over the other participants. Consequently, you find a 'fish market' situation in most GDs.
What is actually expected in a GD is participation in a systematic way on a particular topic. The prospect of
a GD tends to leave most students petrified. You can get rid of that feeling of fear by remembering you have
experienced group discussions right from childhood. Remember those heated discussions you had across
the dinner table with family members, friends and relatives? Consciously or unconsciously, they have
helped you learn a thing or two about discussing in a group. Your parents may have come across as the
most heard and respected as they were much better well informed. Besides, instead of forcing their point of
view on you, they heard you out and presented their points in a logical and methodical manner because
they had the strength of content and courage of conviction. As a result, you would have often felt the desire
to prove that you were right and they were wrong. A bundle of angst would build within you. Discard that
feeling now. Remember, a GD is a discussion -- and not a debate -- between the members of a group.

Discussion versus debate
Human beings love debates because we like to win and see others lose. A debate is a perfect situation for
expressing intense emotions. A GD, however, calls for a lot more maturity and logic.
The purpose of a GD, though conducted in a competitive mode, is not to establish you as a winner and
others as losers. Its purpose, as far as you are concerned, is to help you come across as a person with
sound, logical reasoning and the ability to respect another's viewpoint.
A critical difference between a GD and a debate is that, while a debate begins with two groups' bids to
outwit each other, a discussion is evolutionary; this essentially means participants have the opportunity to
refine their views in the course of the discussion. Thus, every member needs to contribute substantially
and add to the existing knowledge base instead of pulling each other down.
The difference, thus, lies not just in style, but also in the mindset that is required to tackle either challenge.

Why banks conduct a GD
How often have you called a friend in office to be told that he is in a meeting? Banks conduct a GD because,
as a manager, you will be required to attend and conduct innumerable meetings. A GD is a simulation of
what you can expect in a meeting at your workplace.
Depending on the kind of profile you have and the company you work for, you will be part of meetings
ranging from brand launches and employee performance appraisals to company financials, etc. For
instance, if you have a meeting where senior employees are working out a strategy to launch a new soap in
the market, this is what is expected of you before and during the meeting.
- You will go well prepared for the meeting; this means you need to have sufficient information on the
likely points of discussion.
- During the meeting, you will let everyone have his say. When your turn comes, you will present your
views forcefully and logically.
- Whenever you disagree with somebody, you will present your points logically and makes sure
everybody understands what you have to say.
- You will always attack points and not people.
- You will carefully listen to other people's points and try to refine your own by using other people's
inputs on the subject.

While the written exam tests your comprehension and analytical skills, a GD tests you in the following:
- Body language
- Listening ability
- Communication skills
- Ability to present your views logically
- Self confidence
- Time management
- Team spirit

A GD is a wonderful challenge because you have a maximum of 15-20 minutes to show if you have it in you
to become an effective manager.

CAREER POWER


Points to Remember
- Always be the initiator and avail the opportunity to conclude with finer points
- But if you are participant always try to be the key participant.
- put points firmly and always try to get others support too.
- if you find that the discussion is going off track then never lose an opportunity to bring it back to
stream this is the best point to score max.
- try to keep latest information on the topic.
- be very polite , people may try to provoke you to to get more points but try to keep cool.
- most important don't wait for your turn to speak when discussion is on. Interrupt politely if you want
to put forward your points.
- last but not the least keep a tab on the time given for discussion. Score points by wrapping up the
discussion if you feel that the discussion is heating but the time is going to be over.
- during conclusion, do end with the conclusion note. that shows your leadership quality.
- Read Newspaper/ news magazine religiously and regularly.; listen to Group Discussion on news
channels and watch DD News.

Best scoring points are:
- Be Focused on topic only and always keep/try to keep discussion on track.
- No personal attack.
- Conclusion on time.
- Your capability to keep your cool and listen as well as putting your points

Relevan GD Topics
1. Is reservation Policy of Government an
20. Has the private universities are successful
answer to the problem of underpreviledged
in the education sector or just creating
in India
graduates.
2. Should Women be empowered in India?/
21. Should Capital Punishment be abolished?
Women Empowerment in India
22. Can divorce and remarriage be encouraged
3. Need of Indian to go Nuclear
in India?
4. Digital India
23. Should religious and moral lessons be parts
5. Make in India
of education?
6. Online business and E-Commerce in India
24. Democracy in India: A success or a failure?
7. Should married women be encouraged to
25. Land reforms in India is still an incomplete
take up jobs or not
and unfinished task
8. Who serves the Country best a soilder, a
26. Should the uniform civil code be
Teacher, a Doctor, a Scientist or a
implemented in India?
Politician?
27. Agriculture Dependency on Monsoon
9. One Rank One Pension
28. Relationship between India and Pakistan is
10. Payments Bank
based on Emotional Parameters rather
11. Financial Inclusion
than Rational One?
12. Core Banking System
29. Will Indo-China relations be successful in
13. SAFAESI Act 2002 and Securitization in
future or it is China just using India as a
India
market?
14. Modern Banking ( e.g. SBI inTouch)
15. BASEL III norms and its Implications
30. Should J&K be carved into 3 separate States
16. KYC Norms and AML Measures
of Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh?
17. Classification of Priority Sector Lending/
31. Shoud Surrogacy be encouraged?
Advances
32. Social Media is envading our Privacy
18. Should NPA Accounts be given re-credit
33. How banks can improve tourism
facility to uplift the industry?
34. Should Juvenile Laws be strictly
19. Is the system of education in our country
implemented in the country?
Suitable or does it need any modifciation?
35. Should child labour laws be strictly
implemented in the country?

CAREER POWER

ANNEXURE
(All questions to be compulsorily be filled by Candidate; All data provided should be true/ original and to best
knowledge of the candidate for making the interview process effective)

1. Name Of the Candidate:_______________________________ Meaning ______________________________DOB________________

2. Fathers Name: _________________________________________ Fathers Profession: _____________________________________

3. Present Address___________________________________________________________________ Home Town____________________

4. Do you fall under any reserved Category? (Yes/ No)_________

5. How many Intervew Calls attended So far & its Details/ Results

6. What do you know about your home town (Max 5 sentences):

7. Educational Qualification:

Univ.
Discipline/Stream
Score/CGPA
Year
10th
12th
Graduation
Post Grad.
Others

8. Work Experience:

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Name of the Company
Duration
Designation/Profile

9. Details of GAP in between Education or Work Experience (or Both) and Why?

10. Why do you want to join Government Sector?

11. Does Government Job Interest you? Why?

12. What do you know about this Job Profile and why you want to join this particular role only?

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13. How your graduation degree is relevant to the post you applied?

14. Please enumerate your Major Strengths & Weaknesses?
a)
a)
b)
b)
c)
c)
d)
d)
e)
e)
15. Extra Curricular Activities Interest/ Hobbies/ Sports:

16. Have you donated Blood? (Yes/ No)_____________

17. What are current news item being discussed in newspaper related to your industry / or your Fathers /
Mothers relevant industry?

18. Key Achievements (If any):

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19. Are you willing to relocate and travel? If no what are the actual reasons?

19. Why do you want to switch from your existing field?

20. Are you aware of the most important issues which is going on in India/ Internationally Enumerate 2
Issues each?
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)

21. Who inspired you to take up job in this sector?

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[CAREER POWER - INTERVIEW BOOT CAMP KIT]

Chapter 1: Interview Basics ...................................................................... 3

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Chapter 1: Interview Basics

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Chapter 2: Interview Strategies and Behaviour

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How will you motivate your subordinates in

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Can you give some specific reasons for untimely

What is Alnino effect?

How many types of soil are found in India?

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Give some suggestions for sustainable

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Current Assessment year?

What are the elements of effective

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What is Moral policing?

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Banking/ Economy Related Questions asked previously

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Chapter 4: Before / During and After the Interview

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8. While giving answers to questions:

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Chapter 5: Group Discussion Concepts & Topics

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