In this guide
Three months is enough to become competitive in IBPS Clerk, provided the time goes to the right things in the right order. The order matters more than the hours. Candidates who jump to full mocks in week one learn only that they are not ready. Candidates who spend two months on theory arrive at the exam slow.
This plan assumes about five to six hours a day, six days a week, if you are studying full time. If you are working or in college, the last section shows how to stretch it.
First, budget your hours
Twelve weeks × 6 days × about 5.5 hours ≈ 400 hours. Here is a sensible split for a candidate starting at an average level.
| Area | Share | Hours (approx.) | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| Numerical ability | 30% | 120 | Calculation speed takes daily practice |
| Reasoning | 30% | 120 | Puzzles decide the reasoning score in both stages |
| General / financial awareness | 20% | 80 | Mains only, but builds slowly |
| English | 15% | 60 | Daily reading plus formats |
| Computer knowledge | 5% | 20 | Short, direct questions |
If you already have a strong base in one area, move 20–30 hours from it to your weakest. Check this again at week 6 using your mock results.
Month 1 (weeks 1–4): basics
| Week | Numerical | Reasoning | English | Awareness |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tables to 30, squares to 50; simplification | Inequality | Daily reading; parts of speech | Banking basics: RBI, types of accounts |
| 2 | Cubes to 20; fraction–percentage; approximation | Syllogism | Subject–verb agreement; fillers | Cheques, drafts, NEFT, RTGS, UPI |
| 3 | Percentage, ratio, averages | Direction, blood relations, coding | Error detection | Government schemes |
| 4 | Number series; ages | Simple puzzles and linear seating | RC practice, one passage a day | Monthly current affairs notes begin |
End of month 1: take one full prelims mock, only to see where you stand. Do not judge yourself by it.
Month 2 (weeks 5–8): speed and coverage
| Week | Numerical | Reasoning | English | Awareness and computer |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | Profit and loss; simple and compound interest | Circular seating; order and ranking | Cloze test | Regulators and financial bodies |
| 6 | Time and work; speed and distance | Floor and box puzzles | Para jumbles | Current affairs revision (month 1) |
| 7 | Data interpretation (tables, bar, pie) | Alphanumeric series; mixed puzzles | Phrase replacement; word swap | Computer fundamentals |
| 8 | Mixtures, partnership, quadratic equations | Input–output; data sufficiency (mains) | Mixed formats | Current affairs revision (month 2) |
From week 5, add two sectional tests a day and two full prelims mocks a week, each followed by analysis.
Month 3 (weeks 9–12): mocks and mains depth
| Week | Focus |
|---|---|
| 9 | A prelims mock every day; mains-level DI and puzzles; computer revision |
| 10 | A prelims mock every day; weakest topics from your error notebook |
| 11 | Mocks every day; awareness revision from the beginning |
| 12 | Mocks early in the week; light revision; rest before the exam |
Awareness and computer knowledge continue through month 3 even though the prelims does not test them. The mains follows the prelims quickly.
A daily timetable (full time)
| Time | Activity |
|---|---|
| 7:00–8:30 | Numerical ability |
| 9:00–10:30 | Reasoning |
| 11:00–12:00 | English |
| 14:00–15:00 | Sectional tests (or a full mock from week 9) |
| 16:00–17:00 | General and financial awareness |
| 20:00–20:30 | Revise the day's notes and errors |
That is 5.5 hours of work with real breaks. The breaks are part of the plan, not a reward for finishing it.
Checkpoints
| When | You should be able to |
|---|---|
| End of week 4 | Do 20 simplification questions in about 10 minutes with few errors |
| End of week 6 | Solve an easy puzzle in under 5 minutes |
| End of week 8 | Clear every section in most sectional tests |
| End of week 10 | Score steadily in full mocks, with 85–90% accuracy |
| End of week 12 | Finish awareness revision once from the start |
If you miss a checkpoint, do not panic and do not start again. Spend the next week giving that area an extra hour a day, then continue.
If you are working or in college
- Keep the order of topics, but stretch the plan to four or five months.
- Weekdays: two to three hours, split into a morning block (numerical or reasoning, when your mind is fresh) and an evening block (English or awareness).
- Weekends: longer sessions, and your full mocks.
- Awareness fits well into travel time: read the day's banking news on the way to work.
With about 2.5 hours on five weekdays and 6 hours on each weekend day, you get 12.5 + 12 = 24.5 hours a week. At that rate, 400 hours takes about 16 weeks, which is four months.
Common mistakes
- Skipping the tables and squares in week 1 because they feel childish. They are the base of every calculation.
- Taking mocks without analysing them. A mock without analysis is only practice at being tested.
- Dropping awareness in month 3 to focus on the prelims, and then facing the mains with four weeks of news.
- Changing the plan every week after reading someone else's plan online.
Self-test before you start
- How many hours does this plan budget in total? About 400.
- When should full mocks become daily? From week 9.
- A working candidate studies 2 hours on six weekdays and 5 hours on Sunday. How many hours a week? 12 + 5 = 17.
- At 17 hours a week, how long do 400 hours take? About 23.5 weeks, so plan for roughly six months or trim the hours budget.
What to do next
- Write the week-by-week tables into a notebook and tick each topic as you finish it.
- Set your mock days now, so they do not slip.
- If you are starting from scratch, read starting from zero first.
- Learn how to analyse mocks properly with the mock tests guide.
A note on dates and numbers. Exam patterns, vacancies and schedules change from year to year. Always confirm the current details in the latest notification on the Institute of Banking Personnel Selection website .
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