15 May
SBI PO exam is approaching and candidates are gearing up to put their best foot forward. By now you must be aware of the revised SBI PO pattern. This time around the Mains Exam will also have a Descriptive Test apart from a 200 mark Objective Test. The Descriptive Test will have two components: essay writing & letter writing. So, it’s evident that you can score well on this test only if you are good at essay writing. However, you need not worry as the essay writing approach described here by SBI Coaching experts will help you hone your essay writing skills.
At the start, it must be understood that effective essay writing requires a well planned and systematic approach. Such an approach follows the sequence of steps given below-
Understand the Topic:
Read the topic and understand what is expected to be done. Frame a broad outline of the aspects you are going to touch upon. Give adequate time to this task; you don’t want to start out on a wrong note by misjudging the scope of discussion required.
Note Down all the Points:
The moment you are clear about the topic, start thinking of all the points related to its various dimensions. Note down these points quickly. However, while doing so, you need not consider whether you will include each of them (in the final draft) or not. The objective, at this stage, is primarily to generate adequate content so that the essay can be composed comfortably.
Prepare a Structure (Blueprint):
An essay must have three parts: Introduction, Body & Conclusion. No essay is complete without these parts. It is important here to understand the relevance of these parts in the overall structure of the essay.
(I) Introduction – While writing the introduction, your objective should be to familiarize the reader with the topic and to lay down a foundation on which you will construct the body of the essay. Being at the start of the essay, the introduction must be impressive. Remember that well begun is half done. Therefore, you must choose the words carefully. You can even consider starting with a quotation which is relevant to the topic. Generally a 4 to 5 line paragraph suffices as the introduction.
(II) Body – This part of the essay has the maximum number of words. It is here that you build upon the introduction. Depending on the word limit prescribed, you can decide the number of paragraphs that will comprise the body. Don’t forget to provide the supporting details which reinforce the ideas that you have presented here. The supporting details usually include explanatory arguments, reasons, examples, facts and data which can convince the reader about your point of view.
(III) Conclusion – After having written the body, it is time to sum up the discussion. It is important to note that the conclusion must be in line with the ideas you have expressed earlier. In fact, it must be a logical outcome of the ongoing discussion. It should provide a takeaway to the reader, a sum total of the effort he /she has invested in reading the essay.
Follow the Writing Rules:
Having prepared the structure, you have to now start writing as per it. While writing it is suggested that you follow the rules of effective writing which will help you leave a positive impression on the reader. These rules are-
- Avoid spelling mistakes. You will get penalized for making spelling mistakes.
- Take care of grammatical errors. The chances of grammatical errors get increased if your sentences are lengthy.
- Don’t fall under the misconception that an essay is a display of how strong your vocabulary is. There is no point in using high sounding words just to try impressing the reader.
- There must be a logical flow in the way your essay has been written. There must a seamless transition from one idea to another.
- Avoid verbosity. Your sentences should be crisp, clear and to the point.
- Stick to the word limit. Overshooting the word limit is a mistake; it suggests your inability to express yourself effectively in the given format.
- Only similar ideas can be clubbed together in a paragraph. If you have to bring up a fresh idea into discussion, it is essential to start a new paragraph.
- Don’t introduce any new idea while writing the conclusion. The conclusion should only restate and emphasize the prominent ideas that have been discussed earlier.
- Since the essay has to be written online a final round of proof reading is essential to ensure that no typing mistake is there.
Summary:
It is seen that while preparing for SBI PO exam most candidates end up studying only for the objective test. Hence, the preparation for essay writing gets neglected somewhere and becomes a problem area. However, you can prevent such a situation from arising by going through this article which contains the experience of experts at the institute for best Bank PO Coaching in Delhi. To learn more from them, you can write at vidyagurudelhi@gmail.com.
SWARNAVA NANDY April 30, 2016 at 4:11 pm
sir/madam
i am an aspirant for sbi p.o. and as far as i know that in the current system we don’t have to write the descriptive test. Is it true?
Vidya Guru May 5, 2016 at 2:30 am
The descriptive test is online. It is worth 50 marks and has a time duration of 30 minutes…