Interview experience
Bank of Baroda Interview Questions and Answers (2026)
Real Bank of Baroda interview questions - candidate interview experiences and HR round prep, in one place.
Overview
Section titled “Overview”Bank of Baroda hires through two genuinely separate pipelines: a generalist PGDBF/PO route that’s exam-heavy and open to any-branch graduates, and a periodic IT/Specialist Officer route for CS/IT/Electronics grads that skips the group discussion entirely. The PGDBF/PO route weights the online exam, GD, and personal interview together rather than treating the written test as a simple pass/fail gate - so GD and PI performance still matter even after clearing the paper.
Bank of Baroda interview process at a glance (PGDBF/PO route)
Section titled “Bank of Baroda interview process at a glance (PGDBF/PO route)”| Round | Duration | What they test |
|---|---|---|
| Online Exam | 2-3 hours | Reasoning, quant, English, general/banking awareness, descriptive writing |
| Psychometric Assessment | Varies | Personality fit for a banking role |
| Group Discussion | ~15-20 min per batch | Communication, current affairs, teamwork |
| Personal Interview | 15-20 min | Banking awareness, personality, document verification |
Online Exam
Section titled “Online Exam”A 2-3 hour objective-plus-descriptive paper - the first and heaviest-weighted filter on the PGDBF/PO route.
Common questions
- Quantitative aptitude and logical reasoning sections
- English comprehension plus a descriptive writing section (essay/letter)
- General and banking awareness (recent RBI policy, banking terms, current affairs)
Psychometric Assessment
Section titled “Psychometric Assessment”A personality-fit test assessing suitability for a customer-facing banking role rather than technical knowledge.
Common questions
- Situational-judgment style questions on customer interactions
- Personality-trait questions (no single “right” answer, consistency matters)
Group Discussion
Section titled “Group Discussion”A short, batched discussion round - usually on a national-level current-affairs topic - held the same day as the interview.
Common questions
- National economic/trade-policy topics given with 2-3 minutes’ prep time
- Banking-sector-relevant discussion topics (digital banking, financial inclusion)
Personal Interview
Section titled “Personal Interview”A 15-20 minute interview covering banking awareness, personality fit, and document verification, held by the same panel as the GD.
Common questions
- Tell me about yourself, and why Bank of Baroda?
- Are you willing to work in a rural or semi-urban branch posting?
- What current affairs or banking news have you followed recently?
- Basic banking-product and process questions
Sample answer frameworks for each of these are on the Bank of Baroda HR interview questions page.
Common technical interview questions and answers
Section titled “Common technical interview questions and answers”Q: What is the difference between CRR, SLR and the repo rate?
CRR (Cash Reserve Ratio) is the share of a bank’s Net Demand and Time Liabilities it must hold as cash with the RBI, and it earns no interest. SLR (Statutory Liquidity Ratio) is the share it must hold in liquid assets it keeps itself - cash, gold, or approved government securities - so unlike CRR it still earns a return. The repo rate is the rate at which the RBI lends short-term funds to banks against government securities, and it is the RBI’s main policy signal; the reverse repo (now operationally the SDF) is the rate at which banks park surplus funds with the RBI. Raising CRR or the repo rate tightens liquidity and slows credit growth; cutting them does the opposite.
Q: What is an NPA, and how are NPAs classified?
A loan becomes a Non-Performing Asset when interest or principal remains overdue for more than 90 days for a term loan, or when a cash-credit or overdraft account stays out of order for that period. NPAs are then classified into three buckets: sub-standard, an asset that has been an NPA for up to 12 months; doubtful, one that has stayed sub-standard beyond 12 months; and loss asset, where loss has been identified but the amount has not been written off. Higher provisioning is required as the asset moves down that ladder, which is why NPA levels hit profitability directly. Gross NPA is the total; Net NPA is gross minus provisions held.
Q: What is the CASA ratio and why do banks care about it?
CASA is the proportion of a bank’s total deposits held in Current Accounts and Savings Accounts. It matters because these are the cheapest funds a bank has - current accounts pay no interest at all and savings accounts pay only a small rate, whereas term deposits are far costlier. A higher CASA ratio therefore means a lower cost of funds and a wider net interest margin. That is exactly why banks push salary accounts, digital onboarding, and branch expansion in underbanked areas: they are competing for low-cost deposits, not just volume.
Q: Explain Priority Sector Lending and its targets.
Priority Sector Lending is an RBI mandate requiring banks to direct a share of credit to segments the market would otherwise underserve - agriculture, micro/small/medium enterprises, education, housing, export credit, social infrastructure, renewable energy, and weaker sections. For domestic scheduled commercial banks the overall target is 40 percent of Adjusted Net Bank Credit, with sub-targets including 18 percent for agriculture, 7.5 percent for micro enterprises, and 12 percent for weaker sections. Banks that fall short must park the shortfall in the Rural Infrastructure Development Fund with NABARD at a low return, so missing the target has a real cost. Banks with surplus PSL loans can also sell that exposure to others through Priority Sector Lending Certificates.
Q: How do NEFT, RTGS, IMPS and UPI differ?
RTGS settles each transaction individually and in real time, is meant for high-value payments, and carries a minimum of two lakh rupees per transaction with no upper cap. NEFT settles in half-hourly batches, runs round the clock, and has no minimum or maximum prescribed by the RBI. IMPS is an NPCI service offering instant round-the-clock retail transfers, commonly capped at five lakh rupees. UPI, also run by NPCI, layers a mobile interface with a virtual payment address over the IMPS rails so the payer never shares an account number - which is why it dominates low-value retail payments today.
Q: What is KYC, and why is it central to a branch officer’s job?
Know Your Customer is the RBI-mandated process of verifying a customer’s identity, address, and the genuineness of their transactions before and during a banking relationship, and it sits under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act framework. It runs on officially valid documents such as Aadhaar, PAN, passport, voter ID, or driving licence, with periodic re-KYC required at intervals set by the customer’s risk category. Beyond onboarding, the officer must monitor for and escalate suspicious activity - unexplained large cash deposits, rapid in-and-out transfers - through a Suspicious Transaction Report to FIU-IND. Weak KYC exposes the bank to regulatory penalties and to being used as a laundering channel, which is why panels take it seriously in the interview.
Q: What is CRAR, and what does Basel III require?
CRAR, the Capital to Risk-Weighted Assets Ratio, measures a bank’s capital against its assets weighted by their riskiness - a government security carries near-zero weight while an unsecured personal loan carries a high one. Under Basel III as implemented by the RBI, Indian banks must maintain a minimum CRAR of 9 percent, above the 8 percent Basel minimum, plus a Capital Conservation Buffer of 2.5 percent, taking the effective requirement to 11.5 percent. Basel III also introduced the Liquidity Coverage Ratio, requiring enough high-quality liquid assets to survive 30 days of stressed outflows, and a leverage ratio that is not risk-weighted. The point of the framework is that a bank should absorb losses from its own capital rather than from depositors or taxpayers.
Q: What has driven financial inclusion in India, and where does a bank like Bank of Baroda fit in?
The main pillar is the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana, which opened zero-balance basic savings accounts at scale and bundled them with a RuPay debit card and accident insurance cover. Around it sits the JAM trinity - Jan Dhan accounts, Aadhaar, and mobile - which enables Direct Benefit Transfer of subsidies straight into accounts and cuts out leakage from intermediaries. Insurance and pension schemes such as PMJJBY, PMSBY and Atal Pension Yojana are distributed through those same accounts, and Business Correspondents extend service to villages without a branch. Public sector banks carry most of this delivery, so willingness to work at a rural or semi-urban branch is a genuine part of the role rather than a formality.
Frequently asked questions about Bank of Baroda interviews
Section titled “Frequently asked questions about Bank of Baroda interviews”What is the Bank of Baroda interview process for freshers?
Bank of Baroda’s PGDBF/PO route runs an Online Exam (objective plus descriptive, 2-3 hours) followed by a Psychometric Assessment, a Group Discussion, and a Personal Interview. Final selection uses a weighted score across all these stages, so GD and PI performance both matter even after clearing the written test.
What questions are asked in Bank of Baroda interviews?
The Personal Interview covers basic banking awareness, current affairs, and personality-fit questions, plus document verification. Group Discussion topics are usually national-level current affairs (for example, trade or economic policy questions) where you get a couple of minutes to prepare points before discussing.
How many rounds are there in the Bank of Baroda interview?
There are typically 4 stages on the PGDBF/PO route: Online Exam (objective + descriptive), Psychometric Assessment, Group Discussion, and Personal Interview. GD and PI are usually held on the same day, with the same panel evaluating both. The IT/Specialist Officer route skips the GD and runs Online Test (where applicable) plus Interview only.
Does Bank of Baroda have a separate IT/tech hiring route?
Yes - Bank of Baroda regularly runs a distinct IT/Specialist Officer recruitment track (for roles like Technical Officer, Technical Manager, Data Scientist) separate from the generalist PGDBF/PO route. A 2026 notification alone covered 418 IT posts across Officer/Manager/Senior Manager grades, with eligibility centered on B.E./B.Tech in CS/IT/Electronics. Selection is an Online Test (when the applicant pool is large) plus a Psychometric Test and/or Interview/GD - no descriptive banking-awareness paper like the PO route.
How should I prepare for Bank of Baroda interviews?
For the PGDBF/PO route: revise banking awareness and current affairs, practice structuring points quickly for group discussions (you typically get only 2-3 minutes to prepare), and be ready to speak about your willingness to work in varied locations, including rural and semi-urban branches. For the IT/SO route: brush up on your core CS/IT fundamentals and be ready to discuss your technical background and any relevant experience in the interview.