In SEBI Grade A Phase-2, aspirants spend weeks perfecting essays and hours practising comprehension — yet ignore the one section that offers the highest return per hour invested.
That section is Precis Writing (30 marks).
Year after year, we observe the same pattern:
- Aspirants attempt precis
- Very few prepare for precis
- Fewer still score well in it
This post explains why Precis is the highest ROI area in SEBI Descriptive English — and why most aspirants fail to capitalise on it.
🔍 Why Precis Matters More Than Aspirants Think
Let’s look at the paper objectively:
| Section | Marks | Nature |
|---|---|---|
| Essay | 30 | Subjective, wide variation |
| Precis | 30 | Technical, rule-based |
| Comprehension | 40 | Interpretation-based |
Precis is the only section where marks are:
- Highly controllable
- Less dependent on “ideas”
- Strongly linked to technique
👉 This makes precis the most predictable scoring opportunity in the paper.
📉 The Reality: How Aspirants Actually Perform in Precis
From evaluated mocks, the most common precis score range is:
- 10–14 marks out of 30
Why?
Because most precis answers look correct but violate SEBI’s hidden technical checks.
Examiners don’t reward “summary writing”.
They reward precision under constraint.
❌ WHY MOST ASPIRANTS PREPARE PRECiS WRONG
1️⃣ Treating Precis as “Easy English”
Many aspirants assume:
“It’s just shortening the passage.”
SEBI treats precis as a technical skill, not a language test.
Errors are penalised even if language is fluent.
2️⃣ Casual Approach to Title Writing
The title alone can:
- Fetch marks
- Or cost marks instantly
Common issues:
- Opinionated titles
- Over-generalised headings
- Missing central idea
📌 SEBI expects neutral, idea-capturing titles, not creative ones.
3️⃣ Poor Length Discipline
SEBI allows ±2% deviation — not “around one-third”.
Typical mistakes:
- Writing 10–15 words extra
- Over-compressing and losing meaning
📌 Length deviation is one of the fastest mark-cut triggers.
4️⃣ Distortion of Meaning
This is the most dangerous error.
It happens when:
- Causes become conclusions
- Possibilities become certainties
- Opinions replace facts
📌 Even one distortion can drop a good precis into a low score bracket.
5️⃣ Retaining Redundancy
Many precis answers are shorter but not tighter.
Examiners penalise:
- Repetition
- Peripheral ideas
- Decorative language
📌 Precis rewards intellectual compression, not just word reduction.
🚀 WHY PRECiS IS THE HIGHEST ROI AREA
✅ 1. Fewer Variables
- No need for examples
- No need for current affairs
- No need for creativity
Only:
- Understanding
- Compression
- Accuracy
✅ 2. Faster Improvement Curve
Aspirants can move from:
- 12 → 20 marks
- Within a few corrected attempts
Essay improvement takes longer.
RC improvement is gradual.
Precis improvement is sharp and fast.
✅ 3. Less Competition Advantage
Most aspirants:
- Practise essays heavily
- Neglect precis deeply
📌 Strong precis scores create silent rank separation.
🧠 HOW TOPPERS PREPARE PRECiS DIFFERENTLY
They follow rules, not intuition.
✔️ They use a fixed checklist:
- Central idea intact?
- No inference added?
- Exact length?
- Neutral title?
✔️ They rewrite evaluated precis
Not just read feedback — they apply it.
✔️ They practise fewer, but analyse deeper
Quality > quantity.
📈 A SIMPLE HIGH-ROI PRECiS STRATEGY
- Revise rules once
- Practise 1 precis
- Get examiner-style feedback
- Rewrite it correctly
- Repeat with next passage
👉 This loop delivers maximum marks per hour invested.
🎯 FINAL WORD FROM BANK WHIZZ
Precis writing is not about being good at English.
It is about being disciplined with meaning.
In a paper where essays fluctuate and RC surprises,
Precis offers stability — if prepared correctly.
Ignoring it is not a strategy.
Mastering it is.
🔔 Call to Action
If you are preparing for SEBI Phase-2, ask yourself:
- Do I know why marks are cut in my precis?
- Am I sure my title is examiner-acceptable?
- Have I ever rewritten a corrected precis?
📌 At Bank Whizz, precis evaluation focuses on:
- Technical accuracy
- Distortion detection
- Examiner-level marking logic
👉 One correct precis framework can add 8–10 marks to your final score.