Which Job is Better: Bank PO or SSC CGL

When it comes to government jobs, there are 2 popular job options in front of the aspirants: Bank PO and SSC CGL. Choosing a better option between the two can be a tricky choice as both jobs have their positives & negatives. This is why we have come up with this article where we will compare both the job profiles on different parameters. Going through this article will definitely put you on a better platform and will help you make an informed choice.

Government Job

While a Bank PO is often touted as a government job, these jobs are for Public Sector Banks (like SBI, PNB etc.) in which the majority stake is of central government/ RBI etc. On the other hand, SSC CGL job is a pure central government job where you will be placed in different central government ministries/departments.

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Job Responsibilities & Work Pressure

As an SSC CGL you can be placed in a number of ministries/ departments viz. Central Secretariat Service, Income Tax, Excise, CAG, Statistical Investigator, AO, Central Vigilance Commission, Intelligence Bureau, CBI, Ministry of Railways / External Affairs / Defence etc. The nature of work and job responsibilities will vary depending on the department/ ministry you are placed in. However, to give a common ground to the aspirants, we are jotting down the generic job responsibilities of an SSC CGL.

• To answer RTI queries
• To handle filing work.
• To handle general administration work like planning and examining documents, compiling reports, updating about events, noting, drafting, and communicating with the head office
• To carry out fieldwork
• To conduct audit work
• To carry out raids, inspections, surveillance etc.
• To look after the back office work
• To inspect various organizations’ balance sheets

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When it comes to Bank PO, you are supposed to be good with numbers and accounting as some times there will be a missing/duplicate transaction you need to look into. Also, you need to answer the general public on their queries. Let’s have a look at other responsibilities of a Bank PO:

• To handle works on daily customer transactions, viz. passing a cheque, draft issuance, cash management etc.
• To work towards increasing the bank business viz. managing cash flow, loans and mortgages and finances
• To work as public relations officer, handle customer complaints and address various customer related issues such as discrepancies in accounts, rectification of undue charges and look into complaints regarding services provided by the bank
• To supervise clerical work, taking decisions for the benefit of the bank, managing cash balance etc.
• To process loan related documents and perform on-site visit of the loan taking parties as and when required
• To issue ATM cards, cheque books, Demand Drafts etc.
• To get trained for having the practical knowledge in finance, accounting, marketing, billing as well as investment

Please note that the working culture of banks is slowly moving towards a sales-oriented one and therefore sometimes a Bank PO has sales pressure as well. So a Bank PO has obviously more work pressure when compared with a SSC CGL.

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Working Hours

The working hours of an SSC CGL resonate completely with that of a central government department and is more or less fixed unless there is an emergency (like raid, audit etc.). Working hours are 9 am to 6 pm and the office remains open from Monday to Friday.

Coming to Bank PO, there is a fixed schedule but if there is more work, you need to do overtime as well. The banks remain open from Monday to Saturday (except 2nd & 4th Saturday). Working hours increase in the months of financial year closure.

Transfer

In the case of SSC CGL, transfers take place every 4-5 years except for the CSS posts. These transfers happen on the basis of seniority/promotion. When it comes to Bank PO, transfers take place in a span of 2-5 years the basis of which is again seniority/promotion.

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Growth

Growth & promotion is obviously dependent on your performance and it typically takes 4-5 years for a promotion. There are a number of job profiles in different ministries/ departments and the existing post gets the next post in seniority. For example, an auditor becomes a senior auditor in 3-4 years.

Coming to growth & promotion in Bank PO, the promotion takes place every 2-3 years (obviously depending on your performance). The promotion goes as per the following route: Assistant Manager => Branch Manager => AGM => GM.

It’s obvious that the promotion process of a Bank PO moves faster when compared with SSC CGL.

Now that we have discussed & compared the jobs of SSC CGL & Bank PO in several aspects we hope that you would get an idea of which job is better for you. Although it depends on your personal preference, we are putting below the positive & negative aspects of both the jobs. The positive side of SSC CGL is less work pressure but then the promotion takes more time here. A Bank PO gets more salary than some of SSC CGL posts and at the same time a Bank PO is also able to avail loans at a lower rate. A Bank PO can also get rural posting which is not likely in the case of SSC CGL.

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So this was our analysis. What do you think? Let us know in the comments section below.

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