Some tricks to ensure success in Civil Services Exam

While talking to those aspirants who have passed/cleared or topped the Civil Services, many will say it was hardwork, some will say it was shear luck and there must be numerous other reasons by them that helped them score decent enough in the examination. Over here we will discuss some of the unforeseen reasons that add upto the success of civil service aspirants.

Usually, the candidates accept a standard formula of Einstein of what he once said – “Genius is 90% perspiration and 10 percent inspiration.” There are numerous aspirants who say that behind their success it is 99% hard work and 1% luck. It gives you a feeling like you are jumping into a well. Whether you score a 90% or 99%, one will fall into the well only. The factor of variation from 1-10 percent varies from person to person.

There are often times, when we study all the subjects thoroughly except one small topic which we think is known to us. And when the same question appears in the examination, we are not able to answer it satisfactorily. Hence, it is often suggested not to be overconfident even on a single topic, prepare thoroughly without doing selective studies.

In prelim exams, many a times candidates unknowingly, tick marks the wrong option although they know the correct answer. This is a mental mistake and therefore a candidate needs to be more alert which is also an essence. Many a times in the prelims, if a candidate is in doubt, he is bound to get confused between two similar options. Therefore students need to comprehend the questions carefully, without ruling out any option till he/she has balanced each option cautiously in the context of the question.

In Civil Services Mains examination, students have to appear in nine papers. Keep the language papers on the backseat as these are of qualifying nature and are not going to be added on to the scores of the mains examination. Additionally, language is not something that can be prepared in a day or two. One needs to keep a tab on the daily newpapers and magazines on regular basis.

All other seven papers are going to be of different nature. Moreover, all the seven papers go to different personalities and the caliber of evaluators are also not the same. Always remember that there are no short-cuts to success and no alternative to hard work when appearing for a civil services exam.

Tips for Civil Services

While preparing for Civil Services Examination, the first thought of appearing in the same gives way to the issue of selection of optionals. Actually selection of appropriate optionals is a very crucial step, and usually post graduates of different streams prefer choosing their parent subjects for Prelims. Also, such selection of optionals appears to be quite logical as candidates with science discipline as their base subject need to think over the case of getting entry into civil services very seriously. Subjects like Math’s, Physics, and Geology are taken as optional only when one is thorough with the subjects.

Since UPSC ascertains that candidates from every discipline must qualify for the Mains, aspirants with science subjects need to evaluate themselves correctly regarding their own capability to be included in this group. Some of the social sciences including subjects such as History, Sociology and Public Administration are opted significantly by a maximum number of students, as this is a much safer bet especially for science graduates and those who are not confident to opt for their specific parent subject. In both the cases, formal preparation needs to be started from the basic fundamentals even if the people are already a post graduate in the subject.

Additionally, following are some tips that may help u prepare well in the entrance examination:

• Be meticulous in the subjects you choose for prelims, as you have to appear for a multiple-choice kind of paper. History, mathematics, geography may prove to be very scoring, hence choose subjects whose books, study material and guidance is easily available in the market. The current trend is of choosing engineering subjects such as civil and electrical.
• A good hold on General Knowledge pays for the Prelims bet and for the same, reading newspapers, watching television news and ofcourse quiz programmes such as KBC is good.
• For the Interview stage, bookish knowledge is not enough, one needs to be mentally alert for questions like “How many red lights you crossed while coming here?”
• Improved personalities may definitely help and it is one of the criteria for selection in IAS. For IPS, physical wellbeing is counted as an important criteria and one needs to be physically fit for getting into IPS.
• Enhancing the communication skills is also very important; IFS aspirants need to be proficient in one of the foreign languages too.
  

Working as an IAS officer is a dream for a majority of Indian Citizens, and to convert this dream into reality requires a lot of hard work and dexterity.