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CIVIL SERVICES EXAMIANTION

The very fact that a big share of every year's top posts in the civil services exams are bagged by

professionals from various streams, shows that the IAS is still the dream job for many. There are

many candidates who opt for the bureaucracy because of its sheer versatility, scope, depth and

variety. The eminence, prestige, vitality and authority of the Indian bureaucracy have barely waned.

The Services

The Civil Services Examination (CSE) offers the widest range of jobs in our country and is conducted by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC). Most popular among them are

Indian Administrative Service (IAS), Indian Police Service (IPS), Indian Foreign Service (IFS) ,

Indian Revenue Service (IRS), Indian Customs & Central Excise Services, etc. along with the

other central services. Recruitment is made in the following services through Civil Services

Exam

1. Indian Administrative Service ( IAS )

2. Indian Foreign Service( IFS )

3. Indian Police Service ( IPS )

GROUP–A SERVICES

4. Indian P & T Accounts & Finance Service

5. Indian Audit & Accounts Service

6. Indian Revenue Service (Customs and Central Excise)

7. Indian Defence Accounts Service

8. Indian Revenue Service (I.T)

9. Indian Ordnance Factories Service Group –A (Asst. manager, Non-technical)

10. Indian Postal Service

11. Indian Civil Accounts Service

12. Indian Railway Traffic Service

13. Indian Railway Account Service

14. Indian Railway Personnel Service

15. Posts of Assistant Security Officer, Group-A in Railway Protection Force

16. Indian Defence Estates Service

17. Indian Information Service(Junior Grade)

18. Indian Trade Service

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19. Indian Corporate Law Service

GROUP – B SERVICES

20. Armed Forces, Headquarters Civil Service,(Section Officer’s Grade)

21. Delhi and Andaman & Nicobar Islands Civil Service, Group B

22. Delhi and Andaman & Nicobar Islands Police Service

23. Pondicherry Civil Service

24. Pondicherry Civil Service

Recruitment

The recruitment to these services is made through the UPSC on the basis of the annual

civil service competitive exam. IAS, IPS is considered as All India Services while others services

recruited through this civil services exam is known as Central Services. The officers of the All

India Services are recruited and trained by the federal Union Government (“the Centre”) and

serve in the various State Government(“the States”) as well as Centre (which is why the IRS is a “central service” instead of an All India Service as they work only in the Central Government).

Officers are organized into cadres, derived from the states they are allotted to work in for as

long as they continue to be a member of the respective Service.

Training All new entrants called probationers (IAS, IPS, IRS etc.) first undergo a 4-month Foundation Course (common

to all officers recruited through CSE) at Lal Bhadur Shastri National Academy of Administration, Mussoorie. After

the completion of the foundation course, the probationers are sent to their respective institutes for professional

training, while the IAS probationers continue to stay at the Academy for their professional training. The

probationers of the Indian Foreign Service are trained at Delhi. After completing the foundation the probationers of

the Police Service are trained at Sardar Vallavbhai Patel National Police Academy, Hyderabad. The probationers of

the Indian Revenue Service are trained at National Academy of Direct Taxes (NADT), Nagpur for the officers of

IRS (IT) and at National Academy of Customs, Excise and Narcotics (NACEN), Faridabad for the officers of IRS

(C&CE).

OFFICIAL Notification

Procedure of Examination

The complete examination procedure is being conducted by the Union Public Service

Commission. The examination consists of three tier: Preliminary, Mains and Personality Test.

Preliminary exam is followed by the Main (Written) Examination and a personal Interview. Final

ranking has been made on the basis of performance in the Mains exam and personal Interview.

The candidates are then allotted to various services on the basis of their ranks and the

preferences expressed by them.

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Academic Eligibility

• A degree of any of the Universities incorporated by an Act of the Central or State Legislature in India or other educational institutions established by an Act of Parliament

or declared to be a Deemed University under the UGC Act, 1956, or an equivalent

qualification.

• Candidates who have appeared or intend to appear for the qualifying examination and are

awaiting results are also eligible to appear for the Preliminary Examination. All such candidates who qualify to appear for the Civil Services Main Examination must produce

proof of having passed the said examination along with their application for the Main

Examination.

• The UPSC may in exceptional cases treat a candidate without the requisite qualification

as an eligible candidate if he / she has passed an examination conducted by other standard institutions that justifies his / her admission in the opinion of the Commission.

• Candidates with professional and technical qualifications recognized by the Government

as equivalent to professional and technical degrees.

• Candidates who have passed the final year of MBBS or any Medical Examination but are yet to complete the internship can also appear for the Main Examination. However they

must submit along with their Main Examination application, a certificate from the

concerned authority of the University / Institution that they have passed the final

professional medical examination. At the Interview stage they must then produce a

certificate from a competent authority that they have completed (including internship) all

the requirements for the award of the Medical Degree

Other Eligibility Conditions

Nationality

• Only Indian nationals are eligible for IAS and IPS.

• For other services a candidate can be either of the following:

(i) A citizen of India,

(ii) A subject of Nepal,

(iii) A subject of Bhutan,

(iv) A Tibetan refugee who came over to India before January 1, 1962 with the intention of permanently settling in India, or

(v) A person of Indian origin who has migrated from Burma, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi,

Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Uganda, United Republic of Tanzania, Vietnam, Zaire or Zambia

with the intention of permanently settling in India.

Candidates belonging to either categories of (ii)., (iii)., (iv). or (v). must produce an eligibility

certificate issued by the Government of India. Those who belong to either of (ii)., (iii). or (iv). categories are not eligible for appointment to the Indian Foreign Service (IFS).

Age Limit

• A candidate must have attained 21 years and not be over 32 years on August 1 of the year of examination.

• The upper age limit is relaxed in specific cases as mentioned below:

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a. up to a maximum of 5 years if the candidate belongs to SC/ST.

b. up to a maximum of 3 years if the candidate belongs to Other Backward Classes.

c. up to a maximum of 5 years if the candidate had been domiciled in Jammu & Kashmir during the period between January 1, 1980 and December 31, 1989.

d. up to a maximum of 3 years in the case of Defence Services personnel disabled

during hostilities with foreign countries or in a disturbed area and consequently

released.

e. up to a maximum of 5 years in the case of ex-servicemen including Commissioned

Officers and ECOs / SSCOs who have rendered at least five years Military Service as on August 1 of the year of examination and have been released:

• on completion of assignment (including those whose assignment is due to be

completed within one year from August 1 of the year of examination) otherwise than

by way of dismissal or discharge on account of misconduct or inefficiency, or

• on account of physical disability attributable to Military Service, or • on invalidment.

f. up to a maximum of 5 years in the case of ECOs / SSCOs who have completed an

initial period of assignment (5 years Military Service) as on August 1 of the year of

examination and whose assignment has been extended beyond 5 years. Such

candidates will have to provide a certificate from the Ministry of Defence stating that

they can apply for civil employment and they will be released on a notice of 3 months, upon selection, from the date of receipt of offer of appointment.

g. up to a maximum of 10 years in the case of blind, deaf-mute and orthopaedically

handicapped candidates.

The date of birth accepted by the Commission is that entered in the Matriculation or

Secondary School Leaving Certificate or in a certificate recognised by an Indian University as equivalent to Matriculation or in an extract from a Register of Matriculates maintained by a

University, which extract must be certified by the proper authority of the University or in the

Higher Secondary or an equivalent examination certificate. These certificates are required to be

submitted only at the time of applying for the Civil Services (Main) Examination. No other

document relating to age like horoscopes, affidavits, birth extracts from Municipal Corporation,

service records and the like will be accepted. The expression Matriculation/Secondary Examination Certificate in this part of the instruction includes the alternative certificates

mentioned above.

Number of Attempts

Every candidate appearing at the examination who is otherwise eligible, shall be permitted

six attempts at the examination. Provided that this restriction on the number of attempts will

not apply in the case of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes candidates who are otherwise eligible. Provided further that the number of attempts permissible to candidates belonging to

Other Backward Classes, who are otherwise eligible shall be seven. The relaxation will be

available to the candidates who are eligible to avail of reservation applicable to such

candidates. Provided further that a physically handicapped will get as many attempts as are

available to other non-physically handicapped candidates of his or her community, subject to

the condition that a physically handicapped candidate belonging to the General Category shall

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be eligible for seven attempts. The relaxation will be available to the physically handicapped

candidates who are eligible to avail of reservation applicable to such candidates.

Note:—

• An attempt at a Preliminary Examination shall be deemed to be an attempt at the Examination.

• If a candidate actually appears in any one paper in the Preliminary Examination, he/she

shall be deemed to have made an attempt at the Examination.

• Notwithstanding the disqualification cancellation of candidature, the fact of appearance of

the candidate at the examination will count as an attempt.

Category Upper Age Limit No. of Attempts

Allowed

General 32 Years 06 Attempts

Other Backwards Castes

(OBC)

32 Years with relaxation of

03 years = 35 years 09 Attempts

Scheduled Caste/Scheduled

Tribe (SC/ST)

32 Years with relaxation of

05 Years = 37 years Till the Upper Age limit

Physically disabled

candidates (Blind, Deaf-

Mute, Orthopedic)

32 years with relaxation of

10 years = 42 years

For the General and

OBC Candidates= 09

attempts

For SC/ST Candidates =

Unlimited till age limit

Jammu & Kashmir Domicile

General = 37 years, OBC =

40 Years, SC/ST = 42 Years,

PH = 50 years

Up to the Upper Age

limit

Disabled servicemen disabled

from duty

General= 37 years OBC = 38

Years SC/ST = 40 Years

Up to the Upper Age

limit

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Restrictions on Applying for the Examination

A candidate who is appointed to the Indian Administrative Service or the Indian Foreign Service on the results of an earlier examination and continues to be a member of that service

will not be eligible to compete at this examination.

ONLINE

Candidates may apply online using the website http://www.upsconline.nic.in

• Detailed instructions for filling up online applications are available on the above

mentioned website.

• Candidates will be required to complete the Online Application Form containing two

stages viz. Part-I and Part-II as per the instructions available in the above mentioned site through drop down menus.

• The candidates applying Online are required to pay a reduced fee of Rs. 50/- (Rupees

Fifty only) (excepting Female/SC/ST/PH candidates who are exempted from payment of

fee) either by remitting the money in any branch of SBI by cash, or by using net banking

facility of SBI or by using any Visa/ Master Credit/Debit Card.

• Before starting filling up of online application, a candidate must have his photograph and

signature duly scanned in the .png or .jpg format in such a manner that each file size

should not exceed 40KB each.

Scheme of Civil Services Examination

Preliminary Examination

(A) Preliminary Examination | Multiple Choice Questions

The preliminary exam is the first stage of the whole examination process. The very nature

of the exam is to screen to select to the next level of exam that is mains. It is seen over the

approximately five lakh candidates appear for the Prelims but only less than fifteen thousand made it to the Mains. The introduction of the Preliminary Examination was introduced to weed

out non-serious candidates and select those who are deserving.

Preliminary Examination is an objective type (four alternatives for every question) exercise

meant to serve as a screening test/qualifying paper only. The exam consists of two objective

type papers. Which carry a maximum of 400 marks.

In the changed pattern, CSAT 2011 or Civil Services Preliminary Exam 2011 onward it

carries 400 marks and 180 questions have been asked. Out of this:

• Paper 1. 100 questions based on General Knowledge were asked, each carrying two

marks and,

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• Paper 2. 80 questions based on Aptitude Test were asked.

Except for Question Nos. 73 to 80 in the General Studies Paper II, all the questions both

papers had negative marking. For each wrong answer, 1/3 mark were deducted from the total scores of the candidate. Trend nowadays has shifted more towards current issues, hence a

thorough awareness of recent events/happenings is mandatory.

• The paper-II of the UPSC Civil Services Preliminary Exam will be qualifying in nature

from 2015.

• The General studies-II (CSAT) is the civil services (Preliminary) Examination will remain a qualifying paper with a minimum qualifying mark fixed at 33%.

Before 2011

Papers No. of Questions Marks Duration

I. General Studies 150 150 2 Hours

II. Optional Subjects 120 300 2 Hours

Total 270 450

After 2011

Papers No. of Marks Duration

Questions

I. Paper 1 100 200 2 Hours

II. Paper 2 80 200 2 Hours

Total 180 400

Those who passed the Preliminary examination are only eligible for the next stage of the

examination. The Preliminary exam consists of 400 marks but the marks obtained in this level

examination by the candidates will not be counted for determining their place in the final order

of merit.

Negative Marking for Wrong Answers

Negative marking in the Prelims examination was introduced in 2007 with the idea to

select eligible candidate for the further stages. Also to filter out candidates who get selected on

the basis of smart guesses and luck. Negative marking make paper more complex but its good

and suits for the genuine and meritorious candidates. In the Negative marking there is Penalty

for wrong answers marked by the candidate in the Objective type Question Papers. Except some of the questions where the Negative Marking will be built in the form of different marks

being awarded to most appropriate and not so appropriate answer for such questions.

• There are four alternatives for the answers to every question. For each question for which

a wrong answer has been given by the candidate, one third (0.33) of the marks assigned

to that question will be deducted as penalty.

• If a candidate gives more than one answer, it will be treated as a wrong answer even if

one of the given answers happens to be correct and there will be same penalty as above

for that question.

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• If a question is left blank i.e. no answer is given by the candidate, there will be no penalty

for that question.

Road Map for Civil Services preliminary Examination

Paper I : General Studies

The preparation strategy for Paper I involves various things among good knowledge base, extensive reading, thorough practice, regular test are important one.

Syllabus of Paper I

Marks : 200 Duration : Two hours

1. Current events of national and international importance.

2. History of India and Indian National Movement.

3. Indian and World Geography - Physical, Social, Economic Geography of India and the World.

4. Indian Polity and Governance - Constitution, Political System, Panchayati Raj,

Public Policy, Rights Issues, etc.

5. Economic and Social Development - Sustainable Development, Poverty, Inclusion,

Demographics, Social Sector initiatives, etc. 6. General issues on Environmental Ecology, Bio-diversity and Climate Change

7. General Science.

Sticking to the syllabus is good, but certain new trends have been emerging in the

examination. So we should go beyond the given syllabus. It is challenging but not impossible. It

always helps to understand the trend in this changing scenario. Go through previous years’ questions again-and-again and identify the areas from where most of the questions are being

asked. It is wise to stress on those subjects, which are common for Main Examination. The

areas to be taken care are Modern India, Polity, Indian Economy, Geography, Current Events

and General Science. We can bifurcate whole General Studies into :

• Conventional topics.

• Current affairs based.

Conventional Topics

It is composed of:

1. Indian History : History is a vital component for the Civil services exam.

The NCERT books (Class XI and XII) are good enough for the purpose.

You can refer following books

• Ancient India , NCERT Class XI

• Medieval India , NCERT Class XI

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• Modern India , NCERT Class XII

• NBT (National Book Trust) it cover certain parts on India’s Struggle for Independence.

• India’s Struggle for Independence by Bipan Chandra

2. Geography

For Indian Geography

• Physical Geography of India, NCERT Class XI

• Land and People, NCERT Class XI

For World Geography

• General Studies Manual by TMH or Spectrum Publications.

• Physical and Human Geography by G. C. Leong

• Atlas (Oxford and Orient Longmon)

Geography must be studied with the help of ATLAS, it will help you to understand the

Geography better. While reading newspaper always keep a Atlas with you as more and more

questions are getting location oriented e.g. instead of asking the venue of APEC meet they

might ask you to locate the place on world map.

3. Indian Polity and Constitution

The Indian Polity by Lakshmikanth and NCERT books are sufficient.

Also refer, DD Basu. Read it also cover to cover.

4. Indian Economy

Candidates are required to know about some basic terminology of economics like repo rate,

reverse repo, CRR, SLR etc. Indain Economy by Dutt & Sundaram is good book for the Indian

Economy it can be read. The book by Uma kapilais also a good one. Economic Survey and

Budget should be followed with comprehensively.

5. Government Policies and Programmes

Make notes on the policies that you come across in the newspapers. But this will not be

exhaustive. Use India yearbook published by the Publications division for an exhaustive

approach.

6. Science and Technology Over the year this section has emerged as an important element of the General Studies Paper. It has as many as

7-8 questions in all. The very aim of the question paper is to test the candidates awareness of the development in this

field though questions were on the traditional areas science as well. If you look into the trend of previous year’s

questions you will find that candidate should give special emphasis on of biotechnology, space technology,

information technology and electronics.

General Science basically include-Physics, Chemistry, and Biology. Among these Biology contains more

weightage. The syllabus broadly covers Human Anatomy and Physiography. In Physics and Chemistry, basic

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concepts related to combustion, optics, energy, nuclear physics, basic chemicals etc. are asked. In Physics,

almost all the questions might be application oriented. Thus, understanding of basic principles

is very important. Ares like Newton’s laws, heat, sound, optics etc. are important. In Chemistry, important minerals and their ores, etc. are important from prelims point of view.

Maximum questions will be pertaining to chemicals which are of economic significance. Thus

characteristic of different compound like plaster of paris, bleaching powder, etc are also

important. Biology, in general, has important section in science.

Science and Technology are another major area. This generally include the application

parts of the science as space technologies, IT, electronics, biotechnology, nuclear science,

defence etc. recent trends showed that this part is growing significance.

7. General Knowledge and Current Affairs

General Knowledge

India Year Book is important for the prelims and for mains as well. Manorama Year book

and other such year book is also helpful.

Current Affairs

Current affairs of one calendar year is sufficient. I recommend The Hindu and Frontilne. The Hindu has less unwanted news and has a balanced perspective on issues and is pro people. You shouldn’t be an ultra leftist or a right-wing hawk. Newspaper is best to prepare for Current Affairs and General knowledge. One has to follow at least one newspaper to keep abreast of National and International developments. It will keep your

current affairs up-to-date.

Newspaper could become guide and to broaden your General Knowledge. Every day we find

lots of new things in the newspaper just whenever you come across something these new in the

newspaper google it up and make a note on it. Newspaper reading should be done on a daily basis without any gap until the interview is over.

Suggested Reading

• The Hindu News paper

• Frontline Magazine

• Yojana Magazine

PAPER II : APTITUDE TEST

CSAT has came into effect from Civil Services Exam, 2011. The General Studies - II (CSAT) in the civil

(Preliminiary) Examination will remain a qualifying paper with minimum qualifying mark fixed at 33%.

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Syllebus of PAPER II

1. Comprehension

2. Interpersonal skills including communication skills;

3. Logical reasoning and analytical ability

4. Decision-making and problem solving

5. General mental ability

6. Basic numeracy (numbers and their relations, orders of magnitude, etc.) (Class X level),

7. Data interpretation (charts, graphs, tables, data sufficiency etc. - Class X level)

8. English Language Comprehension skills (Class X level).

Total Marks 200

Note

• A Hindi equivalent / translation will be available for the initial six tested areas, while the

seventh area , English Language Comprehension skills, will be available exclusively in

English language, indicating a need of understanding of English language in prospective

IAS officers as English is the Lingua Franca of our country.

• The duration of the paper will be of two hours.

• The questions will be of multiple choice, objective type.

Road Map for Paper–II Paper second contained only 80 questions but indeed it was a lengthy paper as it was fully loaded with

comprehension passages. Comprehensions (bilingual) had 9 questions and English comprehension had 6 questions

which almost one-third the paper. Comprehension, quantitative aptitude and reasoning were the dominant section of

the question paper.

1. Comprehension

It is bilingual, Hindi and English both, daily newspaper reading could keep you in safe. The

paper also gave importance to testing English language skills. A comprehension exercise

consists of a passage upon which questions are set to test to candidate’s ability to understand

the content of the given text and infer information and meaning from it.

Questions relating to English Language Comprehension skills of Class X level (last item in the Syllabus of Paper-II) will be tested through passages from English language only without

providing Hindi translation thereof in the question paper.

For doing best in comprehension one should keep few points in mind while attempting

this. Firstly, read the passage thoroughly and carefully, if the meaning of the passage is not

clear in very first reading then quickly go through the passage again. English Language

Comprehension is a major concern for hindi medium candidates they should take it seriously, a basic english grammar such as High School English Grammar & Composition by Wren and

Martin could be useful. This section tests a candidate’s understanding of the language that a

candidate uses.

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2. Interpersonal Skills

Interpersonal skills is people skills the ability to work with and get on with other people. Questions reflecting the ability to understand and manage the dynamics of social interaction

can be tested such as Fill in the Blanks, Analogy, Synonyms, Antonyms, Jumbled Paragraphs,

Single word substitutions, Meaning Equivalence of sentences, etc.

3. Logical Reasoning and Analytical Ability

Verbal and nonverbal Reasoning by R S Agarwal and General Mental Ability Section of

Tata McGraw Hill Guide have good parts in this section. Solve the Verbal & Non-Verbal Reasoning questions that come out in monthly magazines.

4. Decision Making and Problem Solving

This section measures a candidate’s ability to take a decision based on given conditions

and information. The questions asked in this section had no penalty for wrong answer. All

questions are purely application based.

There are books available in the market but as far as I am concern this books won’t help in your preparation, this section have to develop by yourself. Search Techniques of Decision

making and Techniques of Problem Solving in Google.

5. General Mental Ability

Questions can be based on Coding, Ages, Relations, Venn diagrams, sets, dices, direction

sense, abstract figure, etc. General Mental Ability can test for Verbal and Non-Verbal

Reasoning skills. Your aim should be to solve maximum questions with high accuracy. Then try to focus more and more on practicing the paper rather than merely studying.

6. Basic Numeracy

This section is to check numerical proficiency of a candidate involves solving simple

numerical problems. Number System, Average, Percentage, Ratio and Proportion, Profit and

Loss, Time and Work, Time and Distance are the important topics.

7. Data Interpretation

Data interpretation has charts, graphs, tables, data sufficiency etc. Don’t just solve

questions, solve them quickly, and keep track of them time you take to solve a question. For this section you must go thoroughly, Quantitative Aptitude by R S Agarwal and Quicker Maths

(Magical Book Series) by M. Tyra.

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Strategy FOR Civil Services Exam

Before going into the preparation of the Civil Services Exam assess your potential,

interests, circumstances, time resources & financial sustainability so that you can reach a

firm, determined & practicable decision. It doesn’t matter here at all you need not to have a

splendid academic background besides you only need clear determination and firm belief that

you can go through all the way.

Selection of Optional Subjects

Under the scheme of examination aspirants need to select one optional subject in the

Mains Written examination. If you are not comfortable with the subject, you should not select

the subject as an optional. In my opinion optional subject should be chosen on the basis of

own interest in that subject and performance of subject in previous few years as scoring

pattern, candidate got qualified from that optional etc. Availability of study material in that optional will also taken into account. Any optional subject may be evaluated on the basis of a

number of parameters. These parameters are: some optional are considered scoring while

others are preferred for their relevancy, relevant in either the General Studies paper or in the

essay. Some candidates are chosen optional for their comparatively short, clearly defined

syllabus. Availability and access of good and study material is yet another consideration.

However, it is believes that the primary criteria should not be the nature of the subject or whether it is comprehended as scoring or not. Student interest in the subject should be given

predominant importance. It should be correctly understood that any optional can be scoring if

the student approaches it strategically and systematically.

Selection of Medium of Exam You should chose your medium that suits you best and you can express your views better than other medium.

Availability of standard books & study material in that medium should also be taken into account before choosing

the medium. Aspirants should keep in mind that medium plays key role in the final selection, and with the new

syllabus it proved.

Importance of General Studies

General Studies is one of the subjects which have major contribution in the whole

examination, in the Prelims there is one whole Paper of General Studies and in the Mains it

has its contribution. In the Essay & Interview stage this helps a lot. So General Studies should be prepared in well.

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The Mantra to Crack Civil Services Exam

Hard Work

Hard work has no any substitute. Civil service competition is the best example of hard

work. If you work hard you will get through if not you won’t make it the first huddle i.e. Prelims

exam. The examination that you are preparing for is like a marathon race.

Hard work can be termed as one of the pre-requisite for every sphere in life and in the Civil

services exam it is indispensable.

Dedication

Remember dedication towards our own duty always pays in life. During you course of your

preparation you have to sacrifice many of your favorites like movies, parties, and

entertainments etc. Without dedication it is impossible to achieve what you want to be.

Patience

The whole process of exam requires patience. During your preparation at many times you may feel tired and jaded but it is the time when you have to keep you going. The Civil service

exam in one way is the psychometric test for the aspirants it is test for their patience also. In

all to keep going when the going is hard and slow - that is patience.

Self-Confidence One should always keep one’s self confidence at the high level, yes everyone agrees that one can never be

always self motivated and could lose temper, at this time you need to keep motivated it dosen’t matter by which

means.

Faith in Luck

Most of the aspirants who have cleared the Civil Services examination add faith in God as

a major key to their success. Still, we should remember that there is no substitute to hard

work. Faith in God will keep you going.

Time Management

Time management is important not just in writing the exam, but also while preparing for it. It is advisable to break up long study sessions into a few compact ones with more breaks to

refresh oneself. For example, two four-hour sessions prove to be more beneficial than one long

eight-hour stretch. Some students prefer to study in short bursts of two hours, with 15-minute

breaks in between.

Ultimately it is up to the individual to find his or her own unique time management

strategy. It is also possible to use “free time” effectively. Thus, time spent commuting, or relaxing can also be used to refresh concepts or read different, if not completely unrelated,

books. However, it is important to “switch-off” for at least some time in a day.

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Writing Skills

Writing skills are perhaps the most essential requirement in the main examination sections of the UPSC exam. As the exam is also a test of an individual’s analytical and

interpretative ability, clear, coherent and well-written answers in simple, effective English (or

Hindi) are essential.

Examination Tactics

Tactics take different shapes and forms in different situation. The very nature of Civil

services exam the tactics must be applied at every level of preparation and it should be focus on greater and intensive coverage. Civil Services examination syllabus has a vast area of

syllabus one is expected to know various disciplines at the same time like history, polity,

geography, economy, science apart from other curriculum. However, one need not to be master

on each disciplines only basics of each of the disciplines is needed. Hence, here the full

examination tactics will help you out.

Use of Internet

Most of the aspirants has their own means of Information tools, those who don’t have can

access through it from Internet Café. It is an ever-bulging ocean of information. All the

important information is available on the Internet.

Addresses of Some Useful Websites:

1. http://www.pib.nic.in - For government current press notes

2. http://www.upsc.gov.in - For all official information regarding the exam at any stage.

3. http://www.persmin.nic.in - Useful after selection

4. http://www.ncert.nic.in/textbooks/testing/Index.htm - To download all NCERT

5. www.goidirectory.nic.in - It connects to official websites of all Ministries and departments.

6. www.meaindia.nic.in - External Affairs Ministry website useful for India-World relations

7. www.indiacode.nic.in - Constitution of India, Central Acts, Supreme Court, etc.

8. www.indiabudget.nic.in - For latest budget and Economic Survey

9. http://publicationsdivision.nic.in - For latest India Year Book

Strategy for Freshers

For the freshers, firstly try to understand the whole exam and the very nature of the exam,

keep yourself ready with the preparation, believe strongly in yourself that you will clear the

exam in the first attempt itself and never will compromise at any stage and if required at any

time will work harder than ever before, the preparation should be started at least one year

ahead of your first attempt, do not take your attempt unless you are confident of qualifying for

the it all the way. Make your first attempt as your best one.

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Role of Coaching Institute

Although Coaching institutes are expensive and self-study is pivotal, Coaching has many advantages, it helps to understand the nature of exam quickly, sometimes reduces the efforts

and focused more in the subject, provides environment for the competition, regular classes

gives the insight about the competition, many postal courses help in the preparation etc.