The Cost: Civil Services Coaching Fees; Living In UPSC CSE Hubs

The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) is India's central agency which conducts many exams to recruit candidates for both civil services as well as defence services. With roughly 10 lakh applicants each year, the Civil Services Exam (CSE) is one of its most competitive exams. Through it, candidates are selected to serve in the administrative, police, foreign and other services as IAS, IPS, IFS officers at the pan-India level.

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Cracking the Civil Services Examination typically involves years of preparation, especially for the first two rounds of the three-part selection process — the Preliminary and Main rounds, popularly known as UPSC Prelims and Mains. While coaching is not necessary for everyone, many candidates do opt for it for a systematic, disciplined approach to covering the UPSC Prelims syllabus and UPSC Mains syllabus. These two rounds typically sift out all but 0.2% of the total number of applicants. These top candidates appear for the final round, the interviews.

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UPSC Civil Services Exam: Coaching Hubs

Where UPSC CSE coaching is concerned, some cities and locations have emerged as prime centres. At present, the top coaching institutes are ones operating in Delhi, Prayagraj (Allahabad) in Uttar Pradesh, and Bengaluru in Karnataka. Based on information gathered from candidates training in these locations, Careers360 has put together cost estimates for living and studying at these centres to help future candidates and their families budget.

While signing up for paid civil service exam coaching is not necessary, it helps candidates access exclusive study materials, developing discipline and time management, and analyse where they stand as compared to other candidates.

In India, almost every state has coaching institutes for the preparation of CSE exam but when it comes to getting quality coaching, students opt for Delhi, typically considered the Mecca of CSE exam preparation. Apart from Delhi, the two other prominent cities for CSE preparation are Prayagraj and Bengaluru. Given below are the top coaching institutes in these cities and their fee structures. And because the fee is rarely the only expense, we have also attempted to provide estimates of cost of living, travel and entertainment in these cities, based on the responses of candidates currently preparing there.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a majority of coaching institutes all across India are offering online classes. In the details given below, wherever “online” is mentioned, consider it as an initiative started by coaching institutes to ensure preparation is not hampered by the pandemic.

UPSC CSE Coaching In Delhi

Dr. Mukherjee Nagar which is located in North Delhi is the hub of IAS exam coaching centres in Delhi. There are more than 50 coaching centres here and draws most of the CSE aspirants. Every year thousands from across the country come to Delhi to prepare for CSE and most of them prefer residing at Dr. Mukherjee Nagar.

The second prominent area for CSE preparation is Old Rajinder Nagar located in Central Delhi. It is very close to the Karol Bagh metro station (Blue Line). There are more than 25 coaching centres, including branches of the ones in Dr. Mukherjee Nagar.

Delhi: UPSC Exam Coaching Cost

The following are the major institutions for UPSC CSE coaching in Delhi

Vajiram and Ravi, Old Rajinder Nagar

ALS, Dr. Mukherjee Nagar, Karol Bagh and Shalimar Place

Many coaching institutes accept payment in installments but will charge more for the same course. In the table below and later, the fee shown will be the amount charged for a “one-time payment”. If the institute charges more for payment in installments, that will be mentioned separately.

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Shriram’s IAS, GTB Nagar and Old Rajinder Nagar

Drishti-The Vision, Dr. Mukherjee Nagar and Karol Bagh

This institute is considered one of the best for teaching the UPSC syllabus in Hindi and for teaching Hindi Literature which is an optional subject.

Khan Study Group, Vijay Nagar and Old Rajinder Nagar

Delhi: Cost Of Living

Students attending UPSC exam coaching in Dr Mukherjee Nagar typically reside in Gandhi Vihar, Indira Vihar, Nehru Vihar, Wazirabad, Sant Nagar, Hudson Line, Vijay Nagar and neighbouring areas where there are paying guest accommodations and flats aplenty.

Dr. Mukherjee Nagar is also very close to GTB Nagar metro station (Delhi Metro’s Yellow Line) and Delhi University’s North Campus. There are a lot of street food stalls, dhabas, restaurants, confectionery and sweet shops. This area has a plethora of books and stationery shops as well. Apart from this locality, students hangout at GTB Nagar Metro station area, also known as Camp, Hudson Line and Kamla Nagar Market.

The Rajinder Nagar location is more expensive and therefore, most students studying there prefer to stay in low-cost localities like Patel Nagar, Baljeet Nagar, Inderpuri, Ramesh Nagar and Tilak Nagar. Like Dr. Mukherjee Nagar, this location too has many books and stationery shops and eateries including many street-food stalls. The nearby Karol Bagh market and the Gaffar market are the main places for students to hangout. Connaught Place, or Rajiv Chowk, the heart of Delhi and a major hangout in the city, is very close to this location. It has plenty of shops, right from high-end brands to small stores and food chains.

Both areas are fairly well-connected with metro lines, bus routes and para-transport options such as auto-rickshaws. Apart from coaching fees, students will have to spend on local transportation, books, food and rent among others. Given below are the rough estimates of costs based on inputs from aspirants who are preparing for the CSE exam in Delhi.

UPSC CSE Coaching In Prayagraj

The CSE preparation institutes in Prayagraj are famous for Hindi-medium students and students who wish to write the CSE in Hindi-medium typically go there.

Compared to Delhi, Prayagraj is slightly cheaper in terms of coaching fees and living expenses. The majority of students here are from states like Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Jharkhand and are from Hindi-medium backgrounds. They are the ones making Prayagraj a coaching hub.

The following are some of the popular coaching centres and the costs of the courses they offer.

Prayagraj: CSE Coaching Cost

Drishti-The Vision, Civil Lines

Dhyeya IAS, Civil Lines

Prayagraj: Cost Of Living

Given below are the rough estimates of what a candidate preparing for the Civil Service Exam in Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh, might expect to spend on various things other than coaching. Students prefer staying and hanging out in localities like Chhota Baghara, Allahpur, Katra and Mumfordganj. The following cost estimates have been compiled with inputs shared by students studying in Prayagraj.

Civil Services Coaching In Bengaluru

Bengaluru, apart from being the IT capital of India, is also a major hub for CSE coaching in south India. It is preferred by the students from English-medium background. Jayanagar, a well-known Bengaluru locality, is believed to be the heart of IAS coaching centres in the city. It is close to the GR Education Institution. Jayanagar is one of the city’s oldest and most upscale areas. Currently, there are 36 coaching institutes in Bengaluru. The number of institutes for CSE preparation are increasing every year. Around 20,000 students across the country move to Banglore to take CSE coaching.

Bengaluru: Cost Of CSE Coaching

The following two are the top institutions for UPSC CSE coaching in Bengaluru.

Rau’s IAS Study Circle, Koramangla

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Shankar IAS Academy, Chandhra Layout

Bengaluru: Cost Of Living

The cost of living in Bengaluru is significantly higher than any other city in South India. Most students stay either in hostels or as paying guests with families. Jayanagar also has plenty of restaurants and shopping malls.

As per estimates provided by aspirants preparing for the Civil Service Exam in Bengaluru, the cost of living is significantly higher than that of even Delhi. Given below are approximate amounts that a candidate must expect to spend while preparing for exams in Bengaluru.