How to Crack UPSC Civil Services Exam - Check IAS Preparation Tips, Study Plan

How to crack UPSC Civil Services Exam- The UPSC civil service exam is one of the most coveted competitive exams. Lakhs of candidates aim to make their way to the administrative services. However, before achieving their goal, they question how to crack the UPSC civil service exam? Such candidates wonder what is the UPSC study material from where they need to study, how to start preparation for UPSC CSE and what strategy they should adopt so that they could crack the UPSC civil services exam. Owing to the COVID 19 pandemic, this year the UPSC civil services 2021 exam was postponed and will now be held on October 10. Read the full article that is given below to know how to crack the UPSC Civil Services Exam.

Who can Crack the IAS Exam?

Aspirants who focus single mindedly on UPSC IAS 2021 as the goal, analyse & strategize their exam preparation such that they qualify all stages - (Prelims, Main, and Interview), can win the race to being an IAS officer. To do so, they must visualise only their goal and the path to reach it just like Arjuna’s arrow in Draupadi’s Swayamvar won him her hand.

One can see many examples of aspirants who have pushed their way to making their dreams come true and some of those inspirational stories include names like Govind Jaiswal, Ansar Ahmad Shaikh, Ira Singhal, Gopal Sunara Raj, Sandeep Kaur, Nirish Rajput, Komal Ganatra, Mohammad Ali Shihab and Rashmi Siddharth Zagade etc. The list is endless and the backgrounds varied. However, one thing is common - the zeal and the focus to make a change not just to their lives but also to society in general.

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UPSC Civil Services Exam Pattern 2021

Candidates must be well versed with the UPSC exam pattern for the civil services entrance test as this will help them to draw a plan for their preparation.

1. Prelim Exam: According to the UPSC IAS exam pattern, there will be two papers which are objective type with negative marking (0.33% for wrong or more than one ans).

2. GS Paper-I: for 200 marks. The number of correct answers decides the merit to qualify for Mains exam of UPSC.

3. GS Paper-II: The minimum qualifying marks is 33%.

2. Main Exam: The UPSC main exam consists of a written exam followed by an Interview for final selection.

1. Written Exam: 9 papers for 2625 marks as follows

2. Paper-I (Language-300 marks) & Paper-II (English-300 marks) are qualifying.

3. 7 Papers (for 250 marks each): Paper-I (Essay) + 4 GS Papers + 2 Optional Papers. Total marks are 1750

2. Personality Test (Interview): 275 marks

Note: Merit for final selection is based on the marks secured in the 7 Merit Papers + Interview.

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How to Prepare for IAS: PT, Main & Interview?

Strategy for IAS Prelims Exam Preparation

Points to note: The UPSC Prelims consists of two mandatory papers that are objective in nature with multiple choice questions. Paper-II is a qualifying paper with minimum qualifying marks fixed at 33%.

1. Prelims: Syllabus, Topics, Trends and Preparation

Prelims Paper I: Syllabus

Subject Wise Trend Analysis of Previous Question Pattern

Prelims Paper II: Syllabus

UPSC-CS Prelim Exam: Official Cut off Marks

Strategy for IAS Main Exam Preparation

When one’s mind is wondering as to how to crack the UPSC civil services exam, then it is essential for one to know the different stages and how many papers are there before drawing the final strategy. The exam has two stages, a written exam of 9 papers followed by an interview of 2350 marks for final selection. The strategy devised is in stages as given below.

Strategy- 1: Understanding the Nature of Questions of UPSC IAS Mains Exam

Questions asked in recent times are application-based linking social, economic, scientific, environmental, cultural, political, etc. problems faced by the people from different regions, religions, castes, genders on a local, national, and world level. Answering these questions needs concepts, facts, and data and not just knowledge of current affairs. A question from the previous year paper explains this clearly.

To what extent has the urban planning and culture of the Indus Valley Civilization provided inputs to the present-day urbanization? Discuss. (UPSC GS Paper-1:2014)

Strategy-2: Understanding Evaluation Methods

The evaluation takes not just the examinee’s educational background and his/her answers, but an analysis of how questions have been answered. Points checked are whether the answer is to the point, has adopted an interdisciplinary approach, and the skill in linking the answer with other relevant subjects and a positive concluding solution. Factors like conceptual clarity, content relevance, objectivity, language proficiency, use of examples, and illustrations in the question help secure good marks.

Strategy-3: Practicing Words & Time Limit

Candidates have to maintain a word limit and answer the questions within a time limit. This needs good practice and can be honed by solving past years UPSC IAS question papers.

Strategy-4: Keeping the Main Syllabus in Mind

Candidates must remember all the topics of the UPSC syllabus for different papers and be able to answer clearly on all of them.

Strategy-5: Other Techniques to practise

• Practice as many solved papers, sample question papers of UPSC IAS civil services , and Mock test series as possible for both Prelims and Main exams.

• Revision (daily, weekly & monthly) for each topic and subject is a must.

• Make notes in brief for each subject you study with headings for each topic and subtopic.

• Read newspapers, like The Hindu, Indian Express…, and note down important burning topics of current affairs with relevant information in bullet points and correlate with the static portion of the syllabus.

Strategy & Tips for IAS Interview Preparation

IAS interview or the personality test is the last stage in India’s toughest competition. The less than a half-an-hour exercise can change the life of a candidate. It is not a mere test of knowledge but a holistic test that takes stock of an aspirant’s true personality. Interview board members check candidates’ critical approach and thought process related to social, economic, administrative, political, demographic, etc. problems and their viable as well as practical solutions. Therefore preparation for UPSC-CSE Interview/Personality Test is crucial and some tips for that are:

• Start preparing for the interview along with the Main’s exam.

• Try to discover yourself and understand the different aspects of your personality including the hidden ones.

• Know your biodata well as it will be the basis for questions related to information from the biodata like hobbies, education, work experience, service preference, etc. Be prepared for in depth questions on any aspect from your biodata.

• Inculcate positive thinking during and after your preparation and give your best shot.

• Check out topper interviews to understand and strategize your preparation. Be confident and try to avoid nervousness during the interview.

• Be truthful in expression and deed. Always give correct facts. Impressing the interview board at any cost is not the aim but impressing them for the right reasons is.

• Work on your communication skills and be calm during the interview.

• Maintain soberness in both dress and body language.

• Revise topics from optional subjects as well as keep stock of current affairs topics. Read newspapers regularly and keep abreast of all that's happening around the world.

• Know about your district and state’s unique features.

• Try to understand the interview questions first and then use common sense to answer.

• Join IAS mock interviews in different coaching if possible for practice purposes.

• Practice before friends to know your strengths and weaknesses.

IAS Success Formula - Study Tips for Cracking IAS exam

Setting up a Goal: First step towards cracking the IAS exam is to analyse eligibility, capabilities, and the required means/resources to achieve it. The goal should be SMART (i.e. S- Specific; M-Measurable; A-Achievable; R-Realistic; and T- Time-bound).

1. A set goal helps you stay focused

2. It helps in overcoming delay

3. It helps in measuring your progress.

4. It helps in setting barriers against distraction

5. It enables you in managing your time

6. It motivates in scaling milestones

Daily Routine (Time Management) through a timetable - The 24 hours in a day, 7 weeks in a month, and 12 months in a year is enough to prepare for the toughest entrance examinations of the country provided it is utilised to the best. One of the key factors which play the most important role in cracking the IAS exam is having a balanced routine or timetable that focuses upon studies as well as the normal daily activities. A timetable helps keep the study schedule on track.

"Time is really the only capital that any human being has, and the only thing he can't afford to lose." - Thomas Edison

However, no fixed timetable suits every aspirant. They should prepare their own timetable chart based on their strengths and weaknesses, their convenience etc.

Importance of Good Health for Cracking IAS Exam: The Greek philosopher Thales said, “A Sound Mind in a Sound Body”; means a sound body would ideally function better. A healthy diet, sound sleep and activities to destress and keep the body fit should be part of the routine for every IAS aspirant.

Emotion Management for IAS Exam: It is easy to be demotivated or stressed during preparation and combating this is important. A bonding with like minded professionals preparing for the exam will help make the preparation journey better.

How to Manage Study for CSE/IAS Preparation

How to Manage Reading Speed: This is important as the syllabus is vast and aspirants need speed to cover it all. So when the the question pops up in one’s mind as to how to crack the UPSC civil services exam, some habits that help are:

• Concentration and focus on the content.

• Avoid rereading and move on to new topics once done.

• Use a timer to gauge your reading time and fix time slots for particular texts or pages

• Learn to skim through the important facts

• Practise till the desirable reading speed is achieved

Make your own Study Timetable

• Divide the UPSC IAS syllabus into Prelims and Main. Further, divide both into subjects and chapters/topics.

• Then divide the time span, say a year into months, a month into weeks, and a week into days. Now divide the day into a group of hours.

• Next, make a chronological classification of subjects, topics, and sub-topics of prelims and the main syllabus according to strong and weak areas and the importance of questions asked in the examinations.

• Put the chapters subject wise in months and topics/ subtopics in weeks and days categories to fix a schedule that completes them all.

• Incorporate revision time every day, every week, every month, and every third month.

How to Schedule Revision for IAS Preparation?

Revision is crucial as one prepares for the UPSC IAS exam on their own . The concepts, facts, and other information studied have to be revised to avoid forgetting them. A gap of 9 to 15 days in between two revisions may cause forgetting some of the topics learnt. So most of the IAS toppers recommend a 3 Tier Revision Plan as given below

Also Read: How to Prepare for UPSC IAS Without Coaching

Time Table for IAS Preparation

Practice Sessions: Revision every 15th day and every 3rd month with not just study material but mock papers, past years question papers will make the plan a better and a viable one.

Daily Revision Schedule: Aspirants should look at all important points which they studied the whole day before going to sleep. Likewise in the morning, they should quickly revise all chapters and topics they covered the previous day from the UPSC exam study material.

Weekly Revision Schedule: Aspirants should revise all the subjects, chapters, and topics that they studied in the past 6 days of the week as doing this on a regular basis will help them to crack the UPSC civil services exam.

Monthly Revision Schedule: This is the third stage of revision which is better fixed on the last day of every month. The aspirants should revise all the subjects, chapters, and topics along with solved papers, and mock tests for topics they have revised in that month. Likewise a quarterly and six monthly revision schedule would be an ideal thing to incorporate in the timetable.

How to Evaluate Study Progress for UPSC/IAS Exam

A. Learning Evaluation: IAS aspirants must check their learning progress and evaluate their preparation from time to time (weekly and monthly). For this, they can take a mock test and previous questions asked from a particular topic and solve them. They need to check their capability of answering - hundred percent correct, or fifty percent correct as well as how many questions they could not answer. As per the test result of that topic they can reschedule that topic for study or revision.

B. Speed Evaluation: Mock tests are the best tools to evaluate speed as well as for improvement. Aspirants need to solve papers within a set time limit and gauge their performance. They should strive to improve on it with every test they take.

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