IAS Interview - Do's & Don'ts, Common Question Asked, Tips and Tricks
How to prepare for UPSC IAS interview - The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) conducts the Civil Services examination (CSE) to recruit candidates for gazetted officer group A & B posts. The UPSC CSE exam is India's highly popular and competitive exam. The UPSC CSE 2021 will be conducted in 3 stages - preliminary, mains and interview/personality test. The preliminary is multiple choice in nature, mains is descriptive while the personality test is face-to-face.
Latest Updates for UPSC CSE
- 29 Oct 2021:
UPSC IAS Prelims Result 2021 announced. Check Details here
- 26 Oct 2021:
UPSC IAS Result 2021 to be out this week. Check release date here
- 10 Oct 2021:
UPSC CSE 2021 Prelims Live Updates – Dress Code, Last Minute Tips, Exam Analysis, Question Papers, Pattern
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The syllabus of prelims and mains stage of the UPSC CSE exam is available, but the personality test is dynamic in nature and the questions are majorly based on the detailed application form making candidates wonder, how to prepare for UPSC IAS interview? In this article, we will be answering all the questions related to how to prepare for UPSC IAS interview? Due to the tough competition of the UPSC CSE, qualifying each stage becomes trickier than the previous stage. As per estimates, approximately 10 lakh candidates apply for the exam and the seats are just a meagre 700-800. Candidates can refer to the detailed IAS study plan for overall tips, however, here we will be sharing the strategy on how to prepare for UPSC IAS interview?
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What is the UPSC CSE interview stage?
The personality test is the third and final stage of the UPSC IAS selection process, candidates who qualify in the mains as per the IAS result are eligible to appear for the interview. The interview is conducted at the UPSC Bhavan, New Delhi across multiple shifts and dates.
Candidates, 3X the total number of vacancies are shortlisted to appear for the interview. For instance, if there are 800 vacancies in Civil Services, then approximately 2400 candidates appear in the interview.
How to prepare for UPSC IAS interview?
Many aspirants preparing for the exam refer to the IAS syllabus for preliminary and mains but for the IAS interview, there is no specific syllabus and the questions are dynamic in nature. Apart from candidates' answers, their confidence and ability to answer the questions, look and posture, pronunciation, communication skills, common sense, ability to express, ability to explain, and how to tackle situations based on given circumstance are also judged. A panel of 4-5 experienced members from UPSC take the interview and on the basis of performance of the candidates, they are given the marks. These marks then add on to the marks of the mains exam to create the final merit list.
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What type of questions are asked in the UPSC Civil Services interview?
As already mentioned in this article, the questions in the IAS personality test are dynamic in nature. The UPSC panel can ask questions from anywhere. However, these questions are somewhere related to the candidates themselves. A major chunk of these questions in the IAS interview are based on the detailed application form (DAF) that candidate’s will fill after qualifying the mains exam.
From the following pointers, we have tried to share some of the questions that are asked by the panel during the UPSC IAS interview.
Questions related to candidate's personal information
Questions related to academic background of the aspirant
Questions related to current affairs
Questions related to service preference
Situation based questions
Questions related to optional subject
Questions related to previous job (If the candidate was working previously)
Questions related to taboos, societal misconceptions, stereotypes etc.
Questions related to political ideology, communism, socialism, capitalism etc.
What makes the candidate best suitable for UPSC?
What are the positive points in the candidate? (Candidate will have to answer this)
What are the negative points in the candidate? (Candidate will have to answer this)
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Questions related to personal information asked in the IAS interview
Candidates introduction.
Meaning of candidate's name.
Question on family background.
Information related to candidate's surname, like history, origins
Information related to the candidate's hometown, famous things about the hometown, political figures, famous personalities about the hometown.
Historical links about the hometown.
Tourist spots and famous cuisine.
Questions related to the home state, history, economical state, crops, famous things about the home state.
Questions related to academic background
Questions related to the stream in 10+2, and why the candidate took that specific stream.
About graduation, college days, subject specific questions.
Questions related to current affairs asked in the IAS interview
This is the most uncertain section, so anything can be asked specially from the last 12 months.
Questions related to service preference and cadre
This section will be based on the Detailed Application Form (DAF) that candidates will have filled. The questions will be based on the service preference, such as why the aspirant has preferred IAS over IPS, why the aspirant has chosen a specific place as cadre etc.
Questions related to optional subject
The panel will ask questions related to the optional subject, like why the candidate has chosen a specific subject. For example, if a candidate has opted Political Science as their optional then the question might be - "Why have you chosen Political Science? Why didn't you choose Public Administration? Your graduation subject was Economics, why didn't you choose Economics as an optional '' etc.
Situation based questions
Candidates will be given a hypothetical situation like, if you are an IPS, and a riot like situation occurs, what will be your plan of action. Another question may be, if you are an IAS officer and your subordinate's are not obeying your orders, what action will you take?
Questions related to previous job (If the candidate was working previously)
If the candidate is a working professional, then the questions might be based on the working background, area of work, expertise, the reason to switch from working to Civil services etc.
Questions related to taboos, societal misconceptions, stereotypes etc.
If the candidate belongs to a certain religion, or background then there might be few questions which can be related to this. During this stage candidates must stay calm and not overreact, they must calmly handle the situation and answer the question politely.
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Questions related to political ideology, communism, socialism, capitalism etc.
Candidate's might be asked questions related to their political ideology, here they have to behave diplomatically and not name favorites or least favorite figures. If the candidate answers the questions, the panel will get to know that the aspirant has a political ideology and they might be influenced while on duty. This can act as a negative point.
What makes the candidate best suitable for UPSC?
Here the candidate will have to praise themselves and talk about their best parts.
What are the positive points in the candidate? (Candidate will have to answer this)
Talk about the positives, but make sure to not get carried away.
What are the negative points in the candidate? (Candidate will have to answer this)
Everyone has some negative points, but it is best to avoid this question politely. Candidates must answer like "Sir, I don't think there are any negative points in me as of what I can see, but If the experienced panel's vision can see some cons in me, I assure you I will work hard to rectify it."
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UPSC Civil Services Personality Test- Do's and Don'ts
The interview is the final stage of the Civil Service recruitment process. The UPSC Civil Services exam is a lengthy process and it takes a toll on the candidate's mental and physical health. Candidates invest their crucial years to reach the interview. Hence, it is advised to give their best during the interview and a small decision taken by the candidate during these 30-35 minutes of the interview will decide the direction of the rest of their career.
From the following pointers, we have shared the dos and don'ts for the candidates who are to appear in the interview round. Candidates must read each and every point and follow it seriously.
Dos for IAS interview
Wear well ironed formal clothes.
A suit with tie is a good option, however, it should not be fancy like a three piece suit, or the colour must not be like a party wear type.
Wear polished formal shoes matching the dress.
Clean shaved with neatly combed hair.
If you wear spectacles, wear frameless ones, it looks sober.
Put on a little smiling face during the civil services interview.
Sit in a straight posture.
Keep hands on the knees.
Hide tattoos that can be seen by the panel.
Make eye contact with all the members of the panel in a positive way while answering questions during the IAS interview.
Listen more and speak only when asked.
Have a positive attitude while answering questions.
End the answers on a positive note with hope.
If you don't know the answer, just apologise and say that you will read or check into it.
Be soft spoked and polite while answering the questions during the IAS interview.
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Donts for IAS interview
Don't wear informal clothes or mismatched dresses like black trousers with a blue coat or red tie.
Don't wear sports shoes.
Don't fold sleeves, or open the cuff buttons.
Don't wear flashy items like rings, necklaces, bracelets, or costly wrist watches.
Don't appear in the interview with coloured hair.
Don't be a critic while answering questions.
Don't smile a lot, or laugh during the civil services interview.
Don't elaborate the answers. Stick to the point. More detailing will give the panel more options to ask the questions and confuse you.
Don't touch those sections for which you are still not well aware of. This can confuse you, and will lead your disqualification from the IAS interview.
Don't use slangs.
Avoid hand movements while answering questions during IAS interview.
Don't fold your legs in front of the panel.
Don't answer the questions for which you don't know the answers. It is better to skip than to give wrong answers.
Also, don't skip too many questions on the trot. This can go wrong with panel taking the IAS interview.
Don't get offensive when the panel in the IAS interview asks something personal related to your specific religion, gender, reservation, political ideology. The civil services interview panel don't want to insult you or harm you, they just want to see your behaviour on certain issues, like if you react with aggression or with calmness.
Don’t carry mobile phones or any kinds of papers, bag inside the IAS interview room.
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How to prepare for UPSC IAS interview? Tips and Tricks
There are certain things that can help candidates excel in the IAS interview stage. Apart from the academics, candidates must also follow the points mentioned below, so that they are ready to face the IAS interview confidently.
Read newspapers and magazines to stay up to date with current affairs to tackle the questions in the civil services interview.
Questions on current affairs will be related to the last 12 months. The panel in the IAS interview can also ask questions related to recent national/international events.
One thing which is very important in the IAS interview is the punctuation and pronunciation skills. Candidates must work on punctuation skills.
Work on communication skills to ace the IAS interview.
Learn the language (medium) in detail.
Work on the right posture and positive approach. The panel in the civil services interview will judge candidates on the basis of this.
Talk to yourself in the language medium by standing for hours in front of the mirror. This is the best tip to excel in IAS interview.
Give and watch IAS mock interviews. These mock IAS interviews are conducted by many coaching institutions.
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State PSC article links
Frequently Asked Question (FAQs) - IAS Interview - Do's & Don'ts, Common Question Asked, Tips and Tricks
Question: Is IAS interview difficult?
Answer:
Yes, but remember one thing, you will know the answers to all the questions. So, don't worry and just carry on with your instincts.
Question: How can I get good marks in IAS interview?
Answer:
Candidates can get good marks by answering all the questions, behaving in a well-mannered way.
Question: How can I introduce myself in IAS interview?
Answer:
Start with your name, family background, educational qualification, hometown, homestate etc.
Question: What kind of questions are asked in IAS interview?
Answer:
The questions are dynamic in nature and anything can be asked from the academic qualification of the candidates to the past background etc.
Question: How many stages are there in the IAS exam?
Answer:
There are 3 stages in the IAS exam - preliminary, mains and personality test.
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Questions related to UPSC CSE
is vision ias printed notes and class notes sufficient to crack ias exam?
Hello Aspirant
Not at all, no. No institute's resources are adequate.
You must create your own study material from these institute's notes, Toppers' notes, your own regress analysis of the topic from Google, and notes from previous year's questions in order to pass this exam.
No Institute can say that you must only read their notes to pass the UPSC exam because of the way the exam is designed; this is not their fault.
If they are, they are lying, I can tell you.
I want to study degree in your campus is it right for my govt jobs like IAS Or IPS
Hello,
Which college are you enquiring about?
See when it comes to appearing for UPSC, candidates need to pass graduation in any discipline from a recognized university, there is no specific aggregate required in this case, those in the final year too are eligible to apply provisionally, also you have to attain 21 years as on 1st August of the appearing year,
it's your preparation, strategy, and diligence which help in qualifying UPSC, your college really don't play any role, you may find many toppers from previous year who have merely passed their graduation but they have become IAS,
you have to keep few things in mind like do you want to have a back up plan or not, as this is highly competitive exam, and toppers come from various background that of engineering, medical, arts, commerce, science etc, if you're only focusing on qualifying UPSC then having graduation in history, geography, economics, political science, public administration etc helps in the sense there is considerable overlap with the gs and optional syllabus.
after 12th in arts which course do for IAS
- Read more about civil services. Find out about the life of a civil servant or a diplomat. If possible, talk to an IAS officer and get to know about ground realities of the job. If you still want to do it, then
- Take up a graduation course that involves history and polity. These subjects are of immense importance to the UPSC syllabus. If you would acquire a level of mastery in these subjects, you can also opt one of them as your optional subject.
- https://www.upsc.gov.in/sites/default/files/Notif-CSP-22-engl-020222F.pdf - please go through this. It will tell you everything you need to know about the exam.
- Also, start reading public administration, economics, etc. You can even study these subjects as your main subject, all depending on your interests and aptitude.
- Don’t lose touch with basic maths that you learned in school. This is needed for the CSAT paper in the IAS Prelims.
- After you graduate, you will be eligible to give exam. Make sure you are ready by then. All the best!
is bsc psychology is apt for ias?
Hey aspirant,
Taking up psychology would be an excellent choice with your given carrier option, psychology degree will immensely help you in your IAS. Becoming an IAS officer is Full of hard work , dedication and discipline and choosing psychology for your graduation really sets as a good base and will definitely help you in your future hope this helps all the Best!
what step should be tajen after 10th become ias
Hi
Here's stepwise explanation how you can become an IAS officer:-
-------------------------) Complete your 10th
-------------------------) Take admission in 11 and then complete 11th and 12th.You can take admission in any stream i. e science,commerce, arts for 11 and 12th.
------------------------) Take admission in graduation in any discipline like BA, Bsc, Btech etc and complete it.
------------------------) To become an IAS officer you need to qualify UPSC civil services examination.
------------------------) After graduation you become eligible for UPSC civil services examination provided you are at least 21 years old.
For your reference,
UPSC eligibility criteria is provided below:-
************* You must have a bachelor's degree in any, discipline from a recognised university .
************* Minimum age limit :- you need to be at least 21 years old to be eligible as on 1st of August of the year of filling the form
************* Maximum age limit :- 32 years , also there's 3 year relaxation on upper age limit for obc and of 5 years for sc/st category as on 1st August of the year of examination
************* Attempt limit:- The maximum of times one can appear in UPSC is given below category wise :-
-
General/ EWS - 6
-
OBC or General PwD - 9
-
SC/ ST - No limit , can appear till upper age limit .
You can check detailed eligibility at :- https://competition.careers360.com/articles/upsc-ias-eligibility-criteria
------------------------) Appear in UPSC civil services examination which consists of three stages listed below :-
************* prelims exam :- it is objective paper and is of qualifying nature , so you just need to at least qualify it to be eligible for mains examination, the score /marks obtained by you in your prelims examination is not added up or used in your final merit. Your prelims exam consist of 2 papers: -
-
-) general studies 1
-
-) general studies II ( csat )
You get 2 hours for each paper
************* Mains exam. :- it is descriptive /written examination . There are a total of 9 papers which are listed below:-
-
-) compulsory indian language.
-
-) english
-
-) essay
-
-) general studies I
-
-) general studies II
-
-) general studies III
-
-) general studies IV
-
-) optional I
-
-) optional II
************* *Interview :- After qualifying mains, you have to go through interview round, and it is more of test of your personality rather than knowledge.
------------------------) If you managed to sail through all the three stages then you can become an IAS officer depending on your rank in UPSC, your category etc
For detailed information check out :-
https://school.careers360.com/articles/how-to-become-an-ias-officer
Thank you