Civil Services Exam – Simplified and Demystified - II

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Season 2013

Preparation for Prelims started from 29^th April, I had 27 days with me – with 7 priceless weekends.  With office on weekdays with at least 3 hours travel – I was left with 4 hours on weekdays and at max, 10 hours on weekends. This gave me 150 hours to prepare for prelims.  I prepared a list of topics to be studied and did time allocation to each topic. Be strict in not stretching beyond it. Whatever was covered in that time period was covered and was never allowed to spill beyond the desired limit. The benefit – you are more disciplined in your study and you tend to sideline unnecessary stuffs. 

 #3: Coaching is it required? I have not taken any coaching, not joined any test series. Joined Vajiram for Mock Interview only. Personally, I feel it is matter of analyzing ones own potential, syllabus of Civil Services is fairly simple and can be easily done with self study and a committed group of friends to discuss and share.  

 #4: Is it ever possible to study for 15-16 hours daily? I do not agree. Just sitting in front of book is not studying.  You can genuinely study for a maximum of 7-8 hours a day, which can stretch to 10-12 hours a day in the last leg of preparation. 

 #5:  Law of Diminishing Returns: Focus on things which have higher Return on Investment. Do not waste time on trivial things, which are anyway not going to be asked in examination. 

 #6:  Pareto’s Rule extension 20% of total effort is required to cover 80% of total syllabus. For rest 20% syllabus, you need 80% effort. First put 20% effort to cover 80% and move to next subject, instead of putting in extra effort to study things which may not come. Covering the syllabus broadly at least at surface level, helps you pluck low hanging fruits. 

 Cracking Prelims

First, do an analysis of previous years question papers. Go through them and if possible, try to solve CSAT one in exam like environment.  I was pretty sure of cracking at least 160 in CSAT. Assuming 250 to be a safe bet, 90 -100 was my target in Paper 1.  With a score around 60 in last year’s Prelims, I was sure to raise it, but how much, it was uncertain.  My strength was History, Geography, Economy and to some extent, Science and Tech.  Again as I say, Civil Services Exam is an exam where each and everything that you have studied in your life can be useful. If you have been thorough with your studies during your school time, you should have a good grasp on a number of subjects; you just need a revision to rub off the dust that has settled on them. 

 Analyzing the previous year papers, you will know the distribution of paper roughly. And, prepare your strategy accordingly 

Area	No of Questions (based on 2011 and 2012)	Return on Investment	My proficiency	Strategy for me	Time Allocation (total time 150 hrs)
History & Culture	20	High – Modern India Average – Other Topics	Above Average	Focus on Modern history; quick revision of other topics	30 hours ( 20 hours – Modern and rest 10 – others)
Geography	10-12	High – Logically connected topics; less effort	Average	Get the concepts and brief outline of geography ; discussion with friends	20 hours for basic concepts and 10 hours for Indian geography
Economics	10	Average	High	Not going to study, normal discussion with friends	15 hours ( just basic revision)
Polity	15-20	Above average	Below Average	Study and complete syllabus, as to do not miss low hanging fruits	35 hours ( given my Achilles heel)
Environment & Ecology	20-25	High; small syallbus	Above Average	Study and put effort to cover in depth	30 hrs
Science & Tech	9	Below Average	Average	Not much can be done in such a small time; rely on science concepts learnt in school	10 hours ( just to refresh latest developments)
Current Affairs	10	Low	Low	Not going to study at home; utilise office and travel time	Studied during time outside this quota

Note: This was my assessment card, 2013 altered the paper pattern. Economics weight age went up drastically. 

Based on above data and my understanding, I prepared a matrix – with RoI (return on investment) on one side and My proficiency on other side. Assigned roadmap as to where I am going to spend my 150 hours. 

One mistake I did was to take CSAT for granted and dint practice even a single paper. This costed me 15 marks in Prelims – making silly mistakes in around 6 questions, due to lack of practice. Don’t repeat it. 

#7: Analyze your own strengths and weaknesses. Play on your strengths and put in your minimum effort required to bring weakness to at least neutral level, so that you are not missing sitters. 

For first time takers: Once you know your level in CSAT, by solving previous year question paper. I can divide it into two categories, above 150 and below 150. Prepare your strategy accordingly

•  Category 1 – Above 150: You have potential to score 170+ in CSAT. A fair practice like solving mock test papers – one paper per week for 10 weeks in more than sufficient. This is to just get you into the groove before the exam and you must not get overconfident and make silly mistakes in exam. Do not give more effort than this on CSAT
•  Category 2- Below 150. You seriously need to brush up the basics. There are some shaky foundations in your preparation. You need to put in some extra effort for CSAT, may be 2 hours daily.