The Union Public Service Commission has released the result for the UPSC CSE Pre examination, and there are ~12,000 candidates declared qualified. They’ll share the joy, but will soon be engulfed with the question, “How do I make the best use of my time before UPSC CSE mains exam?”
This question is as important as any other question you might have. Shooting arrows in all directions blindly will be of no use. You will need to focus on things that matter the most. In this article, I will try to explain things that will help you ace the mains exam. For the ease of understanding, I have divided the entire article in following parts:
- Timelines
- Optional
- General Studies (GS)
- Ethics
- Essay
- Compulsory language papers
- Test series
Before I even begin talking about these, remember these two things:
- Overconfidence kills. You’ve just qualified prelims. Do NOT fly on a unicorn amid the clouds of your wishful thinking. Simply remember that you’re now among the serious lot of aspirants, and every moment hereafter gives an edge to the opponent.
- Everyone will be overwhelmed. No one will be able to finish 100% of their syllabus. So don’t think you are unable to finish your syllabus. No one is.
Timelines
What could be a good way to utilise your time? Should you start with the optional, or with the general studies, or should you do all the subjects simultaneously? All these questions keep troubling in the time before the mains exam. If not thought through, this one factor could completely negate your chances of clearing the UPSC CSE Mains exam, and push you to square one. So be very wise before choosing your strategy.
I suggest that you should look at your preparation for the prelims exam. It will be a good point to begin. If you lose focus very easily, it will not be good for you to begin simultaneously with too many things, as soon you might find yourself engulfed in a plethora of content, and begin running around like a headless chicken. If you’re a person who can easily manage multiple subjects at a time, you should definitely try that.
The point is, you should plan your preparation in the manner that suits you. Do not blindly follow some topper’s strategy, because you might be very different from them. I know of a doctor who was doing her post graduation, and one day decided to take the UPSC CSE. She then went on to clear the exam with a mere 9 months of preparation. When I was preparing, I never even thought of following her strategy because I know how my personality is, and what learning path must i choose. So go ahead and prepare a timeline for what subject will you be picking first and how will you take your preparation forward.
Optional
The most important part of the UPSC CSE Mains examination is the optional subject where you have the ability to score upto 330 marks (in best case scenario). So there are 4 papers of GS, which can potentially get you around 400 marks, and then there are 2 papers of the optional in UPSC CSE, which can potentially fetch you 300+ marks. I think you get the point. Your optional subject can be best prepared by reading the entire subject once, and then daily practicing some questions from it. You should not think about remembering everything right after you have done the reading part of the exam, as you will barely remember anything. It is only after writing many many questions that you will be able to develop some comfort around the subject.
General Studies (GS)
GS is the next most important part of the exams. My suggestion is to read and revise your notes thoroughly, and refer to some coaching institute’s annual current affairs review magazine for mains. Additionally keep reading the newspaper. Some of us tend to stop reading to save time (laziness and procrastination honestly). As soon as you finish with any subject in GS, use PYQs to practice the questions on a daily basis.
Ethics
Take yellow books on ethics if you do not have the notes ready. Those are a good small compilation and will help you a lot in finishing the entire ethics syllabus. Finish those and thereafter start answer writing practice via mock tests. Ethics is one subject that spans across all the subjects and yet has a strong component of subjectivity. Hence answer writing, and getting regular evaluation (peer evaluation is as good as evaluation from a faculty) shall help you fetch a higher score.
Essay
Write essays every week. That’s it. If you will not write essays, then you will not be able to score very well in the exam. Try writing a good multidimensional essay, which uses creativity, and is not merely a compilation of the facts. I have seen some students write a bunch of quotes and stories and call it an essay. An essay may contain anecdotes, but it should not be a mere compilation of anecdotes. The exam wants to know your original thoughts, and not merely your capacity to mug up such quotes and stories. If this was the case, then the chacha at chai ki tapri would fetch highest marks in the essay test.
Compulsory language papers
Write atleast 3 papers each. That should be about it.
Test series
Create a schedule, and write the tests. You should write atleast 16 GS mocks, 5 essays, and 8 optional mock exams between the prelims result and mains exam. This will not only help you build speed and articulation, but will also help you acquaint with the exam environment. Use a clock and finish your mocks in 3 hours. Sit on a chair and use a table. Be as close to the real test environment for the tests as possible, for maximum benefit.
Given that the exam is only 2 months away, I have refrained from using too many words. If I have missed any questions, then feel free to write in the comments below.
Now that we have discussed the entire preparation briefly, all I have to say to you is: All the best. Make this UPSC CSE Mains exam your best effort, and may the force be with you!