Answer writing for Main Examination

Answer writing is the key to getting good marks in Main Examination. 2 Main areas of concentration should be Meeting expectation of UPSC answering style and Presentation.


When an answer requires 250 words or more, it is better to prepare synoptic notes in rough. This involves quickly jotting down the main points we are to write in the answer. Arranging the points in order of importance. This gives a good structure and flow to the answer.


Try as far as possible to stick to the word limit mentioned in the question. Good control over language will help you to write more points in lesser number of words. Read the editorials of the newspaper and try to use that language in your answers. Exceeding the word limit may lead to problems in completing the paper. There is no need to count the exact number of words in the answer. During preparation itself one should know the length of the page that one needs to write for a 100, 200, 250, 300 and 600 words answer.


Non completion of any paper is an unforgivable offence for an UPSC Civil Services aspirant. Gauge the question paper quickly and assess whether it will be difficult to complete - in such cases reduce the length of certain answers but ensure that all questions are given due respect and the paper is completed.


Answer writing in UPSC Examination

1. Specificity - One has to be very specific in the answer with regard to scope or focus of the question. The answer should be such that it satisfies the demand of the question. Vague and round about answering will not fetch marks. Write answer to the question that is asked, not what we know about the topic.
• It will be helpful if one is able to gauge the purpose of the question. eg: Essay on "Women Empowerment.", "Women Empowerment?" and "Women Empowerment!" would be different - not from content point of view but orientation of the essay.
• eg: in history if a question is asked regarding "rise of Gandhiji in India", write the answer related to Gandhiji's arrival in India and his initial activities that made him a leader. Confine the answer to "rise" do not write about the 1920s, 1930s etc.
2. Introduction - The introduction to the answer should contain a brief of what is to follow in the answer. By reading the introduction the examiner will come to know that you have understood the question. The examiner will also be aware of your viewpoint and will not have to search for it in the answer. 
• This type of introduction is different from an introduction in an university examination - In an University examination, the introduction would contain the background of the topic you are dealing with in that particular answer.
• eg: If we are asked a question in polity - "President of India is a mere rubber stamp. Comment". In the introduction itself we will say that "Our parliamentary system necessitates presence of Article 74 in the constitution, but in spite of Article 74 the president can act on his own in certain circumstances if required". The rest can be explained in the main body of the answer. 
3. Conclusion - This is the place for suggestions or improvements (if any). The conclusion should always be positive even if the answer has a negative tone to it. 
• eg: If one is asked to "enumerate the problems in India's PDS system". Conclude by suggesting some steps to tackle the problems. 
4. Analytic Approach - This is the essential requirement of an administrator. Thus answers should be analytic and not merely chronological. Also the answers should not be a collection of facts. Facts should be provided in support of an analytic point that we have made.
• eg: If we are required to write about "India - Israel relations". Then instead of just enumerating various events/ aspects like RADAR transfer, Satellite launching etc we should divide the answer into political, social, economic, cultural, military etc relations.
5. Diagrams - Diagrams give a good impression of the understanding of a subject to the examiner. Thus if we can come up with diagrams relevant to the answer, it would help in getting a few additional marks. We have to think about what diagrams to draw beforehand during the preparation itself. It is very difficult to think about diagrams in the exam hall. Diagrams can be very simple - consisting of a few boxes, arrows etc.
6. Lateral Thinking - This involves thinking about as many angles as possible related to the answer. The more the number of perspectives/ viewpoints/ angles to the answer, the more the marks.
• eg: If we are required to write an answer to some latest drug discovery in science and technology section - mention its social benefit (if any) in addition to the obvious health benefits.   

Presentation

These are common points some of which we are following since 10th standard examination.

1. Write answers in paragraphs - Preferably 1 point per paragraph.
2. Underlining the main points in the paragraph.
3. Clean and legible writing. Spacious writing.

Optional Subject Preparation : History

The best way to prepare for any optional subject is to start with the basics. We should start by creating a strong foundation and later build on it.


The following is a step-wise guide. 

1. Familiarisation with our optional subject 
• For history, we can start our preparation by reading NCERT books of standard 7-8th onwards uptill 12th. Books till standard 10th will give us a feel of the subject.
• These books need to be read from cover to cover. It will provide a quick overview to the optional subject.
2. Creating a strong foundation
• 11th and 12th Standard NCERT books will provide the source material. There are two books for standard 11th - Ancient and medieval. And two books for standard 12th - Modern and World.
• These books need to be read atleast 2 or 3 times, underline/make notes etc. of what you think is important. I used to underline for prelims but that is no longer required.
• This will give you a grip on the entire subject. 
3. Raising the level of our preparation to Graduation level
• There are basic books for each section - I am just listing a few. There are many more that one can read.
• Ancient
• Ancient India - D.N Jha
• The Wonder That Was India - A.L.Basham
• Medieval
• 2 Books (One on sultanate and other on Mughals) written by Satish Chandra
• Modern
• India's Struggle For Independence - Bipan Chandra and others
• A New Look At Modern Indian History - B.L.Grover and S.Grover
• World
• History Of The Modern World - Jain and Mathur
• By reading these books one will have control over atleast 90% of the syllabus. For the remaining 10% we will have to refer to various other sources, which can be done at a later time in our preparation.
• One has to read these books from cover to cover. Underline/ make notes etc.
4. Testing our preparation
• This would be a good time to assess ourself. Try to solve Previous Year Question Papers.
• Check the answers with solved questions. All solutions available in the market may not be reliable. One can get the answers evaluated from some teachers or seniors.
• One should self assess one's performance - which questions we could answer easily, which questions we were not very comfortable with, which questions we had no idea etc. Try and find the reasons for the same. The solutions maybe to read the basics again or repeat the standard book reading or to read something new.
5. Improve on shortcomings.
6. Quality Improvement
• To improve the score additional reading is required. Selective reading of various books or certain chapters from various books helps us in getting a different perspective, which is helpful in analytic writing.
• Another method for quality improvement is question-answer discussion with fellow aspirants.
• One can also improve the quality of answers by contemplation. Try to visualise the answers to as many questions as possible. 
• One can just jot down the important points in answers. There is no need to write down all the answers in totality.
7. Full Test Series
• One should try to answer the entire paper both paper 1 and 2. This also helps in time management.
• One should learn the answer writing technique required in Civil Services Examination. It is slightly different from what we are used to in university examinations.
• This will be the stage to concentrate on our target score - i.e the score that we are aiming for in UPSC Main Examination. 

Time-lines
An approximate time for completion of steps 1 to 5 would be 8 months on a half day basis. The other half day can be utilised for either the other optional subject or for General Studies.

Steps No. 6 and 7 are continuous steps and one has to keep repeating both these steps till one clears the examination along with periodic revision of our notes prepared in steps 1 to 5.

Exam requires self analysis and constant improvements

In this post I would like to share my experience about performance improvement steps I took during preparation for civil services examination.


Preliminary Examination


In my first preliminary examination in 2008 my preparation was insufficient. After coming home from the examination center, I began to check my answers on the internet. I did not rely on any readily available answer keys but searched for each answer myself. In the next 2-3 days I had the answers to 95% of the questions in both general Studies as well as History. I calculated my score and it was around 50 in History and 60 in General Studies. This was not good enough and hence I was sure I would not qualify for main examination that year.


The period from June till December 2008 I spent on Main examination preparation for the next year. I knew that I could overcome my shortcomings in the 2008 preliminary examination by necessary improvements from January 2009 till May 2009.


The target for prelims in General Studies was 60 and for History it was 70. (The target is set by asking people who have given the exam earlier. U.P.S.C does not declare the Preliminary Examination Marks).


 I tried to achieve this target in the test series that I gave between January 2009 and March 2009 at C.D.Deshmukh Institute. After each test given, I would analyse my score and find out the areas I was getting less marks in. In every subsequent test I would try and improve on those areas.


By March 2009 I was able to get a score of 60 in general studies but my history score was stuck at 55. After the test series at C.D.Deshmukh Institute was over, I solved lot of history papers. Preparation was continuing side by side in both History and general studies. There is no point in waiting for the completion of our entire preparation, it is better to solve papers along with the preparation. 


Each paper is different from the other. So how does one gauge the difficulty level of a Test Series Paper and the score required in it to qualify for the Main Examination?
Answer: By asking a previously qualified person to solve the same paper and comparing the scores. The idea being that if a person has already cleared prelims once he/she is very likely to clear it again. So our score should be better or close to the score of the previously qualified person.


In my case I had asked my friend Anushree Hardikar, who had qualified prelims in 2008, to solve the history test series papers. By 10th May I was able to improve my score to 66 in History which was quite close to Anushree's score. 


My score in 2009 Prelim exam was 84 in General Studies and 64 in History. That was sufficient to qualify for Main examination.


Main Examination


I joined the test series for Main Examination at Delhi in History (7 Tests of Paper 1 and 7 Tests of Paper 2), Public Administration (6 Tests of Paper 1, 6 Tests of Paper 2), General Studies (6 Subject wise papers and 1 comprehensive Test) and Essay (5 Tests). The preparation gave me the confidence that I could achieve scores of 320 History, 300 Public Administration, 280 General Studies and 120 Essay. The confidence is the key. Seldom will the questions be the same in the test series papers and the actual U.P.S.C. Main Examination, but one should go into the exam with the confidence that one will get the necessary marks whatever be the nature of the paper.


My scores in Main Examination 2009 were: History 336 (183 and 153), Public Administration 292 (159 and 133), General Studies 279 (150 and 129) and Essay 109.


My preparation for 2010 Main Examination started by analysing my 2009 performance and identifying areas requiring improvement. History Paper 2 and Public Administration Paper 2 were my areas of focus.


Strategy for Public Administration Improvement


Paper 1 is more concept based. As my foundation was strong I was able to deal with it. Paper 2 requires a lot of factual knowledge regarding committee recommendations, case studies etc. The questions tend to be generic in nature, but specific writing is important to get marks. Public Administration being my 2nd optional was not as strong as History. I took special effort with regard to Paper 2.


First I improved my factual knowledge as required in the Main Examination. Then I had question-answer group discussions with my colleagues in C.D.Deshmukh - Ashwini Adivarekar, Sushil Khodwekar, Shraddha Sangle (all with Public Administration as first optional) and Vijay Jogdande. It helped in bringing quality to my answers. 




Strategy for History Improvement


The main reason for getting low marks in History Paper 2 was my lack of control over World History. I focussed on World History immediately after my 2009 Main Examination. I utilized the internet to get more information on events after World War 2 during my specific preparation for Main Examination 2010.




The overall effort in Public Administration Paper 2 and History Paper 2 paid dividends. Public Administration Paper 2 score improved from 133 in 2009 to 159 in 2010 and History Paper 2 from 153 in 2009 to 186 in 2010.  


While focusing on improvements in certain papers it was also important that I maintained my good score in the other papers. I consciously repeated my entire preparation of the previous year. Thus I was able to improve upon my weak areas while retaining my good performance in other areas.

Selecting Optionals

Very simple advice was given to me by a retired I.A.S officer at the start of my preparation - choose only those optionals that you like. So I selected History and Public Administration.


The idea behind selecting an optional that you like is that you will have to spend more than 2 years studying it. At no point during the preparation can you get tired or bored with the optional. You do not know how long you will have to prepare for Civil Services Examination. If one requires 2-3 attempts then for each attempt one should be ready to keep reading on the optional subjects and trying to improve one's score in the optionals.


It is obvious that if we select the optional subject similar to our subject of graduation, our preparation time will get reduced. Also since we have spent 3-4 years on the subject during our graduation, we will have better command on it. We will have a strong foundation in that subject and as a result will be able to tackle the questions better.


The flip side to selecting the same optionals as our graduation subject is that we may not necessarily like the subjects. Graduation subjects are often selected taking economic factors into consideration - good prospects of job, family business etc. One can still manage graduation in subjects we don't really like. Civil Services Examination will require a much thorough preparation and far more time with the subject. So if you don't enjoy it, the whole exercise will become labourious and that is not a good way to go about the civil services examination.


Another factor to be considered in selecting same graduation and civil services examination optionals is the difficulty level of the subject - Specifically Engineering, Medical Subjects or other science subjects. One should select these subjects only if one is really interested in them. They involve a lot more effort than the other optional subjects. The Engineering examination of each semester is challenging by itself. To study all 8 semesters together will be a Herculean task. If one is very much interested in these subjects, would it not be better to pursue the academic line itself as opposed to the civil services? Well, that is for each person to answer for themselves.


Availability of books and other material also needs to be considered while selecting the optionals. The best way is to ask people who are preparing for the examination with those optionals. 


The most popular optionals are - 

1. Public Administration
2. Geography
3. History
4. Psychology
5. Sociology
6. Political Science
7. Marathi Literature (In Maharashtra)

One should not select optionals just because some successful candidate had the same optionals. Each individual is different with his/her own likes and dislikes. So following someone blindly should be avoided. One should play to his/her own strengths and choose those optionals in which he/she is comfortable.

There also goes around a thought that some optionals are better scoring than the others. There is no justification for that. Yes, some optionals require more study than the others. But if the required amount of effort is put in, there is no reason why a person cannot get 180-200 marks (out of 300) in any optional.

The above mentioned are the main factors to be considered while selecting the optional subjects. Some ancillary factors for selecting optional subjects are - common syllabus between the two optionals, common syllabus with General Studies, availability of a guide/teacher, colleagues with same optionals for group study and easy access to study material etc.    

Requirement of Classes for Civil Services Examination

Let me start at the outset by stating that I have attended several private classes in Delhi as part of my preparation for civil services examination. The classes have benefited me enormously.


When I decided to appear for the exam, I knew of very few people who had given this examination. As per common belief that the classes in Delhi were the best for civil services examination, I too decided very early on that I would go to Delhi.


Without any prior preparation for the exam I directly joined the classes in Delhi. The distinct advantage that I gained was the direction in my preparation. Lot of people in Mumbai Thane region still face the same problem of direction. As the Civil Services Examination involves vast syllabus coverage, it is important to be purposeful in one's preparation. In the absence of proper guidance and direction it is very easy to drift away from the goal. The classes in Delhi helped me realise the path I needed to take very early on.


Teaching has several benefits when compared to self reading. The classes helped me to build a strong foundation across various subjects. As a result during my entire preparation there was not a single area that I was weak in. I was able to handle all areas satisfactorily albeit some better than the others.


Selecting a class


I would not say that it is mandatory to join a class. I have friends who have cleared the exam without a single class. On the other hand there are those who have attended all kinds of classes but have been unable to clear the exam. So there isn't a co-relation between classes and selection. One has to gauge for oneself if he/she needs a class.


But should you think of joining a class, here are few guidelines that I would like to share from my own experience.

1. Do not select a class only on the basis of advertisement in various media. It is always advisable to ask people currently preparing for civil services for their opinion first. Ask a broad range of people before selecting the class. It will be better to get information on a particular class from a person who is studying in that city.
2. There is a difference between a General Studies class and Optional subject class. A general studies class involves number of teachers from different areas - polity, economy, geography etc. Whereas a optional class involves the entire syllabus coverage by a single teacher. Thus the reputation of a class is important in General Studies while the individual teacher is important for optional subjects. (Tip: A lot of optional subject classes are started by individual members and they are very good)
3. Who are the teachers? There are several types
1. University Professors - There is a slight catch here. The Professors are very good with their subject but often have very little idea of the demands of the Civil Services exam. As a result they may be excellent Ph.D guides but not useful for cracking Civil Services exam.
2. Aspirants who have exhausted their attempts - These often turn out to be the best guides as they have the knowledge of how to crack the exam and have also gained sufficient subject knowledge (of course not as much as the Professors but sufficient for civil services). The best teachers in this category are those who are running these classes on a full time basis.
3. Aspirants who have given several attempts and are still preparing - These can be very useful guides for starters and in the initial phases of preparation. But for advanced phases they are less reliable as they themselves are in the process.   

Government run Institutes

There are two institutes in the Mumbai Thane region

1. C.D.Deshmukh Institute for Administrative Carriers, Thane. It is run by the Thane Municipal Corporation.
2. State Institute For Administrative Carriers (SIAC), Mumbai CST. It is run by the Government Of Maharashtra.

These are guidance institutes and not coaching classes. However they provide a tremendous platform for a civil services aspirant. So if you reside in Mumbai Thane region and are thinking of preparing for civil services, then whether you want to join any other private class or not, you MUST definitely be a part of these institutes.

These institutes have limited seats and conduct an entrance exam for the same. I have been part of C.D.Deshmukh Institute since 2008. They provide very good support and help you to be part of a circle of fellow aspirants, something very essential if you want to prepare for civil services examination by staying in Mumbai Thane region. 

 

My Preparation

I started my preparation for civil services examination in June 2007. I had earlier completed my engineering in electronics from Thadomal Shahani Engineering College, Bandra, Mumbai in 2005. From 2005 till May 2007 I was working with Infosys Technologies Ltd at Mysore. I quit my job in May 2007 and started preparing for civil services examination.


I had gathered information about the examination during my engineering days. My mother played a major role in gathering this information. I had already decided that when I start my preparation, I will go to Delhi.


I attended various private classes in Delhi for General Studies, History and Public Administration. I was in Delhi from June 2007 till March 2008 after which I came back home. The classes had given me a strong foundation. Now it was up to me to build upon that foundation.


I gave my first attempt at U.P.S.C Civil Services examination in May 2008. As my preparation was not sufficient I could not clear the Preliminary Examination.


From June 2008 till December 2008 I kept preparing for the Main Examination. It is general practice in preparation for this examination that you need to be ready for the Main Examination before you give the preliminary exam. The gap between the Preliminary and main examination is too short to prepare for the Main Exam.


In September 2008 I gave the entrance exam of C.D Deshmukh Institute for Administrative Carriers, Thane and got selected.


From Jan 2009 I started preparation for Preliminary exam again. I had already analysed the areas I feel short in the last attempt and worked on them. To check my progress I joined the Preliminary Examination Test Series at C.D.Deshmukh Institute. The test series was a vital component in my preparation. It helped me evaluate myself well in advance of the U.P.S.C examination and rectify the shortcomings.


May 2009 was my second attempt at the civil services examination and I was able to clear the prelims.


As there was no test series for Main Examination at C.D.Deshmukh institute then, I went to Delhi again. I was in Delhi from June 2009 till October 2009. I attended test series for Main Examination in General Studies, History, Public Administration and Essay. The test series' were quite extensive and helped me in vital aspects of answer writing like time management, answer writing techniques, word limit management etc.


I gave the Main examination in October 2009 and cleared it too. After the Main Examination, I kept preparing for next year's Main Examination as one is not sure of the result and the result too comes out in March, after which the Personality Test is still to follow.


Same process, as the previous year, was repeated in early 2010 with prelims preparation and Test Series. At the same time interview preparations were on side by side. I attended several guest lectures organised by C.D.Deshmukh Institute as part of the Interview preparations.


I appeared for Interview in April 2010, however got very poor marks in it and as a result was not selected in the final list. I fell short of selection by 16 marks.


My third attempt was all about repeating and if possible improving my good performance of previous Main Examination and working hard on Interview. I gave the prelims in May 2010. This time joined the Main Examination Test Series in C.D.Deshmukh Institute itself. I gave the Main Examination in Oct 2010. Had lot of discussions on various topics of General studies, History and Public Administration with my colleagues in C.D.Deshmukh Institute.


As Interview was my weakness I took special efforts towards it. Attended a six days course on public speaking in December-January. Then after the results in March attended a week long course for Interview Preparation at YASHADA, Pune. Again the interview preparations involved discussions with my colleagues.


Starting my preparations in June 2007, I was finally selected and recommended by U.P.S.C for civil services in May 2011. 

How to start?

Lot of people keep asking about how to start preparations for U.P.S.C Civil Services Examination. Most of the people are from Mumbai Thane region and have had limited information about this examination. This post is mainly for those who are starting their preparations or want to start and don't know how. 


The examination is a year long event involving Preliminary Exam in May or June, Main Exam in Oct-Nov and Personality Test in March-April. The detail information regarding the exam can be found at the U.P.S.C website www.upsc.gov.in One can view the notifications uploaded on that site.


I shall just put forth approximate timelines associated with the preparation for the exam. The exam requires minimum 1 and half to 2 years of full time preparation before the preliminary exam in May/June. This period will involve preparation for General Studies, Optional 1 and Optional 2. The optional subjects require graduation level preparation while General Studies require matriculation level preparation.

Rough guide for new aspirants

Target Examination - June 2013

May 2011 - Graduation completion. 

June 2011 till Dec 2011 - Read all NCERT books and create a strong foundation. Also select your optionals during this period. Get hold of all material that will be required for the optionals. I will post regarding the optionals separately.

Jan 2012 till Dec 2012 - Prepare for optionals and General Studies with the aim that one can write the main examination with 3 months revision.

Jan 2013 till June 2013 - Prepare for the preliminary examination. Give Preliminary Examination Test Series.

June 2013 till Oct 2013 - Prepare for Main examination. Give Main examination Test Series.

Nov 2013 onwards - Prepare for Personality Test. At the same time prepare for Prelims and Main examination, in case another attempt is required.

(These are rough estimates for aspirants who want to start now. If you have already been preparing for the exam, the timelines will change accordingly)

Starting with Preparations
Broadly the preparation involves 2 types of content - static (including foundation building in General studies, Optional 1 and Optional 2) and dynamic (Current Affairs). Static content as the name suggests does not change with time. So once you prepare, you only have to revise it later. The dynamic content keeps changing. Therefore one has to keep abreast of the latest happenings around us.


The best way to prepare for the exam is to create a strong foundation. So if one is confused of how to start, first thing to do is pick up NCERT 9th 10th 11th 12th standard text books. (NCERT books are the school text books used in CBSE schools). It may be a challenge to get these text books in Mumbai-Thane. Try to locate a CBSE school in your locality and make inquiries. One location is outside Matunga Central Station (East).


Try to get hold of as many relevant NCERT Books - History, Geography, Polity, Science, Economics etc. Start with 9th standard and then move forward. NCERT books are going to be the base and one has to read them a number of times to ensure one's preparation is on a strong footing. This is part of the static content of General Studies. It is advisable that if you are still doing your graduation or in junior college or school you start reading these books right now itself.


Newspaper reading is a MUST. Pick up any newspaper. Make a habit of reading the newspaper everyday. Make notes of what you think is important. It may happen that initially everything appears important but as time goes on and one has a look at the question papers, our focus improves. But for starters note down whatever you think is important. The idea is to revise things over and over again.  
Tip: Crime, stock exchange can be eliminated.


To compliment the newspaper, read any current affairs magazine like India Today, Outlook, The Week etc. It helps in developing an analytical approach to current affair issues.


NCERT, Newspaper and current affairs magazine is a good way to start preparations. This can be done before you decide to enter into the exam preparations on a full time basis. Although current affairs keeps on changing still it is necessary to cultivate the habit of reading newspaper at an early stage.