UPSC preparation tips for beginner
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  • Jun 09, 2021
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UPSC Preparation Tips For Beginners

“ARISE AWAKE AND STOP NOT UNTIL YOU CRACK UPSC”

UPSC is one of the many competitive exams that requires sheer hard work and smart work to become an IAS officer.

“NO MATTER WHAT IS THE ENVIRONMENT AROUND YOU, IT IS ALWAYS POSSIBLE TO MAINTAIN THE BRAND OF INTEGRITY”

– APJ ABDUL KALAM

Topics covered:

  1. UPSC EXAM PATTERN ALONG WITH SELECTION CRITERIA
  2. CUTOFFS OF PRELIMS, MAINS, AND INTERVIEWS
  3. AGE CRITERIA AND NUMBER OF ATTEMPTS FOR UPSC ASPIRANTS ACCORDING TO CATEGORY
  4. LIST OF OPTIONAL SUBJECTS
  5. ANALYSIS OF TOPPERS MARKS OVER THE PAST 7 YEARS
  6. AGE CRITERIA AND NUMBER OF ATTEMPTS FOR UPSC ASPIRANTS ACCORDING TO CATEGORY
  7. BOOKLIST FOR UPSC
  8. CONCLUSION

“UPSC EXAMINATION IS NOT DIFFICULT, IT IS DIFFERENT”

This examination has got 3 stages

NOTE: The exam can be taken up in English or Hindi

  • Prelims: 400 marks

TYPE: OBJECTIVE PATTERN

NEGATIVE MARKING: YES: for every right answer 2 marks will be rewarded and for every wrong answer 0.66 marks will be deducted

PAPER

 NO OF QUESTIONS TOTAL MARKS DURATION OF THE EXAM

General studies I

 100 200

2hrs

General Studies II (CSAT)

 80 200

2hrs

 

NOTE: MARKS SCORED IN PRELIMS WILL NOT BE CONSIDERED FOR PREPARING THE FINAL /RECOMMENDED LIST

GENERAL STUDIES PAPER 1

For every correct answer, 2 marks are rewarded.

For every incorrect answer, 0.66 marks are deducted.

GENERAL STUDIES PAPER 2 (CSAT)

For every correct answer, 2.5 marks are rewarded

For every wrong answer, 0.83 marks are deducted

FOR EXAMPLE:

In the General Studies paper-1 if a person has attempted 70 questions correctly, out of 100 questions and 30 incorrectly then the marks scored by the candidate in the General Studies paper-1 will be:

70 * 2=140

30 * 0.66=19.8

Your score in General studies paper I will be: 140 – 19.8 = 120.2

In general studies paper II (CSAT), if a person has attempted 50 questions correctly, out of 100 questions and 30 questions incorrectly then the marks scored by the candidate in General studies paper II will be:

50 * 2.5 =125

30 * 0.83 = 24.9

Your score in general studies paper II (CSAT)will be: 125- 24.9 = 100.1

Your total score in prelims will be: 120.2 + 100.1 = 220.3

QUALIFYING CRITERIA FOR MAINS

Students who have acquired a minimum of 33 % in CSAT and the desired cut off in general studies paper I as declared by the UPSC board are considered to be selected for writing UPSC mains

PRELIMS CUT OFF OVER THE PAST 6 YEARS

NOTE:

PwBD(person with benchmark disability )

PwBD 1 ORTHOPEDICALLY HANDICAPPED

PwBD 2: VISUALLY IMPAIRED

PwBD 3: HEARING IMPAIRMENT

PH IS NOW CALLED AS PwBD. THE TERM PH WAS USED TILL 2017, FROM 2018 THE WORD PwBD IS IN USE.

YEAR GENERAL MERIT EWS OBC SC ST PwBD1 PwBD2 PwBD3 PwBD5
2021 87.54 80.14 84.85 75.41 70.71 68.02 67.33 43.09 45.80
2020 92.51 77.55 89.12 74.84 68.71 70.06 63.94 40.82 42.86
2019 98 90 95.34 82 77.34 53.34 44.66 40.66 61.34
2018 98 – 96.66 84 83.34 73.44 53.34 40 45.34
2017 105.3 – 102.66 88.66 88.66 85.34 61.34 40 –
2016 116 – 110.66 99.34 96 75.34 72.66 40 –
  • Mains: 1750 Marks

TYPE: SUBJECTIVE /DESCRIPTIVE

NEGATIVE MARKING: NO

DURATION: EACH PAPER IS OF 3 HRS

TYPE OF PAPER

 SUBJECT

MARKS

Paper A

 Compulsory Indian language 300

Paper B

 English

300

Paper I

 Essay

250

Paper II

 General studies I

250
Paper III General Studies II

250

Paper IV

 General Studies III

250

Paper V

 General Studies IV (ETHICS AND INTEGRITY )

250

Paper VI

 Optional I

250

PAPER VII

 Optional II

250

EXCEPTIONS: 

  • Paper A is not compulsory for candidates from the States of Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and Sikkim as well as candidates with hearing impairment, provided they can prove that they have been exempted from such 2nd or 3rd language courses by their concerned board or university.
  • Paper A is no considered compulsory for the candidates of Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Manipur, Meghalaya, Nagaland and Mizoram. It is also not compulsory for candidates with hearing impairment, but they have to prove that they have been exempted from 2nd or 3rd language courses by their boards or universities
  • The Indian language chosen by the candidate must be mentioned in the 8th schedule of the constitution.
  • Paper A and B are only of a qualifying nature.

PREVIOUS YEAR MAINS CUT OFF

YEAR GM EWS OBC SC ST PwBD 1 PwBD 2 PwBD3 PwBD5
2021 745 713 707 700 700 668 712 388 560
2020 736 687 698 680 682 648 699 425 300
2019 751 696 718 706 699 663 698 374 561
2018 774 – 732 719 719 711 696 520 460
2017 809 – 770 756 749 734 745 578 –
2016 787 – 745 739 730 713 740 545 –
  • Interview /personality test: 275 marks

The final and the most important of all stages is the personality test. no qualifying marks will be declared in this stage by UPSC.

FEW QUESTIONS LIKE 

  1. Why do u want to be an IAS officer
  2. Can we know your strengths and weaknesses
  3. How is your degree relevant to civil services
  4. Why have you chosen ABC optional, although it is something different from your specialization during degree?
  5. What is your hobby? (the board members are going to check if you really possess that hobby)

FEW TIPS FOR THE INTERVIEW

  • Think positively in every situation
  • Improve your communication skills so that you can express yourself
  • Read newspapers
  • Try to give impartial and an unbiased answer to all the questions asked
  • Stay calm and showcase a positive body language
  • PRO TIP: give an honest answer during the interview. Don’t try to impress the UPSC interview board members by lying.

FINAL MERIT LIST /RECOMMENDED LIST

This list will be created on the basis of marks scored in the mains examination and interview/personality test. Marks scored in PRELIMS will not be considered for preparing the final list, prelims marks are considered only for writing mains.

Services like (IFS, IPS, IRS, IRTS, IAAS, IRAS, IDAS etc) will be allotted to the candidates according to their preferences and ranking.

FINAL CUT OFF OVER THE PAST 6 YEARS

YEAR GM EWS OBC SC ST PwBD 1 PwBD 2 PwBD 3 PwBD 5
2021 953 916 910 886 883 892 932 689 701
2020 944 894 907 875 876 867 9100 675 465
2019 961 909 925 898 893 861 890 653 708
2018 982 – 938 912 912 899 908 754 718
2017 1006 – 968 944 939 923 948 830 –
2016 988 – 951 937 920 927 951 817 –

The number of students appearing in UPSC has seen an increasing trend in the past few years .over 10.58 lakh students approximately have put the application for prelims in the year 2020 and 8 lakh students approximately applied for UPSC prelims in the year 2019. But 15 % – 20 % of candidates don’t even appear for the prelims .0f 8 lakh students approximately 11845 students were selected for mains, 2034 students made it to the interview and at last 829 students were under the recommended list. Surprisingly choosing the right optional subject can increase your score and rate of success.

LIST OF OPTIONAL SUBJECTS:

  1. Agriculture
  2. Animal husbandry and veterinary services
  3. Anthropology
  4. Botany
  5. Chemistry
  6. Civil engineering
  7. Commerce and accountancy
  8. Economics
  9. Electrical engineering
  10. Geography
  11. Geology
  12. History
  13. Law
  14. Management
  15. Mathematics
  16. Mechanical engineering
  17. Medical science
  18. Philosophy
  19. Physics
  20. Political science and international relations
  21. Psychology
  22. Public administration
  23. Sociology
  24. Statistics
  25. Zoology
  26. Assamese, Bengali, Bodo, Dogri, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Kashmiri, Konkani, Maithili, Malayalam, Manipuri, Marathi, Nepali, Oriya, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Santhali, Sindhi, Tamil, Telugu, Urdu, English.

HERE IS THE ANALYSIS OF THE PAST 7 YEARS ALL INDIA RANK (AIR) 1, 2 & 3:

 UPSC 2019 ANALYSIS

AIR NAME MARKS SECURED IN OPTIONAL SUBJECT MAINS MARKS INTERVIEW MARKS TOTAL MARKS
1 Pradeep Singh 293(PD) 914 158 1072
2 Jatin Kishore 294(ECO) 878 185 1063
3 Pratibha verma 305(PHY) 869 193 1062

UPSC 2018 ANALYSIS

AIR NAME MARKS SECURED IN OPTIONAL SUBJECT MAINS MARKS INTERVIEW MARKS TOTAL MARKS
1 Kanishak kataria 361(MATH) 942 179 1121
2 Akshat jain 335(ANTHRO) 882 198 1080
3 Junaid ahmad 321(GEO) 893 184 1077

UPSC 2017 ANALYSIS

AIR NAME MARKS SECURED IN OPTIONAL SUBJECT MAINS MARKS INTERVIEW MARKS TOTAL MARKS
1 Durishetty anudeep 318(ANTHRO) 950 176 1126
2 Anu kumari 318(SOCIO) 937 187 1124
3 Sachin gupta 339(ANTHRO) 946 176 1122

UPSC 2016 ANALYSIS

AIR NAME MARKS SCORED IN OPTIONAL SUBJECT MAINS MARKS INTERVIEW MAKRS TOTAL SCORE
1 Nandini K R 331(KANNADA LITERATURE) 927 193 1120
2 Anmol sher singh bedi -(POLITICAL SCIENCE ) 899 206 1105
3 Gopalkrishna ronanki 322(TELUGU LITERATURE) 936 165 1101

UPSC 2015 ANALYSIS

AIR NAME MARKS SCORED IN OPTIONAL SUBJECT MAINS MARKS INTERVIEW MARKS TOTAL SCORE
1 Tina dabi 299(POLITY) 868 195 1063
2 Athar amir UI shafi khan PHILOSOPHY 825 193 1018
3 Jasmeet singh sandhu PUNJABI LITERATURE 824 190 1014

UPSC 2014 ANALYSIS

RANK NAME MARKS SCORED IN OPTIONAL SUBJECT MAINS MARKS INTERVIEW MARKS TOTAL SCORE
1 Ira singhal 305(GEO) 920 162 1082
2 Renu raj 319(MALAYALAM) 858 198 1056
3 Nidhi gupta 316(PHY) 846 179 1025

UPSC 2013 ANALYSIS

RANK NAME MARKS SCORED IN OPTIONAL SUBJECT MAINS MAKRS INTERVIEW MARKS TOTAL SCORE
1 Gaurav agarwal 296(ECO ) 769 206 975
2 Munish sharma 202(LAW) 732 204 936
3 Rachith raj 272(ZOOLOGY) 796 138 934

AGE CRITERIA  AND NUMBER OF ATTEMPTS FOR UPSC ASPIRANTS ACCORDING TO CATEGORY

  • All the UPSC aspirants must be of Indian origin and must have completed their graduation (those who are in final year can also appear for the prelims , but while appearing for prelims one should have completed mains)

EXCEPTIONS:

  • For the Indian Administrative Service, the Indian Police Service and Indian Foreign Service the candidate must be a citizen of India.
  • For other services, the candidate must be one of the following
  1. A citizen of India.
  2. A citizen of Nepalor a Bhutan
  3. A Tibetanrefugee who settled permanently in India before 1 January 1962.
  4. A person of Indian origin who has migrated from Pakistan, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Zambia, Malawi, Zaire, Ethiopiaor Vietnam with the intention of permanently settling in India

UPSC AGE LIMIT

The candidate must be at least of 21 years as on 1st august 2021 (if he or she is sitting for UPSC 2021)

CATEGORY

 UPPER AGE LIMIT

ATTEMPT

GENERAL LIMIT

 32 6
OBC 35

9

SC/ST

 37

(unlimited attempts until the person reaches age of 37)

DISABLED DEFENCE SERVICES PERSONNEL

 35 9

EX-SERVICEMEN

 37

9
PEOPLE WILL BENCHMARK DISABILITY – economically weaker section 42

9

 

  • BOOK LIST FOR UPSC:

SUBJECTS

BOOKS
HISTORY

MODERN HISTORY: a brief history of modern India by Rajiv Ahir, spectrum India

Art and culture by Nitin Singhania

Anicent and Mediev

al India by Poonam Dayal

NCERT Class XI and XII

Indian culture and heritage by Devdutt Pattanaik

GEOGRAPHY

 NCERT: 6th to 12th old and new

Ges periods Vol 1 : Physical, world and environmental geography by Mohan Krishnamurthy

Ges periods Mol 2 : Indian, human and economic by Mohan Krishnamurthy

Certificate Physical and human geography: G C Leong

Oxford atlas or orient Blackswan

Globe and wall maps

NATMO Atlas

Indian geography by Dr. Khullar

Physical geography by Strahler

Human geography by Majid Hussain
POLITY

Indian constitution at work: 11th NCERT

Democratic politics:10th NCERT

Indian polity: Lakshmikanth

Introduction to Indian constitution: Durga Das Basu

ECONOMY

Indian Economy by Ramesh Singh

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

Science and technology by Ravi P Agrahari

Science and technology: Arihant publications

CSAT

A modern approach to verbal and non-verbal reasoning by Dr. RS Aggarwal

CSAT Paper- 2 manual by McGraw Hill

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

NCERT XII

International relations: Pushpesh pant

Indian polity by M Laxmikanth

Current affairs and Hindu newspaper

ESSAY

Contemporary essays by Ramesh Singh

ENGLISH

Compulsory English by AP Bhardwaj

SOCIAL ISSUES

Social problems in India by Ram Ahuja

The Hindu newspaper: Editorials

Indian Express editorials

NCERT class 11th

 and 12th.

 

ETHICS AND INTEGRITY

Ethics, integrity, and aptitude by Santhosh Ajmera and Nanda Kishore Reddy, McGraw hill publications

Ethics, Integrity and Aptitude by M Karthikeyan

INTERVIEW

Important Judgments that Transformed India: for UPSC Civil Service Examination by McGraw Hill

How to score high in the IAS interview: tips to clear IAS interview with flying colors in the format of a PDF

 

CONCLUSION

The number of candidates who applied for prelims in 2010 was 6 lakh approximately, the number has seen a drastic increase to 11 lakh approximately. Along with the increase in the level of competition, the number of candidates in the final list or the recommended list has also come down from approximately 1000 to 800. UPSC is called the mother of all exams, if you prepare for this examination, all the other central and state government group A and B and also the other competitive examinations will be a cakewalk. Now it is time for all of us to raise out of our comfort zones and let’s start working harder, and at the same time smarter. Only hard work doesn’t lead to success. If only hard work led to success then the daily wage workers had to have a lavish and contented life .so let our goals not stop for anyone, let’s raise every day from bed and do what is needed rather than doing what is easy

GOALS SHOULD NEVER BE EASY. THEY SHOULD FORCE YOU TO WORK EVEN WHEN YOU ARE UNCOMFORTABLE AT THAT TIME

-Michael Phelps