Tips by Safi Rank 55(IAS 2010)

I am Mohammed Y Safirulla (Roll No: 080934) and I have got Rank 55 in Civil Services Exam-2009. I am writing this on the request of Mrunal to describe my preparation strategy. I would be happy if this is of some help to Civil Service aspirants.

About me: I completed my Engineering from ‘PSG College of Technology’ in 2003. I then worked in TCS for 2 years. After writing CAT in 2005 I secured admission in T.A. Pai Management Institute (TAPMI) for PGDM. I completed PGDM in 2007. Since then, I am working with IBM as SAP Consultant.

General Studies

1. How did you deal with general studies + Essay in mains ?

Ans:

News Paper: I referred 'The Hindu' News paper during the last 2 years. I used to take notes for any analysis in this paper. Any center page article which appears to be important I used to cut that and document in a file.

Magazine: Competition Chronicle.

TV: DD News and Lok Sabha Channel (‘Public Form’ – The New Analysis show from 11 to 12 PM every night)

Constitution and Freedom Movement: Referred Prelims Xerox of Brilliant Tutorials

Aptitude: R.S Agarwal

I tried to focus less on data intensive areas and focused on my strengths i.e. Economics, Aptitude and Current affairs. I relied more on Internet to collect data for GS.

Preparation for Options

Sociology

Ans: My Optional for Prelims was Sociology. For Mains it was Sociology and Management. For Sociology I got guidance from Mrs. Ananya Sharma, who had written the Mains earlier. My Friend and I took guidance from her. Further, I analyzed previous 15 years QPs for Prelims and Mains. I made notes after analyzing them. Source was mainly Internet and the book by C/N Shankar Rao.

Management

For Management I referred my Books (from PGDM days). Here too, I prepared notes.

For 2010 Exam (which I did not take) General Studies preparation, I attended the free GS test series conducted by Namma IAS in Bangalore. I wanted to attend the test series so that I could meet other aspirants and to identify the benchmarks.

For both GS and Optionals I prepared lot of notes from Internet. I believe this gave maximum returns. It is possible to revise notes in short duration (Eg: 2 hours gap between Paper 1 and Paper 2 for Optional in Mains). We can also keep adding points to the topics subsequently.

Essay

3. How did you deal with the essay?

Ans:

No special preparation for essay.

Working professional and time Management

4. How did you manage it despite being a working professional? The whole time Management aspect? Because everyone doing some job is confused about this.

Ans:

Few things that I did,

- Motto of studying for at least 4 hours every working day. Sleep only after study of 4 hours is complete. Absolutely no compromise on this.

- The study time does not include the time spent for watching News or Browsing on Internet (for whatever).

- During weekends, study for at least 7 hours each day

- Alternate days in weekdays for Optional and GS. Both Optional and GS during Weekends.

- Maintain a chart which indicates the effort in Hours for Optional/GS. In my calendar I have entries which indicate how many hours I spent each day from Jan 2009 to October 22^nd 2009 for Optional and GS

- As far as possible I avoided Social gatherings like Friends get together, Attending Marriages etc… In short, save every possible minute that you can.

- I kept the only few close friends and relatives updated about my Civil Service aspiration and progress in the exam.

Motivation -maintaining the rhythm

5.How did you maintain the motivation, rhythm and pace in studies, because most of us go through mood swings like for 10 days "high motivation and working hard" then for next 10 days "no motivation or mood to study anything" and finally month before the exam doing the fire-fighting, trying to cover everything up in short time.

Ans:

I also experienced this problem. There were days when there was intense self doubt! During those days I tried not to push myself too much. I focused on reading News Papers and economics during those days.

Interview

6. Your interview.

The following are the questions asked in my Interview. The order and words in questions are not the same. I tried to recollect as far as I could.

Chairman:

1. You are Mohammed Y Safirulla…. How can I call you. ?
2. You are working in SAP. Is it not something that integrates Human resources, Finance etc... Can you explain what the work you do?
3. You are already in IT sector which is challenging. Why do you want to get into Civil services?

Member 1:

1. You have done a lot of work in corporate sector. There is lot of hierarchy in Public services. You will not get the kind of freedom that you used to get in Private sector. Do you think you will fit in the Government setting?
2. There might be no rewards even when you perform well. What is reward for you? Is it Power, Authority, Public Service or Money?
3. About the Shoaib and Sania Marriage in Hyderabad, What is Nikkahnama? Can marriages in Islam happen over phone?
4. If you were in the position of Police Commissioner of Hyderabad would you take the Passport of Shoaib? Do you think it was correct?
5. What is the difference between Administration and Management?
6. Have you ever got into a fight with your Boss? Explain what happened?
7. If your peon takes money (corruption) of Rs. 5 (say), What action would you take against him?
8. What were the options available to you after you completed your MBA in Finance? Why you got into IT then?

Member 2:

1. Is PDGM and MBA the same?
2. Why do you want to get into Civil services from Corporate Sector?
3. Based on the explanation of the difference between Administration and Management (which I answered to Member 1) what is the role of a District Collector? Does he perform ‘Administration’ or ‘Management’ role?
4. How will your knowledge of Engineering and Management be useful for you in Civil Services?
5. Are the same principles of success valid in corporate sector relevant in Government Services as well?
6. You have spent a long time in Corporate sector (I have spent 5 years). I think you will not fit in Government Services.
7. What are the fundamentals of India’s Foreign Policy?
8. But Panchsheel is also present in UN Charter right? Where is it present? (I explained about Panchsheel in the earlier question).

Member 3:

1. What is the famous PSU in Salem?
2. What is Namakkal famous for ? (It is a district near Salem, TN)
3. Religious places in Namakkal.
4. About Coimbatore. What is it called as? What is it famous for?
5. What are the reasons for development of Software sector in India?
6. Reasons for Financial Crisis in 2008-09. What are your views on it?
7. Is Ethics taught in Management Schools? The excess greed of Management graduates is also a reason for Financial Crisis. Your views.
8. What is the reason for Cost and Time Overrun in ‘Mega Projects’? How can those be addressed?

Member 4:

1. You mentioned about ‘Profit Maximization’ objective of corporate sector? Talking about Derivatives, do you think they should be banned?
2. You did your engineering then worked for 2 years. Again you did PGDM and then again into IT sector. Now you want to get into Civil Services. I think you are a confused person.
3. You have studied ‘Electronics’ in Engineering. What do you know about ‘Electronics’ Industry in India?
4. You talked about SAP (ERP). Can such models be used to determine unforeseen situations? Eg: Monsoon failures etc... What is the relevance of such models then?

Chairman:

1. Assume you are in a foreign country. Now give me a plan to promote tourism in Tamilnadu. (my home state).
2. Have you filled for any other service apart from IAS? If selected will you join other services?

Ok. Thank you. Your interview is over.

I would like to convey to aspirants that is it possible to clear Civil Services exam without attending big coaching institutes and while working. Many have cleared in the past and many will continue to do. Please have confidence in your efforts.

In case there are queries, I will respond in IO from my ID

http://www.indianofficer.com/forums/new-civil-service/8866-strategy-determination-safi-got-rank-55-without-coaching-leaving-job-his-first-trial.html
. Please do let me know if I can offer assistance in any other aspect.

Tips by Kamlesh Rank 61 (IAS 2010)

Dude I wasn't working while I wrote this exam. My condition was all the way more miserable. I was in my second year of MBA while I started preparing. So I practically started reading for the exam, just 6 months before I wrote prelims....If I can clear this exam in first attempt with less than a year of prep, then everyone else can...I don know if I am worthy of giving any advice, but I wud like to share the following tips:

1. Never ask anyone about his/her strategy for the exam. U are unique, ur style of studying and writing should reflect u and nt someone else
2. Don waste time in deciding optionals. See where ur instinct and natural flair lies. All subjects are gud but u'll do better in subjects where u are instinctively strong. This is true when unexpected questions r asked in the exam
3. Study only from standard books. No easy notes or guides.
4. Read as often as u can. Read non fictions, any good newspaper or one business newspaper.
5. Study as much as u feel is sufficient for u. I studied only 5 hrs a

Thanx buddy...am sure that u too can and will do the same. don quit the job. try to manage ur time well. Break ur syllabus into managable parts. set daily and weekly targets. assess urself periodically. I feel that daily study of 4-5 hrs and 7-8 on weekends can be sufficient. do lemme know if i can be of any help.

No friend I did nt take any coaching, not even test series. I never had time to do so. My optionals were Psychology and sociology. For socio I read only Harlambos and IGNOU notes, but the second paper requires a lot of personal interpretation and analysis. Mere reading won't help here. A personal touch to answers with some real and mordern examples will help. I am yet to see my score, so don't follow this advice blindly. Believe in ur instincts and make ur answers lucid and logical. As far as GS in concerned, I guess u should focus now on current affairs only. GS takes lots of efforts but corresponding returns are less. Focus on ur optional. Maximize the score here. It gives gud returns....and thnx for the kind words

And for GS the trend seems to have changed a lot. Read newspapers and develop ur own analysis and interpretation. I don't think there will be many fact based questions. In one way its good. You don't have to spend much time in mugging facts. However the onus now lies in ur writing skills and analytical ability.

Tips by Anay Rank 5 (IAS 2010)

Answer-writing tips:

the same holds for all the
papers: GS 1 &2 and optionals…

keep in mind the following
points:

1. answer has to include all
points from different perspectives…as many as u can think of…political, legal,
administrative, economic, social, etc…as I said, writing 10 points, 2 lines
each is better than writing just 5 points, 4 lines each…I wrote answers points
wise almost always…1 2 3…next answer * * *…next answer - - - -…it all depends
on wht u r comfortable with..if u like writing in paras…no prob…but write frm
all different perspectives…

2. diagrams: always draw
diagrams in optionals…GS u wudnt have time and neither do questions require
diagrams…but in optionals like pub ad and psychology…diagrams shud be
drawn…flowcharts, etc will also do…If I didn’t have a diagram with me, then I
used to write the topic and circle it, then arrows pointing to all different
points,etc…draw with pencil, but always draw freehand…no scale,etc…no time…if
still running short, draw with pen…no prob

3. underlining: very very
important…I never used to underline earlier…but this time I did…underline with
pen as u write…no need of pencil, different colour pen, etc…there’s no
time..but try to underline the key words…

4. key words: always write key
words first…for every topic in the syllabus, prepare a list of 5-6 key
words…they shud form a part of the intro…eg brainstorming: it is a group creativity technique
which involves freewheeling, divergent thinking, delayedjudgment and focussed on quantity rather than quality…then
explain each key word pne by one… this way u wudnt have to think about
introduction, etc and examiner will get all the relevant points right in the
beginning…

5. word limit: for GS I used
to exceed word limit but only because I knew I wud finish the paper even if I did
so…so if 30 words, I used to write 50…if 100 words: 130, if 200 words: 250…and
so on..for optionals 20 markers: I used to write 260-280 words (word limit
indicated is 200)…for 60 markers usually 6 pages…(600-650 words)…but keep in
mind the time…

6: language: has to be very simple...dnt show ur vocabulary...do not use words for which an average person wud need to use a dictionary...also assume the examiner doesnt knw nething about the topic and if u use a jargon...always explain it in one line immediately...
easy way is: assume u r writing an answer for a 12 yr old kid...

-----------------

newspaper reading gets easy with practice..in the beginning it might take
time but as u progress..u wud be able to finish 3 newspapers (if u r
reading 3)in under 2 hrs...just keep in mind wht is relevant and wht is
not...

as asked..i will go thru 26th may ET, delhi edition on
epaper.timesofindia.com and get back to u on whts relevant and wht is
not...just give me smtime to read and prepare the reply...

scrap 1:

ET is of 30 pages today…so here’s whats relevant whts not…

Page 30; irrelevant…book turns 50,etc nobody’s gng to ask

Page 29; no topic important..only banana topic I just
glanced thru…coz India
is the biggest banana producer in the world…this kind of thing might be imp to
write in some answer on trade,etc..but directly it will never be asked…I wudnt
cut the article, but wud remember the banana story…

Pages 26-28: irrelevant

Page 25: not relevant..its abt companies..u dnt need to read
such articles until they have some national impact…such as bharti-mtn deal..etc

Page 24: irrelevant…but I wud just look for wht are
high-beta stocks..its given in the article wht it is..write it somewhere if u
think u wudnt remember it later…

So, 7 pages took less than5 minutes as I have only glanced
thru the headings and read only 3-4 lines in 2 articles…

Page 23: articles
irrelevant but ET in the classroom is very good almost always…today it talks
abt nomination which I dnt think is relevant for the cse exam.. but most of the
times it talks abt things very relevant..so always watch out for et in the
classroom

Page 22:
articles irrelevant but REER, cut it…very important…such definitions can always
be asked for 2-3 markers in GS 2 paper…

Page 21: I am
usually apprehensive of articles by krugman in hindu which r only US specific…but
here the interview with stiglitz talks abt Greece, EU, US,etc…so it gives a
better understanding of the world economic situation…so I wud have cut it…

Provides a
different perspective…

Pg 20: Et
has the best editorial…so let me devote a scrap to it…

scrap 5: page 20:

1. reforming
political funding: excellent article..very imp for both Gs and pub ad…such
articles give value edition to answers..also PM has spoken abt it…u can
directly quote PM in the exam…

2. dnt join Chinese
checkers; this is why ET is good…the analysis is good..u learn abt
undervaluation, renminbi, anti-dumping and finally India, china, us vis a vis anti
dumping cases,etc

scrap6: page 20(contd)
3. defence
FDI: good article…can use such info in pub ad, essay as well as GS as an
example…transfer of technology, etc also important…so I wud have cut it..its
abt using such examples and making ur
answer different…
other articles r wither too specific or contain info tht is useless...so only 3 articles in today's Et editorial...

scrap 7:
page 19: irrelevant...even though article on FRBM might seem relevant but its only a proposal...u have to guard against such articles...these r just speculations..nothing concrete..leave it out..
page 18: irrelevant...specific info abt telecom..nobody's gng to ask...
page 17: irrelevant...
page 16:irrelevant...no need to read articles on specific case studies...waste of time...

scrap 8:
page 14 and 15: irrelevant
page 13: irrelevant...y?coz us-china story is for today...tomorrow smthing else...its nothing concrete...just daily news...not imp for the exam..
pages 4 to 12: irrelevant..info abt specific companies or industries...not imp for the exam...
so u can leave out large part of the paper by just reading the headline..its not abt cutting the whole paper..just 8-10 articles on an avg/day frm 3 papers...tht wud suffice...

page 3: all articles irrelevant...this might happen..tht
might happen...speculation..only when it happens then article
imp...afghan-pak also irrelevant...every1 knows present afghan govt
doesnt like pakistanis...so nothing new here...
page2: not
imp...ansari,bhatkal, rathore...these r specific articles..questions r
not asked specifically...wht happened in tht case,etc..so useless
huawei
case one shud knw...if u dnt know, read the article and cut it..if u already
knw...article not imp coz it doesnt provide nething new..so duplication
has to be avoided...dnt cut too many articles on the same issue unless
some concrete development has occurred...

scrap 10:page1:
nothing important: all articles r too specific in nature...markets: only today's condition...wont be asked wht happened on tht day to the markets..etc..

so there wud be 6-7 articles frm Et today...but small ones except stiglitz...on most days u wud just get 2-3...but wud be big ones..
with practice..it wud take 30-35 mins to read today's ET...

kindly ask for clarification...

________________________________-


@blowing...for GS mains: the exam pattern at present is such
tht current affairs is the most imp aspect...so newspaper reading is the
key...i read 3 newspapers: ToI, ET and the hindu...u neednt read the whole
newspaper..only those articles which r imp from exam point of view...i kept
cuttings and revised them a week before the exam...and
1 CSE oriented magazine...i read civil services chronicle...
i divided the newspaper articles into natl issues, intl issues, economy, security and defense, climate and misc(eg S&T)...papers frm may 24th to october 1st week wud do...i was able to answer 60-70% GS mains based on paper reading...


@blowing (scrap2): the
books which r required : dd basu's indian constitution, bipin chandra's
struggle
for independence, economic
survey and spectrum for statistics (small one)...thts it..just go thru
previous 5 yrs' question papers of GS mains to get an idea abt the kind
of questions asked...

i dont think there's any need for material on GS mains apart frm wht i have pointed out...for pub ad...just the books which i told u...and answer-writing practice is the key in pub ad...i will surely tell u abt some key aspects of answer writing...just remind me of it by leaving a scrap...i have to go somewhere now...

pub ad; its a very good optional coz almost 70 % of it
will be covered if u have prepared GS well...there r only 3 books which u need
to refer: prasad and prasad for administrative thinkers, fadia and fadia
(theories and concepts) for paper 1 and fadia and fadia (indian admin) for
paper 2 and yup, 2 topics frm nicholas henry: budget and public policy
making...thts it..dnt even listen to neone who says mohit bhattacharya, ferrel
heady, IJPA journals, etc..all crap...

i suggest u go to srirams in delhi..meet pawan
sir...he's the best for pub ad..trust me...all those who r famous: sunil gupta,
mohanty,vajiram,etc r too bad in terms of guidance and personal
attention...bhed-bakri ki tarah they take every1 and paisa
banao...answer-writing is very very imp for pub ad...and tht u can practice
after taking the prelims...u have to practice answer-writing alongside building up knowledge and content...4 months
between the prelims and mains is enough time for answer writing practice...

1st and foremost, start reading newspapers...for mains, frm prelims- oct 1st week newspapers r very important...keep cuttings and go thru them as regularly as u can...and surely just before the exam...apart frm tht, for optionals, take printout of the syllabus and go thru each and every topic one by one...u shud aim to finish optionals by sept end...
books- economic survey, dd basu and spectrum for statistics...bipin chandra if u have time...