• Hello everyone, I am Divya Shakti. I have secured Rank 79 in the Civil Services Examination 2019. I am from Muzaffarpur, Bihar. I have done my schooling from DAV Muzaffarpur till 10th and 12th from DPS Bokaro. I have done my engineering from BITS Pilani. I am B.E. in Computer Science.
• My father is a doctor by profession, my mother is aa home maker and I have an elder brother and sister.
• I am An engineer who loves travelling and long distance running. I was attracted to civil services because of the job profile and its ability to impact the lives of general public.
• I was working before I left my job, and decided to prepare full time. I came to know about ForumIAS through one of my friends, who was appearing for the exam from sometime. At that time, I was in a dilemma wheather to join Forum or any other institute for my Mains Preparation. I am glad I chose ForumIAS for Mains & Interview Preparation.

Preliminary examination

PLEASE MENTION YOUR STRATEGY AND BOOKS/NOTES DID YOU REFERRED TO FOR GENERAL STUDIES AND CSAT?

STRATEGY:

• I did entire GS preparation on my own through self study without any coaching. However wrote mains test at ForumIAS itself. Before starting one’s preparation for GS, one must by heart the syllabus. Then try reading each and every topic from the syllabus, follow and consolidate current affairs related to it and prepare short notes for mains.

BOOKLIST:

HOW MANY QUESTIONS DID YOU ATTEMPT IN GS? HOW MANY DID YOU GET RIGHT?

• In mains I attempted all questions in GS, in pre my attempts were somewhere around 78-80. However I scored 116 and managed to get through IFoS cutoff as well.

WHAT DO YOU THINK IS THE OPTIMAL NUMBER OF QUESTIONS TO ATTEMPT IN PRELIMS? DO YOU ADVISE ACCURACY OR MAXIMUM ATTEMPTS?

• I believe the optimal number of attempts should be around 80. But this is not a hard and fast rule. One must analyse her accuracy through mocks to reach upon individual optimal number of attempts.

IF YOU HAD TO PREPARE AGAIN WOULD YOU CHANGE YOUR STRATEGY IN ANY WAY?

• For prelims, no. For mains GS, no. But I would improve my optional. I couldn’t give much time to optional between pre and mains and I think it would have definitely impacted my score.

Mains Examination

HOW DID YOU PREPARE GS/GK?

• By heart the syllabus.
• Prepare static portion from basic books.
• Prepare one A4 sheet note on related current affairs, mostly in answer format I.e. relevant stats, committees, articles, reports and also positives and negatives along with a way forward. I revised these sheets multiple times to by heart it before mains exam.

HOW DID YOU PREPARE ENGLISH?

• No dedicated preparation.

HOW DID YOU COVER CURRENT AFFAIRS FOR MAINS?

• Followed the Indian express to identify syllabus related current affairs. Watched Rajya Sabha tv’s The Big Picture regularly. It is really helpful as it gives both sides of a story along with a way forward.

WHAT’S YOUR OPTIONAL SUBJECTS AND WHY?

• Geography because I had an interest in the subject also because of its overlap with the GS papers.

PLEASE SHARE YOUR STRATEGY AND BOOKLIST FOR EACH OF THE OPTIONAL?

Optional Paper 1:

STRATEGY:

• I referred to my coaching notes to prepare basic foundation for both paper 1 and paper 2.
• Then I picked up syllabus and took up each topic one by one.
• Used internet extensively to prepare A4 sheet for each topic.
• I made sure I knew theories, geographers’ names and diagrams related to each topic.
• Also focussed on contemporary examples for each topic. For example let’s say, urban conurbation, I gathered examples related to India, world, recent conventions etc and used them appropriately in paper 1 and 2.
• Also made sure each page had both maps and diagrams while writing answers. I could not give tests for my optional but tried practising previous year question papers from each unit.

BOOKLIST:

• Basic material:
• Shabbir sir notes

NCERT

• Reference material:
• Rupa Physical Geography
• Rupa Economic and Social Geography
• Geomorphology by Savindra Singh
• R D Dixit

Optional 2

• Basic material, Shabbir sir notes
• DR Khullar, For paper 2, I used a lot of current affairs from GS paper 3. And completed topics like Culture etc from current affairs plus extensive use of internet and prepared one-pagers for even those fringe topics.

HOW IMPORTANT IS ANSWER WRITING? WHAT WAS YOUR STYLE OF ANSWER WRITING?

• Answer writing is of course critical for mains as no matter how much you know you must be able to present relevant content in your answer in limited time.
• My answer had introduction, body, conclusion format. I mostly wrote in pointwise format and used maps(since I had geography optional, I used them extensively in IR, geography etc related answers).

HOW MANY QUESTIONS DID YOU ATTEMPT? WHAT STRATEGY DID YOU FOLLOW FOR MAINS EXAMINATION IN THE EXAMINATION HALL?

• I attempted all questions. I attempted the 15 markers first in around 1hr 45 mins to come back to 10 markers.
• I didn’t use blog and community as such but I DID regularly read Neyawn’s article. They are really motivating as they present a bigger picture of life beyond UPSC and are beautifully written. You can get strategy in many places, you can get technical stuff at other places, but the right mindset that is needed for the exam, I think the articles very well do that.

Interview

HOW DID YOU PREPARE FOR THE INTERVIEW? DID YOU ATTEND ANY MOCKS?

• I focused on building my understanding and opinion on ongoing issues. The next focus was on expressing my views in an organized and precise manner. I was a part of the online Group Mocks at Forum, and I remember online sessions taken by Forum very well. This was critical given that after lockdown mock sessions were not easily available.
• In the group sessions that we had, we were asked for forming groups among ourselves, and I religiously followed that.
• I formed a group with two other people. We used to discuss daily and held mock interviews on every alternate day. This really helped me a lot. I think candidates must develop the quality of forbearance before their personality tests.

WHICH INTERVIEW BOARD DID YOU FACE?

• Smita Nagaraj Mam
• I will share the detailed transcript on my website. But almost all the questions were on expected lines that is based on my DAF. There were questions from my state, my name,my hobbies and geography, which was my optional.

WHAT QUALITIES DO YOU THINK ARE BEING TESTED IN THE INTERVIEW? SOME STRICT DO’S AND DON’TS FOR THE INTERVIEW FOR ASPIRANTS AND INTERVIEW CANDIDATES?

• Read through the syllabus of personality test thoroughly, it mentions all the qualities that the board intends to test. I think forbearance is an important quality too. Be respectful, even if you disagree, disagree respectfully. Don’t bluff. Don’t hesitate to say I don’t know. And most importantly listen before speaking.

DO YOU THING MARKS IN SCHOOL OR COLLEGE AND THE JOB EXPERIENCE CAN IMPACT ONE’S SCORE IN THE INTERVIEW?

• Ummm .. I really don’t think so.

HOW WAS THE INTERVIEW EXPERIENCE? WAS IT PREDICTABLE? HOW MUCH DID YOUR PREPARATION HELP?

• The board was extremely cordial. Almost all the questions were on expected lines. My preparation definitely helped a lot.

Miscellaneous

HOW MUCH INTERNET DID YOU USE FOR YOUR PREPARATION? HOW MUCH VALUE DID IT ADD?

• Since I didn’t take any coaching for my GS, I relied heavily on internet for my preparation. It was my main source for GS prep apart from the basic books.

HOW DID YOU BALANCE SO MUCH RESOURCES AND DATA? WHAT SMART TECHNIQUES DID YOU USE TO MANAGE YOUR PREPARATION IN A BETTER MANNER?

• As far as my possible I tried to keep my resources limited. I referred only to basic books. Even while referring to the internet for any topic, I used to consolidate all the material gathered on a single A4 sheet and revise that sheet only.

WHAT DO YOU THINK IS THE MOST ESSENTIAL QUALITY/QUALITIES NEEDED TO CLEAR THIS EXAM?

1. Clarity of purpose. I think this is the most important thing. It should not be due to peer or parental pressure. If one is not clear with purpose , she might give up at the very first hint of difficulty in the preparation journey.
2. Do not carry any baggage from past. Make a routine, try you 100% to adhere to it, but in case you can’t, don’t fret over it for too long. This is the most common tendency among aspirants. Improvise, pivot and restart.

WHAT IS YOUR ADVICE TO THE YOUNG ASPIRANTS WHO LOOK UP TO YOU?

• Please refer to the qualities I mentioned above. Apart from them staying focussed and NOT participating in random chai stall type gossip. Keep your circle limited and if possible, stay away from social media.

WHAT IS THE BEST ADVICE THAT YOU HAVE RECEIVED?

• You cannot ensure that you will get through the exam but you can ensure that you put your 200% in it. Just do that.

WHAT DID ALL HURDLES YOU FACE WHILE PREPARING FOR IT? AND HOW DID YOU TACKLE THEM?

• I underwent many emotional ups and downs , like other participants. But my mother stood beside me as my most important pillar of support. My two friends Naincy and Nikky were extremely supportive and ALWAYS available to listen to me and boost me up.

WHAT ROLE DID FORUMIAS PLAY IN YOUR PREPARATION? DO YOU HAVE ANY SUGGESTIONS FOR US?

• It played a very important role in mains preparation as I wrote all my mains tests here. For interview prep, I found a group of two other people through a forum IAS group discussion only.

CSC:Achieving top slot in the Judicial Services Examination is no small feat; accept our heartiest congratulations on your splendid success.

Akanksha: Thank you so much sir. Much obliged.

CSC: Can you recall the exact moment when you realized the importance of Judicial Services?

Akanksha: During my college days I realized that corporate Job is not my cup of tea. I wanted to connect and relate with law on a much more ground level. Also Judicial Service is not merely a job but a living profession, as you deal with the real time situations. All this inspired me to work hard in this direction.

CSC: Finally, at what point of time did you make up your mind to make a career in ‘Judicial Services’?

Akanksha: During my LL.B. only I was very clear in my thoughts that I have to become a judicial officer.

CSC: You must have read toppers’ interviews in newspapers/magazines; what inspired you the most? Any particular success story which influenced your journey to this result?

Akanksha: Surprisingly, I never have read any interview, but during my preparation my mentor Mr. Alok Kr. Ranjan sir and my friend Gaurav used to share the stories of various toppers, which inspired me and kept me motivated that, ‘one should trust the process and must have faith in oneself’.

CSC: Was JSE a planned decision or your parent’s wish? Did you keep in mind some time frame, for the examination preparation and number of attempts?

Akanksha: Coming from a non-law family background I never knew about JSE till my graduation with Chemistry (Hons.). It was final year of my B.Sc. when I got in touch with one of my school seniors who happened to be an advocate in Delhi. From there it was my own decision to prepare for judiciary and from here it was law only. It was my first attempt only so had not thought much about timeframe. But, yes, I had in my mind that I have to clear JSE really soon.

CSC: Describe the exact moment when you came to know about the importance of Judicial Services?

Akanksha: I knew the importance of JSE from the very beginning of my law graduation and that judicial services will provide me an opportunity by which I could contribute a bit to our country. Thus it was always my serious choice and not an option.

CSC: If we talk about Interview Boards, many candidates have ‘set impressions’. Do you consider such thoughts help or hinder one’s performance in Interview?

Akanksha: The main purpose of interview is to get insight into your personality. In my case it got polished by ‘Interview Guidance Programme’ at Ambition Law Institute. Furthermore, me with friends Gaurav and Abhishek - were used to have discussions on various topics and issues which helped me during my interview. We should never prepare for interview with any pre-conceived notion. Trust yourself and be confident. You will do wonders.

CSC: What was your first step when you were really serious about making a career in Judicial Services?

Akanksha: I was serious since the beginning of my career in law but the actual preparation started when I joined Ambition Law Institute in November 2017.

CSC: Were you confident of your success in this examination and how did you react to this news of your success?

Akanksha: During my preparation I was not thinking of the result at all. I started with a thought that I have to give my best. We have got 24 days to prepare for our mains so we had no time to think about the result. I am really happy and elated that I got First Rank.

CSC: In how many attempts have you achieved this success? How do you visualize your preparation/previous attempts?

Akanksha: This was my first attempt at UPPSC J. For preparation I adopted simple strategy of focused study for long hours by joining a library nearby my coaching, where I used to study with my friends from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. But, I used to take breaks after every 2 hours and in between I had my coaching classes also. I never missed my classes and was quite regular with coaching and library.

CSC: Were you preparing for other career opportunities as well while preparing for your ultimate goal i.e. Career in Judicial Services?

Akanksha: For the time being I was only focusing on Judiciary preparation.

CSC: While the changing economic environment offers immense lucrative career opportunities in various sectors, still what kept you motivated towards Judicial Services?

Akanksha: The charm and respect which judicial services hold with it always kept me motivated in this direction only. Thus, the corporate jobs never distracted me.

CSC: What’s important and what’s not? Share your thoughts and opinions.

Akanksha: Having a good mentor and friends around is very important and I was blessed with both. My Mentor Alok Kr. Ranjan Sir always guided me that stay away from all kinds of distractions and follow the strategy shared in class, techniques taught there and keep your hard work on then success is bound to follow. Having a good company is also very important. It keeps you motivated and positive. The group discussions and revision unknowingly helps you a lot. One must keep his/her preparation limited i.e. instead of referring to many books one should revise from limited sources and should apprise themselves with current legal and other issues. Reading newspaper regularly will definitely give you an edge while framing answers. Stay away from negative thoughts and negative people. Commit mistakes and learn from it.

CSC: ‘Time Management’ is a key factor while making preparations as well as in writing examination papers. Did you come across such a problem during this period? If yes, then how did you manage things?

Akanksha: Yes, time management is one major thing which plays a great role while one prepares for competitive examination. In this case my friend Gaurav, Abhishek and Amrita really helped me. They shared strategies and guided me how much time I should be giving to major subjects as we had very limited days for our mains examination. We also had a session with our sir for time management.

CSC: List some of the magazines, newspapers, books, etc. which you read for ‘General Studies’ preparation.

Akanksha: Civil Services Chronicle, Mohit sir Class Notes, Study IQ education ( Garg sir ) current affairs, Ghatna Chakra ( All Volumes). For quick revision of latest amendments and bills I referred GK today.

CSC: How did you prepare yourself for Interview? When and which Board did you face? How did your interview go on, how much time it lasted and what were the questions asked during the Interview?

Akanksha: ‘Interview Guidance Program’ was offered by Ambition Law Institute. It was really important as it was going to be my first interview. My UP PCS-J interview was scheduled on 24^thJune 2019. I was interviewed by Dr R. Prakash Vaidya Board. My interview went well. They made me comfortable by asking me to sit and further adding that from where had I come, followed were few questions like from where have I done my LL.B., when did I pass, what I did after my graduation, etc. Few of the questions which they asked from law were what is Socialism, Defamation vs Insult, Defamation in Constitution, Civil and Criminal Defamation, nature of Evidence Act, latest judgment on Article 19, few questions from Appeal and Revision, etc. There were few questions which I couldn’t recall or I didn’t know so for them I simply replied sorry sir, “I cannot recall” or “Sorry sir I don’t remember”. It went for 15 minutes. At last they asked me to have water. After that I got up, greeted them and left the room.

CSC: What is the importance of medium of examination for exams like JSE?

Akanksha: I had written the exam in English as I can articulate better in English than Hindi. Medium doesn’t matter if you have good command over your language.

CSC: Does the educational, financial and demographic status of the family of an aspirant have any impact on the preparation?

Akanksha: What all an aspirant need from their family is constant support. In my case I have a humble background. My father works in a private company at Lucknow and we are middle class family and I have studied at DAV school and then at Law College at Ghaziabad and even then I topped it. So, it speaks all about it.

CSC: According to a recent report published by reputed survey agency, Civil Service Chronicle is the largest read Career & Competition magazine. What is your opinion?

Akanksha: I and my friends highly relied upon Civil Service Chronicle for our GS portion. Thus, constant and regular reading will definitely give you an edge and results.

CSC: What is the secret of your success?

Akanksha: My teachers, my family, my friends and definitely my hard work.

CSC: Any suggestion/advice you would like to give to the future aspirants.

Akanksha: Never doubt yourself. Start preparing now. Nothing is impossible.