UPSC 2017: Civil Service Exam Tips To Revise Quickly

The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) conducts the annual Civil Service exams for the Central Government at three levels: Preliminary, Main and Interview. The Candidates passing these exams secure the highly prestigious services such as Indian Foreign Service, Indian Administrative Service, Indian Police Service and the like. The Civil Service exam happens annually for filling numerous vacancies in the Central government department. Roughly 980 vacancies are said to be filled through the exam this year. The Detailed Application Forms (DAF) for Civil Service Exam 2017 has been announced by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC). The candidates who cleared the prelims will have to register themselves and fill in the DAF and move on for the Main exam that will, as per the official notification, be conducted from October 28, 2017 (Saturday) to November 11, 2017 (Friday). (See the time table here Candidates must note down these dates. The qualified candidate seeking admission to the Civil Services (Main) Examination must apply online through the Commission’s website (www.upsc.gov.in) by filling the Detailed Application Form (DAF) and uploading the scanned copies of the required document within the prescribed time limit so that DAF is submitted by the applicant on time. However, the OBC (non-creamy layer) candidates will be required to fill the OBC proforma along with the Detailed Application Form, on line.

Exam Centres and Overview: The Main Examination will be held at Ahmedabad, Aizawl, Allahabad, Bangaluru, Bhopal, Chandigarh, Chennai, Cuttack, Dehradun Delhi, Dispur (Guwahati), Hyderabad, Jaipur, Jammu, Kolkata, Lucknow, Mumbai, Patna, Raipur, Ranchi, Shillong, Shimla, Thiruvananthapuram and Vijayawada. The candidates should note that under no circumstances will they be allowed to change in centre, optional subject, Indian language paper (paper-a) and medium of examination they have indicated in their filled online CS (p) application form.

The Commission conducts the annual Civil Service exams for the Central Government at three levels: Preliminary, Main and Interview. The Candidates passing these exams secure the highly prestigious services such as Indian Foreign Service, Indian Administrative Service, Indian Police Service and the like. Following is the Main exam pattern

Paper	Subject	Marks
Paper A	(One of the Indian languages to be selected by the candidate (from the languages listed in the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of India) (Qualifying)	300
Paper B	English (Qualifying)	300
Paper I	Essay	250
Paper II	General Studies I (Indian heritage and culture, history and geography of the world and society)	250
Paper III	General Studies II (Governance, constitution, polity, social justice, and international relations)	250
Paper-IV	General Studies III (Technology, economic development, biodiversity, environment, security and disaster management)	250
Paper V	General Studies-IV(ethics, integrity, and aptitude)	250
Papers VI, VII	Two papers on subjects to be selected by the candidate from the list of optional subjects below (250 marks for each paper)	500
TOTAL (WRITTEN TEST)		1750

How to start preparation? Exam Tips For Civil Service Main Exam 2017

Keep in mind that the Main exam has descriptive type of questions. It tests the candidate’s ability on various levels. The time limit for the essay paper is set for 3 hrs. without a word limit. However for the optional paper, there are questions having specific word limit like 250 words in optional subjects and 250 words, 150 words and 20 words in general studies. It is necessary to attempt and answer these questions quickly and effectively and in minimum words. Candidates often get confused about whether to adopt the paragraph or the point style of answering questions. It would make sense to adopt a style reliant on the question asked. If the question requires you to discuss, analyze or critically examine, it would be better to answer the question in the paragraph format. If you are required to list the advantages or give reasons for/ against etc., it makes sense to pick the point format of answering. Answers should highlight the facts and concepts in an attention-grabbing way and should never read like a passage from a book.

• Get Previous Years’ Question Papers: This is the best way to get an idea of how the questions in the Main exam of Civil Services are asked. The exam pattern and types of questions asked make you familiar with what the actual UPSC IAS Mains 2017 exam shall be like. Take these question papers of all sets of the UPSC Civil Services (IAS) Mains Exam.
• Make a Proper Plan: If a study plan for weeks split into number of days which are further split into number of hours allotted to each topic saves a lot of time which is otherwise wasted in chaos when all the subjects and all the topics pile up in the end.
• Practice Mock Tests: A candidate must keep taking mock test as it gives the actual feel of the exam. There are online mock tests for the UPSC IAS mains 2017 exam. One can practice on a regular basis to encounter questions based on each topic in detail. Candidates appearing for the UPSC IAS mains 2017 exam this month in October 2017 may visit online educational websites & practice at least two tests a day till last 3 weeks.
• Being Simple: Try using simple English and avoid ornate language which takes the attention away from the original facts and the opinions about a given topic.
• Time Management: Practice writing the answers as it is the best way to manage the time limit set for the exam. Practice daily and try finishing your answers within the allotted time it will help you get used to the time and word limits.

We wish you best of luck your UPSC Civil Service Main Exam 2017!

About UPSC:

Established on 1 October 1926 as Public Service Commission, the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) is India's prestigious central recruiting agency that conducts appointments to and examinations for All India services and group A & group B of Central services. It was known as Federal Public Service Commission by the Government of India Act, 1935 and was then renamed as today's Union Public Service Commission after the independence.