Willing to sit for this exam knowing all our friends will get placed in MNCs, earn good money etc. just out of college requires courage and is highly commendable.
If you have decided to give a minimum of 2 years of your life going through rigorous preparation where 99.9% of those who apply are rejected you already are a winner!
I decided to pursue Civil Services in the 5th Semester of my Engineering. Back then (June 2020), I had nearly 2 years to prepare and was fairly confident about doing well(lol!).
I knew about the humungous syllabus and the amount of hard work required to clear this exam. That is where I fell behind; I “knew”, but I did not “understand” the resilience and consistency required. The effect that has is as evident as the difference between the two words.
Now, because I did not understand the UPSC Civil Services, the advantage of the 2 years I had, vanished into thin air. A year passed by, I did study but to no fruit; I was never consistent. Now, I have around a year to prepare for the Civil Services 2022 Examination along with my industrial internship and final year project.
If you are a new aspirant, in the 1st/2nd/3rd year of your under graduation, gearing up to give this exam a serious shot, I would recommend you to research about this examination for at least a week. Look at blogs, google resources and listen to topper’s talks. “Know” the exam inside-out but more importantly “understand” it. Always keep the syllabus and the previous year’s question papers with you.
After researching, consolidate a list of resources and prepare a strategy. Use inputs from your research but make a strategy which is your own. Once you prepare a list of resources, no matter what, do not change them!
To make your work easier, the resources I compiled as a student are linked here. Feel free to use them, but I would highly recommend you to research and consolidate a list of your own.
ALL THE VERY BEST, MAY THE 0.01% BE WITH YOU!
RESOURCES: https://www.notion.so/UPSC-CIVIL-SERVICES-EXAMINATION-d336d34425854dd7bc3fbd98bc1504c8
