How To Prepare For BCS Exam

The dream of a graduate student revolves around a standard job where he/she can discover honour,
dignity, social status, smart salary, power and most significantly security and the BCS is a first class
government job of Bangladesh where he/she can get all these simultaneously.
BCS (Bangladesh Civil Service) is a selection procedure of first class officer /gazetted officer for the
administration of People's Republic of Bangladesh. Those who are selected through competitive
examinations are called BCS cadre. But the process of selection is multifaceted. One candidate has
to triumph over some stages to be appointed as BCS cadre like "Preliminary Examination," "Written
Examination," "Viva Voce," "Health Test," and "Police Verification."
Almost all educated person is familiar with the BCS examination. None can deny that it is the most
coveted job in Bangladesh. Every candidate wants to be qualified as a BCS. This job gives more
opportunities to the selected persons than any other job. There are twenty eight cadres in the BCS.
These cadres are divided into two groups. One is the general cadre and the other is the professional
cadre. All the cadres are prestigious and celebrated.
Of course, it is true that some cadres are held higher. The Foreign Affairs, Administration and Police
cadres are three of them. There are some reasons behind this. These cadres enjoy more social
recognition and promotion than any other cadres. Whatever, no cadre can be over-looked because it
is BCS which has no comparison with other jobs. It is, so to speak, catching the golden deer to get a
BCS job. Now-a-days, appearing at the BCS examination has become very challenging and
competitive. Thousands of candidates apply for the BCS preliminary examination, but only very few
are selected in the viva voce examination. Many people consider a BCS job as the matter of luck.
But it should be borne in mind that fortune favours only the brave and the qualified candidates. In
other words, every candidate of the BCS needs to have a good preparation to come out
successfully.
Preliminary Objective Test
a) Candidate has to sit for a 100 mark written (MCQ) examination (objective type).
b) 100 questions and 1 mark per question within 1 hour and 0.5 marks to be deducted for one
mistake.
c) Questions are set on Bangla, English, and General Knowledge on Bangladesh affairs and
international affairs, Science and technology, mental skills and mathematical reasoning.
d) BCS Preliminary is generally held in Dhaka, Chittagong, Khulna, Sylhet and Barisal centres.
(a)General cadres: (total marks: 1100)
Subjects of examination Marks
a. Bangla 200
b. English 200
c. Bangladesh affairs 200
d. International affairs 100
e. Mathematical reasoning 100
f. Science and technology 100
g. Viva 200
(b) Professional Cadres: (total marks: 1100)
Subjects of examination Marks
a. Bangla 100
b. English 200
c. Bangladesh affairs 200
d. International affairs 100
e. Mathematical reasoning 100
f. Related subjects examination 200
g. Viva 200
The successful candidates of this stage go for the written test. In the new method, the examination
of two types of candidates-general and professional- is held into two parts which is comprised of
Bangla, English, Mathematics, Bangladesh Affairs and International Affairs and Science and
Technology. Only a few candidates qualify the written test and are called for viva.
Having acquainted with the paraphernalia of BCS, one might get startled. So let us now make out
how we can successfully get ready for the BCS and do away with the BCS phobia:
Preparation for BCS preliminary test
There is no doubt that BCS is a very competitive examination. It requires a very painstaking long-
term preparation. Only reading guidebooks and some selected general knowledge books will not be
enough for excelling in the examination. The preliminary test must be taken seriously as this is the
first stage and gateway to appear at the next stage of written examination. Generally preliminary test
is designed including the following subjects:
For Bangla, the candidates should have a vast knowledge of the literature, poetry, dramas, novels,
short stories, history of Bangla literature, grammar etc. To be well-prepared in all these, one should
study the guide books, Bangla books of Class X, Bangla Grammar of S.S.C. level. It is worth
mentioning that Bangla Grammar is very important for the preliminary Bangla objective questions
because many questions are set from this subject.
For English, an in depth knowledge of English literature including, poets, novelists, dramatists,
grammar, synonyms and antonyms, sentence completion and analogy is required to do well in the
English examination.
For Mathematics, by far the easiest part of BCS examination, candidates should practice
Mathematics of the secondary level of old syllabus and also the new syllabus. For better preparation,
English medium secondary level mathematics books can also be very helpful.
The suggestion about the general knowledge examination is that the candidates have to go through
the newspapers regularly. Besides, they have to read the available books on general knowledge to
prepare them well for the examination.
Ways to do away with written test phobia
This stage is for those who are selected in the preliminary examination. The written test comprises of
six subjects including Bangla, English, Mathematical Reasoning and Mental Ability, General Science
and Technology, Bangladesh Affairs and International Affairs that carries nine hundred marks. The
candidates of the general cadre have to take all these subjects as compulsory. On the other side,
the professional cadres have to take all of the subjects except Bangla II paper and General Science
and Technology. Instead of these two papers they have to take their own subjects from B.A and M.A
level carrying two hundred marks.
For Bangla, candidates have to go through the history of Bangla literature from the ancient period up
to the present. Another thing which is very important for the subject is the Bangla Grammar. Here
they can take help from the H. S. C level grammar books. Besides, a reliable BCS guide book will be
of great use for them. English is dreaded by many. But it poses no problem for those who study the
subject again and again according to the guidelines.
For English, candidates need to read the history of English literature, names of authors and their
writings, literary terms, pair of words, corrections, phrases and idioms, different rules of English
Grammar, structure and use, important essays, prcis and amplifications. Besides, they must have
good command over the English language to do well in the written test of the BCS.
For Mathematics, candidates should practice S.S.C. level Arithmetic, Algebra and Geometry of the
both the old and new syllabus. The subject has to be taken seriously because it makes a huge
difference in the overall marks scored.
For General Science, the H.S.C. level science books will be of great help. Besides, there are
everyday science books written by assorted writers. These books can also be studied to do better. In
the BCS guide books also many questions and answers have been given. They can be gone
through. Candidates should have adequate knowledge of national and international issues. For this
purpose, they have to study the daily newspapers minutely. The H.S.C. level books on Geography,
History, Agriculture, and Civics may be of great help for the improvement of general knowledge.
Moreover, books on the current affairs have to be studied regularly. One thing which is very
important to know is that in some BCS guide books there are questions with answers of many BCS
examinations of the previous years. They are of great help for the candidates. There goes a proverb
that practice makes a man perfect and this can ensure a good result for the candidates. So, those
who desire to sit for the BCS examination must practice all the subjects from the very beginning
following a regular routine and without wasting time.
Preparation for the viva voce
The final stage for the BCS examination is the viva voce examination carrying two hundred marks.
For the viva voce, candidates must have a vast knowledge of almost "everything." They have to be
very tactful and smart in their answers because, it is the final stage for the BCS cadre. Every
question should be answered very technically. The viva board may ask questions on any
contemporary issues including the subjects she/he has studied at B.A. and M.A. levels. Some
candidates become unnecessarily nervous. This causes a negative impact on the viva board.
Candidates must feel comfortable and should take the oral examination lightly. A positive mood of
the candidates is very essential for a successful result in the viva voce. In addition, the candidates
must put on clean and formal clothes for the purpose.
Medical test:
Candidates have to face the Medical test for getting final nomination by the PSC. A male candidate's
height must be at least 5 feet and the height of female candidate at least 4 feet 10 inches.
Otherwise, in any cadre post he/she will not be able to be appointed. The weight of a male candidate
must be at least 45kg and female candidate 40 kg.
Some additional tips
The candidates will have to take good preparation for all the stages. Questions should be answered
relevantly and technically. Simple structure should be used. Easy words need to be written to make
the expression lucid and clear. Brevity and relevance are very necessary. The same sentence
should not be repeated. It annoys the examiner may not fetch satisfactory marks. Scratching out
words or sentences harms the beauty of the answer script. The answer should be neat and clean.
Difficult words and complex sentences have to be avoided as far as possible.
These are the instructions and our findings which, if a student applies, can help to put into practice
his/her dream to be a BCS cadre.
In short, honour, respect, security, public recognition, power exercise, social service, and career, all
these things can be found as a cadre of the BCS. In this competitive examination success cannot be
achieved without comprehensive preparation and strong determination. That is why it needs a strong
will-force, indefatigable toiling, long-term persevering, strong determination and unremitting patience.
[The writers are the final year students of the Department of Political Science at the University of
Dhaka ]