http://mrunal.org/2012/06/strategy-anthropology.

html

mrunal.org

[Strategy] Anthropology Study-plan and

Booklist by Dr.Vijay (IAS) for UPSC Civil Service
(Mains) Exam

Study-Plans
RBI (Prelims)RBI
(Written)KAS
(Kashmir)ACIOCAT
(IIM)CPF (Asst.
Commandant)SPIPA
(Gujarat Only)

CSAT (IAS
Prelims)

This article, is a compilation of gems

given by Dr. K.Vijayakarthikeyan (AIR 22 /
CSE 2010) on the IOforum. At present,
He is an IAS officer in Tamilnadu cadre.
1. Disclaimer
2. Advantages of anthropology
3. Getting started with Anthropology
4. Preparation of anthropology
(mains)
5. Useful books
6. About these Books
7. Tips for anthropology preparation
8. Importance of diagrams in
anthropology answer writing

Disclaimer
Its completely based on my
anthro strategy which helped
me (Dr. Vijay) get 375 marks in
Anthropology, in 1st attempt in
cse 2010, it worked wonders
with me, it may or may not
work with you

Advantages of
anthropology
1. Scoring subject
2. Interesting subject
3. Easy to grasp especially
For science graduates

Getting started with

Anthropology
Anthropology is divided into two papers

Paper 1
1. Physical anthropology
1. prehistory-evolution of man,
2. biological concepts of man,
3. genetics and diseases,
4. race
2. Social anthropology(sociology
related)
1. family,marriage,religion,kinship
etc
3. Theories
4. Misc demography,research
methodology etc

Paper 2
1. Prehistory in india
2. Indian social system
3. Indian tribes and their problems
Mrunal Edit:

Entire syllabus of
Anthropology can be seen
on the Page 8 of UPSC
2012 Notification (Click
me to download PDF).
IGNOU also run M.A. in
Anthropology but
unfortunately it seems
theyve not uploaded the
PDF material on
www.egyankosh.ac.in, as
they did with History,
Sociology and Public
Administration.

Preparation of
anthropology (mains)

Its advisable to start anthro preparation

as early as possible after the upsc
preliminary examination and with
focussed, systematic study one can
complete the subject by end of august.

Useful books
1. P.Nath(preferred) /das for physical
anthropology.Nath is very useful
for misc topics also
2. Social anthropology by
majumdar/madan
3. Makhan jha's book of anthropology
theories
4. Indian anthropology by R.N. Sharma
5. Indian anthropology by Nadeem
Hasnan

About these Books

1. is interesting but not commission
exam oriented. Just keep glancing
at it when u feel bored with other
stuff thats more than enough. Do
not waste time trying to cram it line
by line.
2. R.n.sharma is good for tribal topics,
also get hold muniratnam sir's
notes plus do keep updating and
make notes from min. Of tribal
affairs websites wrt tribal
legislations,schemes
3. P.nath is good for the genetics
/biology part
4. Makhan Jha is an essential book as
there are no good books available
exclusively for theories) also make
use of internet and prepare notes
for theories given in union public
service commission syllabus that
are not in makhan jha.
5. Das/nath havesimple diagrams for
physical part but parts are not
marked in both. There is a physical
anthro book by r.n.sharma which
has well marked parts but instead
of buying that book just for

diagrams,i suggest you see the

topic in das/nath and then google
the topic (eg. Neanderthal skull)
you'l get beautiful diagrams.for
diagrams on pre historic tools, " an
outline of indian prehistory " by
d.k.bhattacharya is good but again
instead of getting the book you
can get it from the internet. Most
of my flow charts are result of my
own thoughts- i just make a
pictographic representation of the
whole broad concept,didnt refer
anywhere for it.

Tips for anthropology

preparation
Try to start preparation as soon
as upsc preliminary examination are
over(thats the reason for me
posting now) instead of choosing it
late and feeling sorry better start
your preparation asap. I finished the
whole thing in 4 months.
Try attempting physical anthro
based and theory based questions
as much as possible.from what i
know, socio based questions fetch
lesser marks comparitively( i
avoided questions like those on
origin of language in the exam even
though i knew it)
When you come across a case
study, note it down as use it at
appropriate topics where you are
expected to explain the concept
Practice diagrams for physical
part, diagrams will ultimately fetch
us more marks
Do not ignore theories part
,selective study is always
dangerous
Try to make good notes for
theories and misc part as good
material is not available in market.
Keep updating the latest trends
and developments in anthropology
from newspaper/magazines and
internet

Importance of
diagrams in
anthropology answer
writing
Its more catchy and provides
more information,saves examiner's
time also- if he finds your diagram
to be very good, he'l be more
inclined to like your description too..
So as far as physical anthro is
concerned, neat diagrams will
definitely give us an edge over
others.. So practice diagrams
By diagrams i meant anatomical skull,vertebra,bones,teeth diagrams
when we are asked to write about
prehistoric man,also a good
comparative diagram with modern
man also can be given(depending
on question).for questions on
prehistoric stages you can give
good diagrams of the tools used
then, a rough picture of the habitat,
some pictures of artefacts found
etc.. Its easier to draw diagrams and
then explain.
Just read the theory part then
spend 5 mins for looking at the
diagram, then try and do a rough
sketch.. 15 mins /day for the
diagrams should be more than
enough.. That too its only when
you read the physical part..
diagrams are important ( for
physical anthro part only) because
you can draw a picture and explain
things easily than writing paras and
paras( saves time too). It also
shows that you know the concept
better. Nobody will reduce your
marks for not drawing, but you are
bound to get more if u give neat
sketches. So if you want really high
scores then you have to pay
attention to it.
For non physical anthro part
give some pictorial additions like
a cycle(eg. Bonded labour question

in 2010)/ flow chart- that way we

have an edge over others
Question : Is it required to draw
skeletons and dentition for
questions on neanderthals,
australopithecines etc?? Answer.
Yes.. Diagrams will definitely fetch
you more marks..
focussed preparation with good
strategy and guidance will definitely
succeed

From vishal singh

My drawing skills are quite poor and i had
little prior exposure to biology (apart
from ncert and the general stuff). I
decided to take anthropology just before
upsc preliminary examination results
were out in august 2010. Somebody
suggested me to read ember & ember to
have an idea about anthropology, i
found it very interesting, intuitive and
structured. It was already too late, i had
two months time to prepare, that too
without coaching. Although my mains
total of 278 (150+128) is not very
impressive, it is more than what one
expects to manage in two months time. I
regret that i started it so late.
The bottom-line is that if you find the
subject interesting and have right
aptitude, you can prepare it from scratch
even if you've a non life-science
background. Drawing is not a matter of
concern as there are only a few drawings
to be prepared which can be practiced
over time. More important is to
understand the changes in features(in
human anatomy as well as in tools etc.)
And its effect on physical and cultural
evolution. All that can be managed,
provided you have sufficient time and
willing to put efforts.
June 6th, 2012 | Category: strategy
Copyright 2012 Mrunal- All Rights Reserved
Powered by WordPress& Atahualpa