CIVIL SERVICES The Application Procedure for the Civil Services Examination is pretty simple.

Electronically scannable Application Forms along with the Information Brochure can be obtained from the designated Head Post Offices / Post Offices throughout the country. The duly filled in Application Form with the acknowledgement card should be sent to - Secretary, Union Public Service Commission, Dholpur House, New Delhi - 110011. For more details regarding Syllabi, Examination Centres and other clauses, interested candidates are advised to check UPSC's Notification issued during December in 'Employment News' and all major newspapers. Scheme of the Examination The successive stages of examination are:
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Preliminary Examination for the selection of candidates for the Main Examination o Main Examination (Written) for the selection of candidates for interview for a Personality Test. o Interview (Personality Test) HOW TO CHOOSE A SUBJECT IN CIVILS:

How to choose a subject? That's one question that haunts many students who many times, loose precious time waiting for that decision to happen. Now that UPSC has done away with specific subjects at the preliminary stage, students should perhaps find it easier to get down to preprations straight away. Even then, One should chooose one's subject well ahead of time, so as to have ample time to collect notes and books, and also to form study groups. Normally one should select optionals, which one is familiar with, or has at least studied till the graduate level. If you are not comfortable with the subject, you should not select the subject as an optional. But the choice should not only be as per your interests but also be based on the study material available. Even science and engineering students take up subjects

like history, sociology, anthropology, grography, political science, psychology and public administration because there is a huge amount of study material available in these subjects. Also keep in mind that you may have been proficient in a subject, but lack of touch may make it tougher to crack technical subject where freshers may do better. The competition is among the people who have opted for the same subject. One should top in his/her subject to succeed in the examination. The Point is, if you are an electrical engineer with 2 years of experience go for a new subject like pub adm or sociology. Analyse the syllabus of previous years and the question papers, and analyse past trends. Get some feedback/advice from seniors and fellow students who are well versed in the subject. Remember no subject is bad. History is good if you can spend more than 4-5 hours everyday. Geography is a good option if you can spend at least 4 hrs every day. Pub Ad, more than 3 hours. Sociology, more than 2 hours and so on.... So, it all depends on how much time you can spend a day and your liking of the subject. You have a very good memory then a technical subject may help else a social subject would be better. Lastly look for overlap in subjects like, sociology and pubad; history and political science etc.

Subject Combinations not allowed by UPSC for IAS exam The following are some combinations that the UPSC does not allow: Political Science & International Relations and Public Administration Commerce and Management Anthropology and Sociology Maths and Statistics Agriculture and Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Science Management and Public Administration

Animal Husbandry & Veterinary Science and Medical Science Any two branches of engineering. Combination of two literatures.

PREMILINARY EXAM

UNION PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION PRESS NOTE Subject: Changes in syllabus and pattern of the Preliminary Examination from 2011 in the scheme of Civil Services Examination
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As per the decision of Government of India, there shall be change in the syllabus and pattern of the Preliminary Examination from 2011 in the scheme of the Civil Services Examination. The Preliminary Examination shall now comprise of two compulsory Papers of 200 marks each and of two hours duration each. Detailed below is the new syllabus and pattern of the Preliminary Examination, which is brought to the notice of the prospective candidates intending to appear at the Civil Services Examination (CSE) in 2011 onwards: Paper I - (200 marks) Duration: Two hours Current events of national and international importance o History of India and Indian National Movement Indian and World Geography - Physical, Social, Economic geography of India and the World. o Indian Polity and Governance Constitution, Political System, Panchayati Raj, Public Policy, Rights Issues, etc. o Economic and Social Development Sustainable Development, Poverty, Inclusion, Demographics, Social Sector Initiatives, etc. General issues on Environmental ecology, Bio-diversity and Climate Change - that do not require subject specialization o General Science.
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Paper II- (200 marks) Duration: Two hours Comprehension o Interpersonal skills including communication skills; o Logical reasoning and analytical ability o Decision making and problem solving o General mental ability o Basic numeracy (numbers and their relations, orders of magnitude etc.) (Class X level), Data interpretation (charts, graphs, tables, data sufficiency etc. -Class X level) o English Language Comprehension skills (Class X level). o Questions relating to English Language Comprehension skills of Class X level (last item in the Syllabus of Paper-II) will be tested through passages from English language only without providing Hindi translation thereof in the question paper. o The questions will be of multiple choice, objective type. o A set of sample questions for both Papers would be put on the UPSC website http://www.upsc.gov.in in due course for reference of the prospective candidates. o The prospective candidates are advised to note that no changes are being introduced at this stage in the Civil Services (Main) Examination and Personality Test in the scheme of Civil Services Examination (CSE).
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More on Civil Services Examinations CIVILS INTERVIE PROCEDURE: Even though the interview carries 300 marks with no minimum qualifying marks, it is the deciding factor at many times of your being within the services or out of it and in the least matters in which service you get.However since the interview is so personal and variable it is most desirable to do very well in the written mains. But an Interview can make or break you so take your personality development rather seriously and make sure to attend some mock interviews at leading institutes. UPSC Interview Questions

UPSC Interview questions range from questions about your choice of subject to why you want to join the civil services. It is good to answer honestly but at the same time avoid cliches like wanting to do service to the nation etc. Questions on your hobbies are imperative so prepare well as they expect some indepth knowledge on that. Questions relating to your name, your college or school name are also a big posibility. If someone well-know shares one of these names please also prepare on that. Also learn up about important events on the year or date of your birth. As you can see, UPSC Interview questions are mainly from what you have filled in your form including your subject but here it is more a test of logic and presentation and awareness rather than pure subject knowledge. In the UPSC interview many questions are situational like what will you do if a Tsunami strikes your district and you are the DM/Collector/SP. Questions on your choice of service preference also need to be prepared. Current affairs analysis is important too. Tips to improve your performance at the UPSC Interview
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There are generally 5 members at the board with the Chairperson seated at the center. Enter confidently and greet the Chairperson, who will probably welcome you, and pleasantly nod at other members. Wait till you are asked to sit. Intelligent listing is the mantra, and for this maintaining eye contact is very important. You should not glare but all the same appear attentive and do not glance at other members, it can be very distracting for the interviewer. However if some other member asks you anything, look at that member and answer and turn back to the first - this is what we do in normal attentive listening. Do not fidget or throw your hands around, or shake your head. Less amount of movement does not mean you should sit unnaturally stiff. Your posture should be attentive and relaxed at the same time. Do not crouch/bend forward or place your hands on the table. Cut your answer short to the required patience shown by the member talking to you. They usually like to talk more, so listen carefully and think for a few seconds before you start answering the question. This

will show that you are organising your thoughts in mind before starting to speak. o Leave some room for difference in opinion. Do take a stand, but do not look adamant or unwilling to appreciate the board's opinion. o Use couple of words from the question while answering any question. It shows you have listened to the question carefully. But at the same time limit the use the technical jargon. o Listen very carefully. Come to the central issue of the enquiry immediately. Wild guessing or speculation are a complete no no. o Do not start evaluating your performance while still inthe interview. Even if you have committed mistakes in the beginning, do not think that you have already lost the game. They are looking for warm, sensitive respectful and attentive youngsters. They know you are good or you would not have come so far. o Talk humbly about your achievements and hobbies. You may have mentioned some hobbies in the form without serious background in them, but before the interview it would be useful to pick up some basic info on the hobby. o Say less to convey more. Less is more these days as per the minimalist creed. Argue logically and generalise correctly. Do not try to read too much between the lines. o Remember, while answering any question, what is easy to see is easy to miss. We often tend to miss the obvious and go for some noncrucial aspect of the subject. o Get up to leave only when the chairperson asks you to, not because you think everyone has asked a question. Similarly, even if someone has not asked a question and the chairperson asks you to leave then please leave. Some members do not ask questions at all, due to various reasons like limited time. o Before leaving politely thank the chairperson and nod at the others politely. Avoid saying "sHave a good day sir". A "Thank you Sir/Madam" is enough. Civil Services Interview by UPSC More on Civil Services Examinations

MAINS E XAM: The Main Examination is to assess the overall intellectual traits and depth of understanding of the candidates. The Written Examination in the Main Examination consists of 9 papers and is conducted according to the following pattern: Sanskrit, Sindhi, Tamil, Telugu, Urdu. ** Optional Subjects for the Main Examination: Agriculture, Animal Husbandry & Veterinary Scienc0e, Anthropology, Botany, Chemistry, Civil Engineering, Commerce & Accountancy, Economics, Electrical Engineering, Geography, Geology, History, Law, Management, Mathematics, Mechanical Engineering, Medical Science, Philosophy, Physics, Political Science & International Relations, Psychology, Public Administration, Sociology, Statistics, Zoology, Literature of one of the following languages: Arabic, Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Kashmiri, Konkani, Marathi, Malayalam, Manipuri, Nepali, Oriya, Pali, Persian, Punjabi, Russian, Sanskrit, Sindhi, Tamil, Telugu, Urdu. More on Civil Services Examinations PAPER SUBJECT DURATION MARKS One Indian language from those included in the Eighth Schedule* of the Constitution English QUESTION TYPE

3 hrs

300

Essay Type

II

3 hrs

300

Conventional Type

III IV&V

Essay General Studies

3 hrs 3 hrs

200 300 for each

Essay Type Essay Type

Two papers in each of VI,VII,VIII two & IX Optional ** Subjects

3 hrs