“Sir, I have always wanted to get into the Civil Services. I would like to know how I should prepare myself for the UPSC exams. Does the Higher Education Cell of our college help aspirants prepare for the exams?” asked Sreeja, a second-year student of Electrical and Electronics Engineering. Touched by her passion for civil services, I prolonged my chat with her and raised many questions to assess the intensity of the ‘fire’ in her. Later, I asked Sreeja to talk to Gowtham, a final-year student who has been preparing for Civil Services Prelim exam and attending coaching at an IAS academy.
The duo met me after a few days and threw this request at me: “Why don’t we start a Civil Services aspirants club in our college?” I asked them what was the need for it. Pat came this reply from Sreeja: “There are many students who are interested in Indian Civil Services but they don’t know how to take the next step. They need to be motivated…” Adding to this, Gowtham said: “It is important that we dispel all the myths about Civil Service exams and a career in Civil Services.” Sreeja emphasised that the club would help the members develop their personality, communication skills and gain confidence.
There are thousands of Sreejas and Gowthams in each part of India, who are interested in getting into Civil Services. But due to lack of awareness and guidance, most of them are not able to travel on the right track. It is the responsibility of educational institutions to cater to the needs of these students and help them keep their passion for Civil Services alive and create ways by which they can translate their passion into action.
Civil Services Exams (CSE) are conducted by the Union Public Services Commission (UPSC) which recruits people for services such as Indian Administrative Service (IAS), Indian Police Service (IPS), Indian Foreign Service (IFS), Indian Revenue Service (IRS) and so on.
The CSE process has three stages: Preliminary exam, Mains exam, and Interview (Personality Test). The preliminary exam is a qualifying test held in August every year. It has two objective-type papers (General studies and Aptitude test) of 200 marks each. The marks are considered only for qualification purpose and not for final ranking.
The main exam, held in December, consists of nine papers of essay-type questions. The third stage, held in April/May, is a personality test during which the following qualities and skills are tested: clarity of expression, grasp of narrative and argument, reasoning ability, appreciation of different points of view, awareness and concern for socio-economic problems, ranges and depth of interests and personal attributes relevant to interaction with people.
Every year, over eight lakh candidates apply for CSE but only around 50 per cent of them appear for the Prelims. The number of candidates qualifying for the second stage (Main exams) depends on the number of vacancies in a particular year. For example, in a given year if the number of vacancies is 2,000 and 2,00,000 candidates appear for the Prelims, the top eleven per cent of the candidates, that is, 22,000 candidates, will qualify for the Mains.
Of this, only 4,000-4,200 will be selected for the interview (personality test) round. Out of the 2,000 successful candidates, less than 10 per cent will be selected for the Indian Administrative Services (IAS).
Passion and preparation
The civil services exam is one of the most competitive exams in India. Why do young people aspire to join the Indian Civil Services? “It has been my passion for years. Of course, the tag IAS or IPS would fetch me respect and recognition, but I consider it as an opportunity to serve the nation,” says Jeyapal, a student of mechanical engineering. Adds Gowtham, “My aim is to phase out problems at the grassroots level. In today’s world, the downtrodden are treated in an unjust manner. To help them, one needs power and authority. This drives me to prepare for the Civil Services.”
How can aspirants prepare for CSE? Almost all the aspirants I interviewed read newspapers every day and take current affairs quizzes. The Hindu is the most popular daily for all these students. Jayapal says he has downloaded a few apps, such as IAS Paper, on his mobile phone and takes current affairs quizzes.
Gowtham prepares by meeting IAS and IPS officers and interacting with them. He proudly says his recent interaction with Sylendra Babu IPS has enhanced his motivation level.
The writer is professor of English and head, higher education at KCG College of Technology, Chennai. Email: rayanal@yahoo.co.uk.
Next week: Myths about the civil services exam — interview with former IAS officer R.A. Israel Jebasingh.
